Artificer

lelliott19

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In artillery, a non-commissioned officer or enlisted man who was a skilled craftsman or specialist of some kind. A member of an armed forces service who is skilled at working on artillery in the field. These men would have been competent in metal and wood working, as well as repair of artillery wagons, limbers, caissons, wheels, etc. Rather than contract for these services, skilled craftsmen were enlisted to perform these duties.
 
In artillery, a non-commissioned officer or enlisted man who was a skilled craftsman or specialist of some kind. A member of an armed forces service who is skilled at working on artillery in the field. These men would have been competent in metal and wood working, as well as repair of artillery wagons, limbers, caissons, wheels, etc. Rather than contract for these services, skilled craftsmen were enlisted to perform these duties.
An artificer and a smith had a subtle difference. The smith concentrated on horseshoes, almost a farrier. The artificer concentrated on repairs to the wagons, limbers, caissons and cannons. All were somewhat skilled in hammering metal into shape.
 
each full battery ( 6 guns) would have 6 artificer's ( for war footing) 1 battery wagon and 1 forge. the limbers used for these would hold tools and supplies. the way the limber was loaded with supplies was very detailed in the field artillery manual. all boxes and containers had specific sizes, and how they fit in the limber was specified, so the limber would be completely
full with no wasted space.
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The Engineers also had artificers. All were enlisted, but not NCOs. They were essentially the equivalent of a modern PFC. They received a slight raise in pay due to a demonstrated skill in one of the trades. Many of the pension cards of the Engineers list men as artificers. They are different in title than farriers but essentially make more money for the same reason- they had a skill that was in need.
 
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