Bite Marks in bullets.

Joined
Feb 18, 2013
http://civilwarscholars.com/2011/10/myth-no-2-biting-on-the-bullet-for-pain-george-wunderlich/

Can you think of another reason bite marks may be found in bullets?
I sat thinking of a possibility. Could it be, that during battles, newer soldiers or those who were incredibly nervous found it challenging to open bags found on their waists, and in order to shorten the time of loading, held the bullets in their mouths? Maybe? Perhaps? Now, the question arises why would the soldier bite down on the bullets? Could it be that nervousness under fire that caused them to clench their teeth? Could it be that a man holding bullets in his mouth was fired upon and fear caused him to clench his teeth? Could it be that a man was shot and the pain caused him to clench his teeth? Now, another question arises, Where were these bullets with teeth marks found? In the fields of battle or in sites of hospitals? If they were found on the field of battle it is a possibility they had been fired and found themselves in the grounds, bite marks still intact. A soldier could have dropped them from the mouth on the field of battle, a runaway could spit them out as he leaves all his other gear as well. Now if they were found in a hospital, Could they have been fired, hitting a man, remaining in his body and removed at the hospital? I am lead to believe this is not a possibility in the fact that a bullet entering the body would not have the bite marks intact. If the bullet struck a bone for example, it would be shattered or molded into a different shape, perhaps causing the bite marks to be invisible. If the bullet struck a fleshy part of the body, causing it to retain its shape and marks, I am lead to believe it would pass through the body entirely. I leave this open for you to form your own possibilities and opinions.
 
With the blood, flesh and body fluids that a bullet passing through flesh attract, I would think that they would also attract animals who were looking for a meal. The body parts that were removed during surgery were often just dumped on the ground or in shallow pits and if the bullet was still in the detached appendage the animals would chew on them also.
 
There are any number of reasons and or possibilities why a bullet would have teeth marks on it. The favorite a lot of people like to believe is some poor soldier was the 10,000th man being worked on after the battle and he had to "bite the bullet" because all the chloroform was gone. Possible but not likely. The biting of bullets probably did occur but not near the numbers popularly believed. Many teeth marks are probably from animals.

I purchased a group of bullets from a Civil War relic dealer a while back and in the grouping there was about 3 that looked to have teeth marks on them. For the sake of interest I gave then to a friend who was a dentist and had him look at them. His conclusion one had human teeth marks another was probably from an animal and the third was inconclusive.

Civil War soldiers like any soldiers were bored and many bullets were probably chewed as something to do. In the 1860s no one knew lead was bad for you remember. Also marching around often times with very little water readily available or an opportunity to stop and get some probably resulted in soldiers chewing bullets to keep their mouths from going dry.

At the end of the day though who really knows.
 
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Also marching around often times with very little water readily available or an opportunity to stop and get some probably resulted in soldiers chewing bullets to keep their mouths from going dry.

That's one explanation that strikes me as plausible. There are plenty of references to desperate people holding a pebble in their mouth to relieve thirst. And we know the soldiers often suffered from great thirst. If you don't know that lead is bad for you, a soft bullet that you could work your teeth into would be a pleasing alternative to a pebble.

I was taught as a kid to bite split shot sinkers onto a fishing line. It was probably terrible for me but I remember liking it. Bite slow and firm and your teeth sink in. I can absolutely picture guys doing that on a thirsty march to get saliva going in their mouth.
 
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I've heard of this myth and I always thought, why bite a bullet when there are so many other things to chew on while in pain? Just the thought of chewing on any piece of metal makes my teeth hurt. It would make more sense to chew on a piece of cloth.
 
I have upwards of 15 chewed bullets in my collection. Many you can clearly distinct human teeth marks in. After a few years my family has concluded theyre what's called "pain bullets". Soldiers wounded on the field would take a round from theyre cartridge box and chew on the soft lead to prevent from biting theyre tounge clear off or damaging theyre teeth. I have a sharps round that's completely covered in bite marks which we did determine were human.
 
Of all the ACW bullets in my collection, the one that invariably draws the most attention is an old 3-ring with distinctive teeth marks that I've labeled - "Hospital Bullet". I found this bullet at the site of an Army field hospital in Corinth, MS, and in describing this bullet to friends and visitors, I usually start off with... "Have you ever heard the phrase - Bite the bullet"? ... and then go on to tell a ghastly tale of how soldiers were sometimes given an ordinary soft lead bullet to bite on during field surgical operations or amputations (when chloroform was unavailable or ineffective), to keep the soldier from biting down or grinding his teeth together because of the pain, and potentially breaking his teeth. It is also possible a "chewed" bullet was simply jammed between a patient's teeth to help maintain an open airway.

In reality, I suspect the vast majority of these "chewed" bullets were simply rooted out of the ground by animals, particularly hogs, long after the battle, and then dropped as soon as the animal bit down and realized they were inedible. Realities aside, they do serve to demonstrate the horror of medical conditions at the time, and to some extent, the terrible wounds an ounce of (relatively slow-moving) soft lead buzzing through the air could inflict on the human body.
 
These are a few lead bullets that have been found which look like discarded pieces of chewing gum, the author writes
' These examples were literally chewed up like pieces of gum.'
'What would you do when your friend or fellow soldier is lying there in the most horrible pain, screaming and crying and begging for help? You would give him/them what little whiskey you had, and perhaps you would give him something to bite on. A piece of leather, or a bullet. After all, fired and dropped bullets were about the only thing the average soldier had in plentiful supply, and were used for carving to pass time and to make everything from fishing weights, pencils, and game pieces These bullets were chewed for hours and hours, not just during a relatively short surgical procedure. The one at the bottom can be popped in the mouth and fits like a mouth piece. The teeth marks are distinct, and these were all found on the lawn of the mansion.' The soldier’s teeth would initially only indent the bullet slightly, but over time the warmth of the mouth and persistent biting would soften up the lead and over hours or days you’d end up with what looks just like discarded chewing gum, albeit lead.

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source http://detecting365.com/cw-relic-mythbusters-2-soldier-chewed-bullets/
 
During battle, a crude field infirmary was set up, shrapnel and dangling, busted-up limbs removed. A bullet would be given for the patient to clamp down on, when ether wasn't available, to stifle his screams.
 
During battle, a crude field infirmary was set up, shrapnel and dangling, busted-up limbs removed. A bullet would be given for the patient to clamp down on, when ether wasn't available, to stifle his screams.
I just can't see that happening, I know its been said before but why would anyone encourage a wounded soldier to pop something into his mouth that he could possibly choke on, wouldn't a strap of leather or a piece of cloth been better, I think that this biting the bullet is a myth.
 
I just can't see that happening, I know its been said before but why would anyone encourage a wounded soldier to pop something into his mouth that he could possibly choke on, wouldn't a strap of leather or a piece of cloth been better, I think that this biting the bullet is a myth.
You're likely correct.

I cannot imagine why the lead would be so chewed up... almost like a wad of bubble gum. I know it is a soft metal, and back then, they did not know of the deadly nature of lead. Would the CSA Army have chewed lead when they were starving? I've heard of starving country people in the South eating clay from a dirt bank. This was told to me by my mother. "They were craving minerals." she said.
 
You're likely correct.

I cannot imagine why the lead would be so chewed up... almost like a wad of bubble gum. I know it is a soft metal, and back then, they did not know of the deadly nature of lead. Would the CSA Army have chewed lead when they were starving? I've heard of starving country people in the South eating clay from a dirt bank. This was told to me by my mother. "They were craving minerals." she said.
I think that there's a distinct possibility that men chewed the lead to either prevent thirst or they just chewed it like we would with chewing gum. Could it be that chewing helped to calm the nerves. I've seen people that have taken illicit drugs like amphetamine's and they will chew gum, it apparently helps to keep them calm and the chewing is used as another way to redirect their nervous energy.
If you imagine a young soldier facing combat for the first time, his anxiety levels not to mention his adrenalin are going to be going through the roof, I can imagine a much older or more experienced soldier saying, 'calm down, you are talking to much, just relax, here chew on this it will help to keep your mind focused.'
My thinking is that biting the bullet as a medical aid was a myth but the chewing of lead was probably quite normal, there's plenty of chewing gum sized pieces of lead being found that suggest it was quite a common occurrence.

Another thought occurred to me, could men have chewed the lead as a substitute for tobacco,I've never chewed tobacco but I would imagine that it tastes just as bad as lead.
 
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There's one other oddball explanation - teeth. Sometimes, if you have a toothache, chewing something hard feels good. And...sometimes fixes the tooth. There has been at least one Confederate soldier with shotgun pellets in his teeth for filling.
 
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