Rhea Cole
Major
- Joined
- Nov 2, 2019
- Location
- Murfreesboro, Tennessee
How Were Empty Artillery Ammunition Boxes Exchanged?
During a visit to Stones River N.B. I had a chance to photograph a limber, Aimes 14 pound rifle & a caisson with a limber all in one frame.
These pieces are ordinarily properly in battery at the position of the Chicago Board of Trade Battery position Dec 31, 1862.
They had been moved during maintenance.
Several times on this forum the question of how artillery ammunition boxes were exchanged.
There is a clearly defined procedure by the numbers in the manual, but that isn't a very easy thing to understand.
This is a photo of the ammunition box attached to the caisson's limber. The box has a tab with a hole in it built into the straps on either side.
A 'T' shaped dowel passes through the tab.
Underneath is the retaining pin that passes through a hole in the dowel. A chain attaches the pin to the limber.
To remove the ammunition box, simply remove the pins & tip the limber up to slide it off.
The lunette at the end of the caisson pole is held in place by a locking pin that you can see the handle of.
The metal plate camera left is there to protect the pole from contact with the metal tire of the wheel.
This is a close up of the retaining pin.
On the other side of the ammunition box is tab that fits into a clip mounted in the center of the caisson.
When the boxes are loaded & unloaded, the tab slides into & out of the clip, securely holding the box in place.
The spare wheel & its mounting hardware would be dismounted to replace the rear box on the caisson.
The casting the spare wheel is mounted on & the hardware for the ammunition box is clearly shown in this image.
Note the pin used to retain the wheel mounting to facilitate the dismounting & replacement of the box.
The large hook is used to connect the loop on the lunette (loop) of another caisson or limber for towing.
As with everything involving the nuts & bolts of Civil War artillery, the mounting & dismounting of the ammunition boxes was the fruit of 300 years of evolution. The mantra would be if it is clumsy to do, you are doing it wrong. What may not be obvious in the photos is that raising & lowering the pole will easily pivot the limber or caisson on its axil. That greatly facilitated handling the very heavy boxes. You could literally tip the limber & slide the box on or off. The shape of the handles built into the boxes are designed to facilitate handling as well has providing something to desperately cling to when riding on the box.During a visit to Stones River N.B. I had a chance to photograph a limber, Aimes 14 pound rifle & a caisson with a limber all in one frame.
These pieces are ordinarily properly in battery at the position of the Chicago Board of Trade Battery position Dec 31, 1862.
They had been moved during maintenance.
Several times on this forum the question of how artillery ammunition boxes were exchanged.
There is a clearly defined procedure by the numbers in the manual, but that isn't a very easy thing to understand.
This is a photo of the ammunition box attached to the caisson's limber. The box has a tab with a hole in it built into the straps on either side.
A 'T' shaped dowel passes through the tab.
Underneath is the retaining pin that passes through a hole in the dowel. A chain attaches the pin to the limber.
To remove the ammunition box, simply remove the pins & tip the limber up to slide it off.
The lunette at the end of the caisson pole is held in place by a locking pin that you can see the handle of.
The metal plate camera left is there to protect the pole from contact with the metal tire of the wheel.
This is a close up of the retaining pin.
On the other side of the ammunition box is tab that fits into a clip mounted in the center of the caisson.
When the boxes are loaded & unloaded, the tab slides into & out of the clip, securely holding the box in place.
The spare wheel & its mounting hardware would be dismounted to replace the rear box on the caisson.
The casting the spare wheel is mounted on & the hardware for the ammunition box is clearly shown in this image.
Note the pin used to retain the wheel mounting to facilitate the dismounting & replacement of the box.
The large hook is used to connect the loop on the lunette (loop) of another caisson or limber for towing.
Note: Photos by the author at Stones River National Battlefield, MurfreesboroTN. The section of two Aimes 14 pounders can normally be seen on the westward side of the visitor center.
Ammunition box tab & clip on a limber.
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