Ammo Shot with Ramrod Attached

Tom Hughes

Sergeant Major
Joined
May 27, 2019
Location
Mississippi
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Here's the first minie ball I ever dug in Vicksburg. I found it with the ramrod impression covered in iron.
I suspect this bullet was fired from the musket with the ramrod still in the barrel and attached to the bullet.
You can also tell with this one that it is a hard rammed minie.
 
Tom, I believe that what you have is a 3 ringer that has had another loaded on top of it. I have found several of these but only at siege battles. Blakeley and Vicksburg. A soldier in the trenches would do all kind of weird stuff. They would load a normal powder charge and 3 ringer and then tear another 3 ringer (just) bullet and ram it on top of the first bullet. We always figured they thought if they load 2 bullets they would kill 2 yankees. :D If you will find another 3 ringer of the SAME type and place it on the top of that one I think it will be a perfect fit. I don't know of a ramrod with that deep or pronounced cup.
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Tom, I believe that what you have is a 3 ringer that has had another loaded on top of it. I have found several of these but only at siege battles. Blakeley and Vicksburg. A soldier in the trenches would do all kind of weird stuff. They would load a normal powder charge and 3 ringer and then tear another 3 ringer (just) bullet and ram it on top of the first bullet. We always figured they thought if they load 2 bullets they would kill 2 yankees. :D If you will find another 3 ringer of the SAME type and place it on the top of that one I think it will be a perfect fit. I don't know of a ramrod with that deep or pronounced cup.
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I never thought about that scenario....but why the iron residue? Where did that come from?
 
At many CW battle sites, lumber mills would not buy wood from a battle site because of steel ramrods embedded in the wood. The lead was no problem for the saw blades but the ramrods embedded in the tree would tear up saw blades.
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So will horse shoes if the saw blade hits it at the right angle, the band saw blade would either break or sometime crack. It the saw was circular say 60 inch the shoe would do a little more damage to the saw..
 
I never thought about that scenario....but why the iron residue? Where did that come from?
Here is the cup of a Springfield ramrod. It that bullet was fired with the ramrod in the barrel then there should be a small teat indention on the end of the bullet where the lead was pushed into the small hole at the end of the cup. It hard to see if that is present in the photo but it would be a very defined feature. As far as the rust goes I could see it if the ram rod was still attached to the bullet when found as over time the iron would rust but with lead being softer then the iron I really can't see why it would be there. Just sayin.
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I never thought about that scenario....but why the iron residue? Where did that come from?
If this round was fired with the ramrod on top of it or say even with the ramrod half way down the barrel once the soldier brought the rifle up to his shoulder to fire it, then it seems possible that the bullet and ramrod could have gone down range together and embedded in the ground together, the ramrod being steel, rusted away over time and left traces embedded on the bullet. Seems a possibility.

I once read years ago and then again here recently about the muskets picked up around Gettysburg with 2, 3, 4, 5 or more rounds loaded in the barrel, soldiers never remembering to fire after loading; the result of people acting under immense stress. I have seen hunters do similar things with modern weapons acting under "buck fever".
 
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If this round was fired with the ramrod on top of it or say even with the ramrod half way down the barrel once the soldier brought the rifle up to his shoulder to fire it, then it seems possible that the bullet and ramrod could have gone down range together and embedded in the ground together, the ramrod being steel, rusted away over time and left traces embedded on the bullet. Seems a possibility.

I once read years ago and then again here recently about the muskets picked up around Gettysburg with 2, 3, 4, 5 or more rounds loaded in the barrel, soldiers never remembering to fire after loading; the result of people acting under immense stress. I have seen hunters do similar things with modern weapons acting under "buck fever".
That’s always been my theory.
 
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Here's the first minie ball I ever dug in Vicksburg. I found it with the ramrod impression covered in iron.
I suspect this bullet was fired from the musket with the ramrod still in the barrel and attached to the bullet.
You can also tell with this one that it is a hard rammed minie.
Ive got quite a few of those, it was likely just a hard Ram. If it had been fired with the ramrod still in the barrel you would see alot more compression of the bullet similar to what is shown in this picture. But I could definitely be wrong

ramrod.jpg
 
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Ive got quite a few of those, it was likely just a hard Ram. If it had been fired with the ramrod still in the barrel you would see alot more compression of the bullet similar to what is shown in this picture. But I could definitely be wrong

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I guess what stumped me was the iron residue caked onto the ball nose. What could’ve caused that?
 
I guess what stumped me was the iron residue caked onto the ball nose. What could’ve caused that?
not sure, maybe its soil stained to it, we get that here in Virginia, I'll clean a bullet of dirt but it still has a brown stain to it. Might be the way the bullet oxidized? I just commented on one of your other posts where you do have a Ramrod fired minnie with out a doubt in my mind
 
not sure, maybe its soil stained to it, we get that here in Virginia, I'll clean a bullet of dirt but it still has a brown stain to it. Might be the way the bullet oxidized? I just commented on one of your other posts where you do have a Ramrod fired minnie with out a doubt in my mind
Thanks!
 
Here are three examples of accidentally firing with something in the barrel.
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Ramer fired 2.jpg


-photo of a portion of ramrod removed from unidentified soldier wounded at Drewry’s Bluff (1864), who walked into a field hospital with the ramrod in his thigh, asked a surgeon to remove it, and afterwards walked out.

-photo of a portion of ramrod removed from the foot of Private Joseph Shannausen (Showanassen), Company K, 1st Michigan Sharpshooters, wounded at Spotsylvania.

-photo of tompion removed from arm of Private Oliver B. Burnham, Company K, 18th Connecticut. He accidentally dropped his weapon, which discharged, lodging the tompion in the head of his humerus. He died of gangrene.
 
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