The Gun That Preserved the Union in the American Civil War

The total years between the end of the American Revolutionary War in 1783 (the civil war when British colonialists fought British soldiers, also known as American Patriots fighting American Loyalists to the Crown) to the beginning of the American Civil War in 1861 (when American Northerners fought American Southerners) were 78; a time of merely 3 generations.

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Within that span, the gun, Brown Bess—popularly used in the 18th-century conflict (1775–1783)—evolved into the Springfield Model 1861, used in the 19th-century hostility (1861–1865).

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The primary difference between the Brown Bess and the Springfield Model 1861 is the transition from a smoothbore, flintlock musket with limited accuracy to a rifled, percussion-cap musket with significantly increased range and precision.

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The “Springfield” (named after its original place of production, Springfield, Massachusetts) fired a .58 caliber Minié ball (a type of hollow-based bullet). Its length was approximately 56 inches (about 4.5 feet) and weight around 9 pounds; its bayonet was about 21 inches, weighing one pound, making the rifle/bayonet’s combined weight 10 pounds.

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A confident soldier could fire the Springfield at a rate of three aimed shots per minute while maintaining accuracy up to 500 yards due to the addition of spiral grooves inside the gun’s barrel, imparting a stabilizing spin to the bullet.

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A Union soldier’s load carrying equipment averaged 30–40 pounds:

• uniform: wool coat, shirt, and pants
• regulation hat or cap
• stiff leather shoes
• rifle
• bayonet in a scabbard
• leather belt with a buckle
• leather tin-lined cartridge box
• 40 paper cartridges containing gunpowder
• 40 bullets (with another 20–40 carried in his pockets)
• leather cap box
• 48 percussion caps
• metal or wooden canteen with water
• wool blanket roll and bedding
• trowel/entrenching tool
• knapsack
• cooking and mess gear
• tin cup
• food
• extra clothing
• rubber or canvas shelter half
• sewing kit
• candle & matches
• personal items
• Bible
• family photos
• letters
• playing cards
• a pipe, etc.

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During the Civil War, the Union used the official US flag with a varying number of stars (33, 34, 35, and 36) representing all the states of America (including the 11 Confederate States). The 33-star flag was in use prior to the war’s start. The star for Kansas was added in July 1861, for West Virginia in 1863, and for Nevada in 1865.

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Approximately 3 million soldiers served in the Civil War, with around 2.1 million in the Union army and an estimated 750,000 to just under 1 million in the Confederate army. The total number of men who served represents a significant portion of the total American population at the time. Modern research estimates the total number of Civil War deaths is between 698,000 and 750,000. Disease was the leading cause of death.

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Also see:

⇨   ArmyHeritage.org: Answering the Call: The Personal Equipment of a Civil War Soldier

⇨   HistoryNet.com: The ’61 Springfield Rifle Musket

⇨   NRA Museums: Springfield vs. Enfield

⇨   US Senate: Civil War Begins—April 12, 1861

⇨   Abraham Lincoln Online: The Gettysburg Address

⇨   PBS: The Civil War

⇨   Library of Congress: Civil War and Reconstruction, 1861-1877

⇨   American Civil War Museum: Explore the American Civil War!

⇨   Wikipedia: American Civil War

⇨   National Park Service: The Civil War

⇨   American Battlefield Trust: A Brief Overview of the American Civil War

⇨   History.com: Civil War

⇨   EBSCO: U.S. Civil War

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