New Tech in ACW
All new technology should be listed here. If possible list first date of use and place of use. Pics and newspaper articles are welcomed.
Rifles und Muskets after 1861.
Model (Springfield)1861 U.S. Rifle-Musket
Made by Springfield Armory; c. 1861-1862. Total produced about 265,12.The Model 1861 was the standard musket in use during the civil war. A major improvement over the Model 1855 was the elimination of the Maynard primer system. This model served as the pattern for most arms made for war use. Approximately 1,000,000 were manufactured by the Springfield Armory and private contractors.
Model 1863 U.S. Rifle-Musket, Type I and Type II
Made by Springfield Armory, c. 1863 (Type I) and 1864-1865 (Type II). Total produced was about 273,265 for Type I and 255,040 for Type II. The Type II is the last regulation U.S. martial arm of muzzle-loading design.
Richmond Armory Percussion Rifle-Musket
Made by Richmond Armory; c. 1861-1865. Total produced unknown. The Richmond Armory Percussion Rifled-Musket was produced in larger numbers than all other Confederate longarms.
Carbines were generally issued to Cavalry troops. Musketoons were generally issued to Artillery troops.
Cook & Brother Carbine
Made by Ferdinand and Francis Cook, Athens Georgia; c.1863-1864. Total produced unknown;
Richmond Carbine
Made by Richmond Armory; c.1861-1865. Total produced unknown.
J. P. Murray Musketoon
Made by Eldridge S. Greenwood and William C. Gray, Columbus, Georgia; c.1862-1864. Total produced unknown.
[color="Red"]*These are muskets and rifles produced in USA and CSA from 1861.[/color]
Made by Springfield Armory; c. 1861-1862. Total produced about 265,12.The Model 1861 was the standard musket in use during the civil war. A major improvement over the Model 1855 was the elimination of the Maynard primer system. This model served as the pattern for most arms made for war use. Approximately 1,000,000 were manufactured by the Springfield Armory and private contractors.
Model 1863 U.S. Rifle-Musket, Type I and Type II
Made by Springfield Armory, c. 1863 (Type I) and 1864-1865 (Type II). Total produced was about 273,265 for Type I and 255,040 for Type II. The Type II is the last regulation U.S. martial arm of muzzle-loading design.
Richmond Armory Percussion Rifle-Musket
Made by Richmond Armory; c. 1861-1865. Total produced unknown. The Richmond Armory Percussion Rifled-Musket was produced in larger numbers than all other Confederate longarms.
Carbines were generally issued to Cavalry troops. Musketoons were generally issued to Artillery troops.
Cook & Brother Carbine
Made by Ferdinand and Francis Cook, Athens Georgia; c.1863-1864. Total produced unknown;
Richmond Carbine
Made by Richmond Armory; c.1861-1865. Total produced unknown.
J. P. Murray Musketoon
Made by Eldridge S. Greenwood and William C. Gray, Columbus, Georgia; c.1862-1864. Total produced unknown.
[color="Red"]*These are muskets and rifles produced in USA and CSA from 1861.[/color]
Interesting article
[SIZE="4"]Civil War Weapons[/size]
The United States was a leading firearms producer in the world, especially in techniques of mass production and standardization of parts, but the majority of equipment and raw materials were in the North.
Major developments:
- Heavy reliance on fire power (the bayonet becomes obsolete)
- Dramatic rise in the lethality of small arms in comparison to artillery or sword
- Increased fire power doomed frontal assault and ushered in the entrenched battlefield
Rifled Musket
- Backbone of war
- Much more accurate than smoothbore musket, increased combat range, equipped with sight
- New percussion ignition more reliable than flintlock
- Reversed lethal capability between infantry weapons and artillery; rifle fire accounted for 90% of battlefield casualties
- Increased range and rate of fire led to the spreading out of armies, actions longer and less decisive
- Could stop attack at 200 to 300 yards
- Fire 2 or 3 rounds per minute
- Increased the power of the defender over the attacker by at least 3:1
- Gave infantrymen a weapon with the same effective range as the largest and most powerful cannon
- Soldier had to remain upright to load and in formation to have volume of fire needed to stop a charge
- Leaders with experience from the Mexican War unfamiliar with the new capabilities of the rifled musket
Repeaters and Breechloaders
- New inventions, did not play a major role
- Army skeptical
- 15 to 20 designs for repeaters and breechloaders being presented to the army at any time during the war, each totally different in design, taking different type and caliber of ammunition
- Cartridge cases and rifle designs in infancy
- Manufacturing plants still not capable of producing breechloaders or repeaters in the amount needed
Repeaters
- Difficulties with design, weight and smoke produced
- Gatling gun not very practical, had to load and clean sleeves
Breechloading rifle
- Allowed quicker reloading without standing and exposing oneself to enemy fire
- Needed improved production and good brass cartridge to become more feasible
Artillery
- The Napolean, a smoothbore, muzzle-loading cannon, was the most popular artillery piece (maximum effective rate 4 rounds/minute
- Rifled cannon
Ammunition
- Minie ball
Land Mines
- In use by the Confederates by 1862
The United States was a leading firearms producer in the world, especially in techniques of mass production and standardization of parts, but the majority of equipment and raw materials were in the North.
Major developments:
- Heavy reliance on fire power (the bayonet becomes obsolete)
- Dramatic rise in the lethality of small arms in comparison to artillery or sword
- Increased fire power doomed frontal assault and ushered in the entrenched battlefield
Rifled Musket
- Backbone of war
- Much more accurate than smoothbore musket, increased combat range, equipped with sight
- New percussion ignition more reliable than flintlock
- Reversed lethal capability between infantry weapons and artillery; rifle fire accounted for 90% of battlefield casualties
- Increased range and rate of fire led to the spreading out of armies, actions longer and less decisive
- Could stop attack at 200 to 300 yards
- Fire 2 or 3 rounds per minute
- Increased the power of the defender over the attacker by at least 3:1
- Gave infantrymen a weapon with the same effective range as the largest and most powerful cannon
- Soldier had to remain upright to load and in formation to have volume of fire needed to stop a charge
- Leaders with experience from the Mexican War unfamiliar with the new capabilities of the rifled musket
Repeaters and Breechloaders
- New inventions, did not play a major role
- Army skeptical
- 15 to 20 designs for repeaters and breechloaders being presented to the army at any time during the war, each totally different in design, taking different type and caliber of ammunition
- Cartridge cases and rifle designs in infancy
- Manufacturing plants still not capable of producing breechloaders or repeaters in the amount needed
Repeaters
- Difficulties with design, weight and smoke produced
- Gatling gun not very practical, had to load and clean sleeves
Breechloading rifle
- Allowed quicker reloading without standing and exposing oneself to enemy fire
- Needed improved production and good brass cartridge to become more feasible
Artillery
- The Napolean, a smoothbore, muzzle-loading cannon, was the most popular artillery piece (maximum effective rate 4 rounds/minute
- Rifled cannon
Ammunition
- Minie ball
Land Mines
- In use by the Confederates by 1862
Another good one
Civil War Technology
Old
Tactics
Medicine
Artillery
New
Rifled Muskets & Minie Ball
Transportation (Rail & Steam)
Communication (Telegraph)
Industrial Production
Logistics
Mass Production of Weapons
Photography
Experimental
Iron Clad Ships
Submarine
Mines
Breechloading & Repeating Gun Designs
Torpedo
Air Reconnaissance (Balloons)
Old
Tactics
Medicine
Artillery
New
Rifled Muskets & Minie Ball
Transportation (Rail & Steam)
Communication (Telegraph)
Industrial Production
Logistics
Mass Production of Weapons
Photography
Experimental
Iron Clad Ships
Submarine
Mines
Breechloading & Repeating Gun Designs
Torpedo
Air Reconnaissance (Balloons)
I post here something I did in the Beta "Events" workshop some weeks ago which should fit fine here:
Name: USS Merrimack becomes CSS Virginia
Date: After the CSA takes Norfolk (or May 24th 1861, Merrimack is raised)
Description: The order was sent to destroy Norfolk shipyard rather than allow it to fall into Confederate hands but the steam frigate USS Merrimack sank before it completely burned. When the Confederates entered the yard, they raised the Merrimack and decided to use her to build an ironclad ram. This new ship was named Virginia. She had an iron deck and casement, four inches thick. She mounted ten cannons, one in front and rear and four on each side.
Effect 1: CSS Virginia appears under construction in Norfolk
Effect 2: The CSA can now build ironclads
Event: "Ericsson folly" The Union decides to build a new type of ironclad warship
Date: October 4th 1861 (or 3 monthes after the Confederate capture of Norfolk)
Description: The confederate decision to transform the captured frigate USS Merrimack in an ironclad ship in order to break the blocus drives the US Navy to build a new type of warship to face this new threat. John Ericsson's project is chosen among 17 others. The USS Monitor, quicker to build than her competitor, is described as a "cheesebox on a raft", consisting of a heavy round iron turret on the deck housing two large Dahlgren cannon. The armored deck was barely above the waterline.
Effect 1: USS Monitor appears under constrution in Brooklyn
Effect 2: The Union can now build Monitor ships
"Never argue with a fool, onlookers may not be able to tell the difference." Mark Twain
Balloons
The Union Army Balloon Corps was a branch of the Federal Army during the American Civil War established by the presidentially appointed Prof. Thaddeus S. C. Lowe as a civilian operation which employed a group of aeronauts and seven specially built, gas-filled aerostats for the purposes of performing aerial reconnaissance of the Confederate Army.
Lowe was a veteran balloonist who among other balloonists in the country was working his way toward an attempt at a transatlantic crossing. The Civil War interrupted his efforts, but he offered his aviation expertise to the development of an air-war mechanism through the use of aerostats. Lowe met with President Abraham Lincoln on July 11, 1861, and proposed a demonstration with his own balloon, the Enterprise on the White House front lawn. From a height of 500 feet he telegraphed a message to the ground describing his view of the Washington countryside. Eventually he was chosen, over others, to be Chief Aeronaut of the newly formed Union Army Balloon Corps.
The Balloon Corps with its hand-selected band of expert aeronauts served in Yorktown, Fair Oaks, Sharpsburg, Fredericksburg and other major battles of the Potomac and Peninsula. The Balloon Corps served the Union Army from October 1861 to the Summer of 1863 when it was finally disbanded following the resignation of Prof. Lowe.
[color="Red"]*from wiki[/color]
Lowe was a veteran balloonist who among other balloonists in the country was working his way toward an attempt at a transatlantic crossing. The Civil War interrupted his efforts, but he offered his aviation expertise to the development of an air-war mechanism through the use of aerostats. Lowe met with President Abraham Lincoln on July 11, 1861, and proposed a demonstration with his own balloon, the Enterprise on the White House front lawn. From a height of 500 feet he telegraphed a message to the ground describing his view of the Washington countryside. Eventually he was chosen, over others, to be Chief Aeronaut of the newly formed Union Army Balloon Corps.
The Balloon Corps with its hand-selected band of expert aeronauts served in Yorktown, Fair Oaks, Sharpsburg, Fredericksburg and other major battles of the Potomac and Peninsula. The Balloon Corps served the Union Army from October 1861 to the Summer of 1863 when it was finally disbanded following the resignation of Prof. Lowe.
[color="Red"]*from wiki[/color]
Gatling gun
History of the Gatling
Gatling gun illustrated in an 1885 encyclopedia in Swedish.Although the Gatling gun was designed in 1861 during the U.S. Civil War, in 1862, the U.S. government decided not to purchase any of the weapons, because the firing mechanism lacked triggers and because the Gatling guns were far too heavy to be set up quickly in combat. Even with design improvements, the Gatling gun still lacked a trigger and weighed an unwieldy 90 lb (41 kg). However, Union General Benjamin Butler bought twelve and used them on the Petersburg front. During its debut in combat soldiers on both sides were awestruck by its power and destructive effect. They were only put into limited service late in the war by the Northern army.
[color="Red"]*from wiki[/color]
Gatling gun illustrated in an 1885 encyclopedia in Swedish.Although the Gatling gun was designed in 1861 during the U.S. Civil War, in 1862, the U.S. government decided not to purchase any of the weapons, because the firing mechanism lacked triggers and because the Gatling guns were far too heavy to be set up quickly in combat. Even with design improvements, the Gatling gun still lacked a trigger and weighed an unwieldy 90 lb (41 kg). However, Union General Benjamin Butler bought twelve and used them on the Petersburg front. During its debut in combat soldiers on both sides were awestruck by its power and destructive effect. They were only put into limited service late in the war by the Northern army.
[color="Red"]*from wiki[/color]
Coal torpedo
The coal torpedo was a hollow iron casting filled with explosives and covered in coal dust, deployed by the Confederate Secret Service during the American Civil War, and intended for doing harm to Union steam transportation. When shoveled into the firebox amongst the coal, the resulting explosion would at the very least damage the boiler and render the engines inoperable. In the worst case scenario (or best case, depending on which side you were on) the damaged boiler, under high steam pressure, would explode, injuring the crew and scattering burning coals over the deck to start a fire that would sink the vessel.
During the Civil War, the term torpedo was used to indicate a wide range of explosive devices including what are now called land mines, naval mines, and booby traps. Northern newspapers referred to Courtenay's coal bombs as torpedoes, or sometimes "infernal machines;" Courtenay himself called it his "coal shell."
Because the activities of Courtenay's Secret Service Corps were secret and few Confederate documents remain it is impossible to determine with any certainty how many ships were destroyed by this method. Union Admiral Porter credited the coal torpedo with sinking the Greyhound, a private steamboat that had been commandeered by General Benjamin F. Butler for use as a floating headquarters on the James River.Courtenay also took credit for the destruction of the gunboat USS Chenango. In the Spring of 1865, Canadian customs raided a house in Toronto that had been rented by Jacob Thompson, one of the commissioners of the Confederate Secret Service stationed in Canada. They found coal torpedoes and other incendiary devices hidden under the floorboards. A former Confederate agent named Robert Louden claimed on his deathbed that he had used a coal torpedo to sink the Sultana, a steamboat carrying over 2000 recently freed Union prisoners of war, on April 27, 1865, although this claim is controversial.
During the Civil War, the term torpedo was used to indicate a wide range of explosive devices including what are now called land mines, naval mines, and booby traps. Northern newspapers referred to Courtenay's coal bombs as torpedoes, or sometimes "infernal machines;" Courtenay himself called it his "coal shell."
Because the activities of Courtenay's Secret Service Corps were secret and few Confederate documents remain it is impossible to determine with any certainty how many ships were destroyed by this method. Union Admiral Porter credited the coal torpedo with sinking the Greyhound, a private steamboat that had been commandeered by General Benjamin F. Butler for use as a floating headquarters on the James River.Courtenay also took credit for the destruction of the gunboat USS Chenango. In the Spring of 1865, Canadian customs raided a house in Toronto that had been rented by Jacob Thompson, one of the commissioners of the Confederate Secret Service stationed in Canada. They found coal torpedoes and other incendiary devices hidden under the floorboards. A former Confederate agent named Robert Louden claimed on his deathbed that he had used a coal torpedo to sink the Sultana, a steamboat carrying over 2000 recently freed Union prisoners of war, on April 27, 1865, although this claim is controversial.
Land mine
The first modern mechanically fused high explosive anti-personnel land mines were created by Confederate troops of Brigadier General Gabriel J. Raines during the Battle of Yorktown in 1862. (As a Captain, Raines had earlier employed explosive booby traps during the Seminole Wars in Florida in 1840. Both mechanically and electrically fuzed "land torpedoes" were employed, although by the end of the war mechanical fuzes had been found to be generally more reliable. Many of these designs were improvised in the field, especially from explosive shells, but by the end of the war nearly 2,000 standard pattern "Raines mines" had been deployed.
Submarines
During the American Civil War, the Union was the first to field a submarine. The French-designed Alligator was the first U.S. Navy sub and the first to feature compressed air (for air supply) and an air filtration system. She was the first submarine to carry a diver lock which allowed a diver to plant electrically detonated mines on enemy ships. Initially hand-powered by oars, she was converted after 6 months to a screw propeller powered by a hand crank. With a crew of 20, she was larger than Confederate submarines. Alligator was 47 feet (14.3 meters) long and about 4 feet (1.2 meters) in diameter. She was lost in a storm off Cape Hatteras on April 1, 1863 while uncrewed and under tow to her first combat deployment at Charleston.
The Confederate States of America fielded several human-powered submarines including H. L. Hunley (named for one of her financiers, Horace Lawson Hunley) . The first Confederate submarine was the 30-foot long Pioneer which sank a target schooner using a towed mine during tests on Lake Pontchartrain but she was not used in combat. She was scuttled after New Orleans was captured and in 1868 was sold for scrap.
Hunley was intended for attacking the North's ships, which were blockading the South's seaports. The submarine had a long pole with an explosive charge in the bow, called a spar torpedo. The sub had to approach an enemy vessel, attach the explosive, move away, and then detonate it. It was extremely hazardous to operate, and had no air supply other than what was contained inside the main compartment. On two occasions, the sub sank; on the first occasion half the crew died and on the second, the entire eight-man crew (including Hunley himself) drowned. On February 18, 1864 Hunley sank USS Housatonic off the Charleston Harbor, the first time a submarine successfully sank another ship, though she sank in the same engagement shortly after signaling her success. Another Confederate submarine was lost on her maiden voyage in Lake Pontchartrain; she was found washed ashore in the 1870s and is now on display at the Louisiana State Museum. Submarines did not have a major impact on the outcome of the war, but did portend their coming importance to naval warfare and increased interest in their use in naval warfare.
[color="Red"]*from wiki[/color]
**I thought that rebs were the first to field the submarine, but it looks I was wrong
The Confederate States of America fielded several human-powered submarines including H. L. Hunley (named for one of her financiers, Horace Lawson Hunley) . The first Confederate submarine was the 30-foot long Pioneer which sank a target schooner using a towed mine during tests on Lake Pontchartrain but she was not used in combat. She was scuttled after New Orleans was captured and in 1868 was sold for scrap.
Hunley was intended for attacking the North's ships, which were blockading the South's seaports. The submarine had a long pole with an explosive charge in the bow, called a spar torpedo. The sub had to approach an enemy vessel, attach the explosive, move away, and then detonate it. It was extremely hazardous to operate, and had no air supply other than what was contained inside the main compartment. On two occasions, the sub sank; on the first occasion half the crew died and on the second, the entire eight-man crew (including Hunley himself) drowned. On February 18, 1864 Hunley sank USS Housatonic off the Charleston Harbor, the first time a submarine successfully sank another ship, though she sank in the same engagement shortly after signaling her success. Another Confederate submarine was lost on her maiden voyage in Lake Pontchartrain; she was found washed ashore in the 1870s and is now on display at the Louisiana State Museum. Submarines did not have a major impact on the outcome of the war, but did portend their coming importance to naval warfare and increased interest in their use in naval warfare.
[color="Red"]*from wiki[/color]
**I thought that rebs were the first to field the submarine, but it looks I was wrong
Turret ships
Turret ships were a 19th century type of warship, the earliest to have their guns mounted in a revolving turret, instead of a broadside arrangement.
The first experiment was the addition of a turntable-mounted shielded gun to HMS Trusty (a floating battery) in 1861. The USS Monitor, built in 1862, is more famous, being a ship mounted only with the turret and taking part in battle.
The first experiment was the addition of a turntable-mounted shielded gun to HMS Trusty (a floating battery) in 1861. The USS Monitor, built in 1862, is more famous, being a ship mounted only with the turret and taking part in battle.
Long list
As the breeding ground for modern warfare, the Civil War has long been known for its "firsts." It has been credited with dozens like these:
A workable machine gun
A steel ship
A successful submarine
A "snorkel" breathing device
A wide-ranging corps of press correspondents in battle areas
American conscription
American bread lines
American President assassinated
Aerial reconnaissance
Antiaircraft fire
Army ambulance corps
Blackouts and camouflage under aerial observation
Cigarette tax
Commissioned American Army chaplains
Department of justice (Confederate)
Electrically exploded bombs and torpedoes
Fixed ammunition
Field trenches on a grand scale
Flame throwers
Hospital ships
Ironclad navies
Land-mine fields
Legal voting for servicemen
Long-range rifles for general use
Medal of Honor
Military telegraph
Military railroads
Naval torpedoes
Negro U.S. Army Officer (Major M.R. Delany)
Organized medical and nursing corps
Photography of battle
Railroad artillery
Repeating rifles
Revolving gun turrets
The bugle call, "Taps"
The Income tax
The wigwag signal code in battle
The periscope, for trench warfare
Telescopic sights for rifles
Tobacco tax
U.S. Navy Admiral
U.S. Secret Service
Withholding tax
Wire entanglements
Wide-scale use of anesthetics for wounded
A workable machine gun
A steel ship
A successful submarine
A "snorkel" breathing device
A wide-ranging corps of press correspondents in battle areas
American conscription
American bread lines
American President assassinated
Aerial reconnaissance
Antiaircraft fire
Army ambulance corps
Blackouts and camouflage under aerial observation
Cigarette tax
Commissioned American Army chaplains
Department of justice (Confederate)
Electrically exploded bombs and torpedoes
Fixed ammunition
Field trenches on a grand scale
Flame throwers
Hospital ships
Ironclad navies
Land-mine fields
Legal voting for servicemen
Long-range rifles for general use
Medal of Honor
Military telegraph
Military railroads
Naval torpedoes
Negro U.S. Army Officer (Major M.R. Delany)
Organized medical and nursing corps
Photography of battle
Railroad artillery
Repeating rifles
Revolving gun turrets
The bugle call, "Taps"
The Income tax
The wigwag signal code in battle
The periscope, for trench warfare
Telescopic sights for rifles
Tobacco tax
U.S. Navy Admiral
U.S. Secret Service
Withholding tax
Wire entanglements
Wide-scale use of anesthetics for wounded
-
WallysWorld
- Captain
- Posts: 187
- Joined: Tue Nov 22, 2005 10:20 pm
- Location: Canada
Hey Mr. Marecone,
How are things in Zagreb, probably cold this time of year if I remember. When I was in the U.S. Navy I was assigned to the embassy in Belgrade. But once a month I would travel up to Zagreb and work at the consulate there, guess now they have an embassy there. Always loved that part of your country,compared down around Belgrade.
gbastiani
How are things in Zagreb, probably cold this time of year if I remember. When I was in the U.S. Navy I was assigned to the embassy in Belgrade. But once a month I would travel up to Zagreb and work at the consulate there, guess now they have an embassy there. Always loved that part of your country,compared down around Belgrade.
gbastiani
gbastiani wrote:Hey Mr. Marecone,
How are things in Zagreb, probably cold this time of year if I remember. When I was in the U.S. Navy I was assigned to the embassy in Belgrade. But once a month I would travel up to Zagreb and work at the consulate there, guess now they have an embassy there. Always loved that part of your country,compared down around Belgrade.
gbastiani
Hello Mr. gbastiani,
strange to see anybody here that was in Croatia
. Well this is one of the hotest winters ever. No snow or anything. Around 10 degrees.
So you were here during the war or after? Things are great now. Croatia recovered from war horrors and we are doing fine now. Turisam and everything back on track.
Who knows, meybe we even met because I went to USA in 2000 and I needed the visa so I was in your embassy
.
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