- Product; See Sharps In 1851, a new breechloader was being made in Windsor, Vermont by the firm of Robbins & Lawrence. Rifle production continued in Vermont while a new Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company was formed in Hartford.
- 3 thoughts on “ 1865 Spencer Carbine Serial Number ” Michael Brantley on May 20, 2018 at 8:04 pm said: I have a Spencer carbine M1865, serial # 15589 that I was given from a family member.
Burnside carbine | |
---|---|
Type | Carbine |
Place of origin | United States |
Service history | |
Used by | United States |
Wars | American Civil War |
Production history | |
Designer | Ambrose Burnside |
Designed | 1855 |
Manufacturer | Bristol Firearms Company and Burnside Rifle Company |
Unit cost | $38.50 apiece with appendages (1861)[1] |
Produced | 1858 to 1870 |
No. built | 100,000 |
Specifications | |
Mass | 7 lb (3.2 kg) |
Length | 39.5 inches (1,000 mm) |
Cartridge | .54 Burnside |
Caliber | 0.54 inches (14 mm) |
Muzzle velocity | 950 ft/s (290 m/s) [1] |
Effective firing range | 200 yd (180 m) [2] |
The Spencer Carbines were such an important evolution in design for U.S. Military arms that no antique weapons collection is complete without one. SOLD Antique: Yes Manufacturer: Spencer Model: Model 1865 Carbine Serial Number: 5707 Caliber Info.56-50 Spencer Bore: Minty! Condition: Very Good Manufacture Date: 1865. Spencer Slide Action Shotguns; LC Smith Serial Numbers and Date of Manufacture; LC Smith; Springfield Model 1873 and 1884 Rifles, Model 1873 Shotgun, Model 1903 Rifle, 1903A3 by Smith Corona Co. Stevens (description, illustration and years made)- Stevens did not put serial numbers on all long guns until 1968 (GCA 1968 Required them).
Spencer 1860 Carbine Serial Numbers
The Burnside carbine was a breech-loadingcarbine that saw widespread use during the American Civil War.
Design[edit]
The carbine was designed and patented by Ambrose Burnside, who resigned his commission in the U.S. Army to devote himself full-time to working on the weapon. The carbine used a special brass cartridge which was also invented by Burnside. This cartridge contained a bullet and powder, but no primer. Pressing the weapon's two trigger guards opened the breech block and allowed the user to insert a cartridge.
The rather peculiar Burnside cartridge.
When the trigger was pulled, the hammer struck a separate percussion cap and caused a spark; a hole in the base of the cartridge exposed the black powder to this spark. The unique, conical cartridge sealed the joint between the barrel and the breech. Most other breech-loading weapons of the day tended to leak hot gas when fired, but Burnside's design eliminated this problem.[2]
Service history[edit]
In 1857, the Ryon Burnside carbine won a competition at West Point against 17 other carbine designs. In spite of this, few of the carbines were immediately ordered by the government, but this changed with the outbreak of the Civil War, when over 55,000 were ordered for use by Union cavalrymen.[3] This made it the third most popular carbine of the Civil War; only the Sharps carbine and the Spencer carbine were more widely used.[4] They saw action in all theatres of the war. There were so many in service that many were captured and used by Confederates. A common complaint by users was that the unusually shaped cartridge sometimes became stuck in the breech after firing.[5]
On the basis of ordnance returns and ammunition requisitions, it has been estimated that 43 Union cavalry regiments were using the Burnside carbine during the 1863-1864 period. Additionally, 7 Confederate cavalry units were at least partially armed with the weapon during this same period.[6]
Five different models were produced.[7] Production was discontinued towards the end of the Civil War, when the Burnside Rifle Company was given a contract to make Spencer carbines instead.[8]
Effect of the carbine on Burnside's career[edit]
Though he was a poor military officer (and not too proud to admit it), Ambrose Burnside rose through the ranks partly because his carbine was so well known.[9] He was pressured by President Lincoln several times to take command of the Union Army of the Potomac. He repeatedly declined, saying, 'I was not competent to command such a large army as this.'[10] When he eventually did accept command, he led the Army of the Potomac to defeat at the Battle of Fredericksburg. The battle and the subsequent abortive offensive left Burnside's 'officers complaining loudly to the White House and the War Department about his incompetence.'[11] He also performed poorly at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, and a court of inquiry blamed him for the Union failure at the Battle of the Crater, though the blame was later lifted from him.
References[edit]
- ^Purchase of arms, House Documents, 1861, P. 140.
- ^Drury, Ian; Tony Gibbons (1993). The Civil War Military Machine. New York: Smithmark Publishers, Inc. p. 59. ISBN0-8317-1325-9.
- ^Drury, Ian; Tony Gibbons (1993). The Civil War Military Machine. New York: Smithmark Publishers, Inc. p. 59. ISBN0-8317-1325-9.
- ^Smithsonian Institution. 'Burnside Carbine'. Retrieved 2006-04-30.
- ^Coates, Earl J.; Dean S. Thomas (1990). An Introduction to Civil War Small Arms. Gettysburg: Thomas Publications. p. 38. ISBN0-939631-25-3.
- ^Coates, Earl J.; Dean S. Thomas (1990). An Introduction to Civil War Small Arms. Gettysburg: Thomas Publications. p. 93. ISBN0-939631-25-3.
- ^Smithsonian Institution. 'Burnside Carbine'. Retrieved 2006-04-30.
- ^Coates, Earl J.; Dean S. Thomas (1990). An Introduction to Civil War Small Arms. Gettysburg: Thomas Publications. p. 38. ISBN0-939631-25-3.
- ^Drury, Ian; Tony Gibbons (1993). The Civil War Military Machine. New York: Smithmark Publishers, Inc. p. 59. ISBN0-8317-1325-9.
- ^Davis, William C (1991). The Battlefields of the Civil War. New York: Smithmark Publishers, Inc. p. 87. ISBN0-7651-9836-3.
- ^Kagan, Neil; Harris J. Andrews; Paula York-Soderlund (2002). Great Battles of the Civil War. Birmingham, AL: Oxmoor House. pp. 109. ISBN0-8487-2704-5.
- Ambrose E. Burnside - Improvement in metallic cartridge -
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Keygen pctv systems. This Spencer rifle bears serial number 4452 and was manufacturedin 1863.
Spencer Carbine Serial Number Range
The Spencer rifle, with its lever action, seven shot tubularmagazine and internally-primed metallic-cased cartridge, was apopular wartime breechloader. Its inventor, Christopher Spencer,was a native of Connecticut and a former employee of Samuel Colt.His design was one of the most technologically-advanced arms of theCivil War era, but because of the time required to sell both hisidea and his guns to the U.S. government, they were not availableuntil 1863.
These modern arms, in both rifle and carbine configuration, weremore than a match for anything that the Confederates could muster.The firepower of the Spencer was used with devastating effect onmany Civil War battlefields. In its first combat test,Spencer-armed Union troops under the command of Colonel John Wilderearned the nickname 'Lightning Brigade' when they defeated anumerically-superior Confederate force at the Battle of Hoover'sGap, Tennessee on June 24, 1863.
Rocky bullwinkle rapidshare. One week later, the Spencer again saw action in the hands oftroopers of the 5th Michigan Cavalry Regiment of George Custer'sBrigade at the Battle of Gettysburg. Spencers continued to servethrough the end of the Civil War, and saw action during the IndianWars as well.
Christian Minor Spencer was born in Manchester, Connecticut onJune 20, 1833. At age 11, he went to live with his maternalgrandfather, Josiah Hollister, a veteran of the Revolutionary War.It was there that young Christian learned the rudiments of wood-and metalworking. By the age of 14, Spencer was apprenticed to theMount Nebo Silk Manufacturing Co., located in South Manchester,Connecticut. This firm was owned by the Cheney family, one of NewEngland's most enterprising and influential families. After a year,he entered a second apprenticeship, this time with local machinistSamuel Loomis.
In late 1850, Spencer returned to the employ of the Cheneys as amachinist. During this period, he perfected several experimentalmachine designs, and in the process, he developed what would be alifelong relationship with the Cheneys. At the advice of FrankCheney, Spencer worked as a toolmaker in Rochester, New York, thenas a machinist in the locomotive repair shops of the New YorkCentral Railroad. He also worked briefly for the N. P. Ames Companyof Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts, where he received his firstformal experience with the manufacture of firearms. His next stopwas at the factory of Samuel Colt, where he helped to design manyof the specialized machines used in the production of Coltrevolvers. C
hristian renewed his employment with the Cheney family in 1854when, at the age of 22, he became superintendent of hisbenefactor's new silk ribbon manufactory in Hartford. During thisperiod, Spencer designed and patented a machine to attach labels tospools, thus allowing one shop girl to do the work of three. TheCheneys paid Spencer a $25 royalty on every machine he produced.Although working 11 hour days six days per week, Spencer began toexperiment with an idea for a breech-loading repeatingfirearm.
By 1859, with the encouragement of both his father and theCheneys, he had perfected a lever-action rolling block rifledesign, and on March 6, 1860, he was awarded a U.S. patent for hiswork. With financial backing from his father, Ogden Spencer, aprosperous wool merchant, Christian was able to secure the servicesof Luke Wheelock, an experienced gunsmith, for the production ofprototype firearms. Spencer also befriended Richard S. Lawrence,then superintendent of the Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company, andthis association most likely influenced certain aspects ofSpencer's design.
By the spring of 1861, civil war had come to America, and theCheney family entered into a contract with Spencer in which allrights and patents for Spencer's rifle design would be assigned tothem. In return, Spencer would receive a royalty of $1 for everyrifle produced. This was later lowered to 50 cents for eachmilitary arm produced. The Cheneys had long been friends of GideonWelles, Secretary of the Navy in Abraham Lincoln's administration,and this gave them, and Spencer's rifle, access to governmentofficials in Washington.
At this time, Spencer also contracted with Connecticut ammunitionmakers Crittenden & Tibbals for the manufacture of a .56caliber rimfire metallic cartridge for use in his rifle. In itsfinal form, the Spencer rifle employed a spring-loaded seven-shottubular magazine which was located in the buttstock, and alever-action which, when operated, ejected a spent cartridge andchambered a fresh one. Free youtube mp4 video downloader software. Manual cocking of the hammer then readiedthe rifle for firing.
The stage was now set for Spencer's rise to fame. Through thepatronage of Secretary Welles, Spencer's rifle was successfullytested by the Navy, resulting in the purchase of 1,000 guns. Armytrials followed in the spring of 1862, and this resulted in thesale of an additional 10,000 guns. In addition, President AbrahamLincoln also took part in a demonstration of the Spencer, firingseven shots at a target forty yards away. This demonstration tookplace on the Mall, near the site of the Washington Monument, andresulted in Lincoln's personal endorsement of the arm. Spencer nowhad contracts but no manufacturing facilities.
Once again, the Cheney family would prove to be indispensable toSpencer, as Charles Cheney rented a portion of a piano factory inBoston for production of Spencer firearms. After several delays,the first shipment of Spencer carbines was delivered on December31, 1862. Both Army and Navy placed additional orders during thesummer of 1863, and many other Spencer arms were purchasedprivately.
By the end of the war, more than 144,000 Spencer rifles andcarbines had been manufactured; over two-thirds were purchased bythe U.S. government. To keep up with demand, Spencer subcontractedsome production to the Burnside Rifle Co. of Providence, RhodeIsland. Spencer rifles and carbines met with high praise from thosewho were equipped with them, and with respect from those who facedthem in battle. In its first combat test, Spencer-armed Uniontroops under the command of Colonel John Wilder earned the nickname'Lightning Brigade' when they defeated a numerically superiorConfederate force at the Battle of Hoover's Gap, Tennessee on June24, 1863.
One week later, Spencer rifles again saw action in the hands oftroopers of the 5th Michigan Cavalry Regiment of General GeorgeArmstrong Custer's Brigade at the Battle of Gettysburg. Wilder'stroops were called on again at the Battle of Chickamauga inSeptember, 1863, when they fought to hold the Union center in theface of determined attacks by General James Longstreet'sConfederates. Spencer rifles and carbines also saw service withseveral other Union infantry and cavalry regiments.
Although the South lacked the capacity to manufacture metalliccartridges used by the Spencer, captured arms and ammunition sawservice with troops under the command of Colonel John Mosby, thefamed 'Gray Ghost of the Confederacy,' as well as with other unitsand individuals. The effectiveness of the Spencer was greatlyincreased by two other inventions, the Blakeslee cartridge box, andthe Stabler cut-off device. The Blakeslee cartridge box wasinvented by Union cavalryman Erastus Blakeslee and consisted of aleather-covered wood box containing six to ten tubes, each of whichheld seven Spencer cartridges. Troops equipped with these boxescould quickly reload the gun that, in the words of one awedConfederate, could be 'loaded on Sunday and fired all week.'
Later Spencers, beginning with the Model 1865, were equipped witha cut-off mechanism invented by Edward Stabler which, when engaged,prevented the breechblock from moving far enough to chamber acartridge from the buttstock magazine. This device permitted theSpencer to be used as a single-shot arm, with a full magazine heldin reserve. Spencer carbines continued to serve on the frontierafter the Civil War, but the firm's prodigious wartime outputcontributed to a large post-war surplus.
Declining sales forced the Spencer Repeating Rifle Co. intoinsolvency, and in October, 1868, all of the company's assets weresold to the Fogerty Rifle Co. of Boston. Within a year, Fogerty'sassets were in turn purchased by Oliver Winchester, and ChristianSpencer agreed to assign all future repeating rifle designs orimprovements to Winchester. Spencer later returned to the firearmsindustry with the formation of the Spencer Arms Co., whichmanufactured his design for the first practical pump-actionshotgun. This firm was later sold to noted arms dealer FrancisBannerman. Christian Spencer died on January 14, 1922.
These modern arms, in both rifle and carbine configuration, weremore than a match for anything that the Confederates could muster.The firepower of the Spencer was used with devastating effect onmany Civil War battlefields. In its first combat test,Spencer-armed Union troops under the command of Colonel John Wilderearned the nickname 'Lightning Brigade' when they defeated anumerically-superior Confederate force at the Battle of Hoover'sGap, Tennessee on June 24, 1863.
Rocky bullwinkle rapidshare. One week later, the Spencer again saw action in the hands oftroopers of the 5th Michigan Cavalry Regiment of George Custer'sBrigade at the Battle of Gettysburg. Spencers continued to servethrough the end of the Civil War, and saw action during the IndianWars as well.
Christian Minor Spencer was born in Manchester, Connecticut onJune 20, 1833. At age 11, he went to live with his maternalgrandfather, Josiah Hollister, a veteran of the Revolutionary War.It was there that young Christian learned the rudiments of wood-and metalworking. By the age of 14, Spencer was apprenticed to theMount Nebo Silk Manufacturing Co., located in South Manchester,Connecticut. This firm was owned by the Cheney family, one of NewEngland's most enterprising and influential families. After a year,he entered a second apprenticeship, this time with local machinistSamuel Loomis.
In late 1850, Spencer returned to the employ of the Cheneys as amachinist. During this period, he perfected several experimentalmachine designs, and in the process, he developed what would be alifelong relationship with the Cheneys. At the advice of FrankCheney, Spencer worked as a toolmaker in Rochester, New York, thenas a machinist in the locomotive repair shops of the New YorkCentral Railroad. He also worked briefly for the N. P. Ames Companyof Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts, where he received his firstformal experience with the manufacture of firearms. His next stopwas at the factory of Samuel Colt, where he helped to design manyof the specialized machines used in the production of Coltrevolvers. C
hristian renewed his employment with the Cheney family in 1854when, at the age of 22, he became superintendent of hisbenefactor's new silk ribbon manufactory in Hartford. During thisperiod, Spencer designed and patented a machine to attach labels tospools, thus allowing one shop girl to do the work of three. TheCheneys paid Spencer a $25 royalty on every machine he produced.Although working 11 hour days six days per week, Spencer began toexperiment with an idea for a breech-loading repeatingfirearm.
By 1859, with the encouragement of both his father and theCheneys, he had perfected a lever-action rolling block rifledesign, and on March 6, 1860, he was awarded a U.S. patent for hiswork. With financial backing from his father, Ogden Spencer, aprosperous wool merchant, Christian was able to secure the servicesof Luke Wheelock, an experienced gunsmith, for the production ofprototype firearms. Spencer also befriended Richard S. Lawrence,then superintendent of the Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company, andthis association most likely influenced certain aspects ofSpencer's design.
By the spring of 1861, civil war had come to America, and theCheney family entered into a contract with Spencer in which allrights and patents for Spencer's rifle design would be assigned tothem. In return, Spencer would receive a royalty of $1 for everyrifle produced. This was later lowered to 50 cents for eachmilitary arm produced. The Cheneys had long been friends of GideonWelles, Secretary of the Navy in Abraham Lincoln's administration,and this gave them, and Spencer's rifle, access to governmentofficials in Washington.
At this time, Spencer also contracted with Connecticut ammunitionmakers Crittenden & Tibbals for the manufacture of a .56caliber rimfire metallic cartridge for use in his rifle. In itsfinal form, the Spencer rifle employed a spring-loaded seven-shottubular magazine which was located in the buttstock, and alever-action which, when operated, ejected a spent cartridge andchambered a fresh one. Free youtube mp4 video downloader software. Manual cocking of the hammer then readiedthe rifle for firing.
The stage was now set for Spencer's rise to fame. Through thepatronage of Secretary Welles, Spencer's rifle was successfullytested by the Navy, resulting in the purchase of 1,000 guns. Armytrials followed in the spring of 1862, and this resulted in thesale of an additional 10,000 guns. In addition, President AbrahamLincoln also took part in a demonstration of the Spencer, firingseven shots at a target forty yards away. This demonstration tookplace on the Mall, near the site of the Washington Monument, andresulted in Lincoln's personal endorsement of the arm. Spencer nowhad contracts but no manufacturing facilities.
Once again, the Cheney family would prove to be indispensable toSpencer, as Charles Cheney rented a portion of a piano factory inBoston for production of Spencer firearms. After several delays,the first shipment of Spencer carbines was delivered on December31, 1862. Both Army and Navy placed additional orders during thesummer of 1863, and many other Spencer arms were purchasedprivately.
By the end of the war, more than 144,000 Spencer rifles andcarbines had been manufactured; over two-thirds were purchased bythe U.S. government. To keep up with demand, Spencer subcontractedsome production to the Burnside Rifle Co. of Providence, RhodeIsland. Spencer rifles and carbines met with high praise from thosewho were equipped with them, and with respect from those who facedthem in battle. In its first combat test, Spencer-armed Uniontroops under the command of Colonel John Wilder earned the nickname'Lightning Brigade' when they defeated a numerically superiorConfederate force at the Battle of Hoover's Gap, Tennessee on June24, 1863.
One week later, Spencer rifles again saw action in the hands oftroopers of the 5th Michigan Cavalry Regiment of General GeorgeArmstrong Custer's Brigade at the Battle of Gettysburg. Wilder'stroops were called on again at the Battle of Chickamauga inSeptember, 1863, when they fought to hold the Union center in theface of determined attacks by General James Longstreet'sConfederates. Spencer rifles and carbines also saw service withseveral other Union infantry and cavalry regiments.
Although the South lacked the capacity to manufacture metalliccartridges used by the Spencer, captured arms and ammunition sawservice with troops under the command of Colonel John Mosby, thefamed 'Gray Ghost of the Confederacy,' as well as with other unitsand individuals. The effectiveness of the Spencer was greatlyincreased by two other inventions, the Blakeslee cartridge box, andthe Stabler cut-off device. The Blakeslee cartridge box wasinvented by Union cavalryman Erastus Blakeslee and consisted of aleather-covered wood box containing six to ten tubes, each of whichheld seven Spencer cartridges. Troops equipped with these boxescould quickly reload the gun that, in the words of one awedConfederate, could be 'loaded on Sunday and fired all week.'
Later Spencers, beginning with the Model 1865, were equipped witha cut-off mechanism invented by Edward Stabler which, when engaged,prevented the breechblock from moving far enough to chamber acartridge from the buttstock magazine. This device permitted theSpencer to be used as a single-shot arm, with a full magazine heldin reserve. Spencer carbines continued to serve on the frontierafter the Civil War, but the firm's prodigious wartime outputcontributed to a large post-war surplus.
Declining sales forced the Spencer Repeating Rifle Co. intoinsolvency, and in October, 1868, all of the company's assets weresold to the Fogerty Rifle Co. of Boston. Within a year, Fogerty'sassets were in turn purchased by Oliver Winchester, and ChristianSpencer agreed to assign all future repeating rifle designs orimprovements to Winchester. Spencer later returned to the firearmsindustry with the formation of the Spencer Arms Co., whichmanufactured his design for the first practical pump-actionshotgun. This firm was later sold to noted arms dealer FrancisBannerman. Christian Spencer died on January 14, 1922.