Tools of War
Civil War soldiers and officers used many different types of firearms. Advancements in rifling, applying grooves along the interior barrel of a firearm to cause a projectile to spin, allowed soldiers to fire their weapons farther and more accurately. Battlefields were the most common scenes of combat, yet brutal guerilla warfare frequently occurred in the Eastern and Western Theater. Along the Eastern Theater, raiding was synonymous with “The Gray Ghost,” Colonel John Singleton Mosby, and his rangers. This section displays objects used as weapons by both Confederate and Union armies.
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Model 1861 U.S. Rifle Musket
- date made
- 1862
- associated date
- 1862
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Model 1864 Burnside Carbine
- date made
- ca 1863
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Gallager Carbine
- date made
- ca 1862
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Model 1855 Percussion Pistol-Carbine
- date made
- 1855
- associated date
- 1855
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Remington New Model Army Revolver
- date made
- ca 1863
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Henry Presentation Rifle
- date made
- 1862
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Spencer Repeating Rifle used by Abraham Lincoln
- date made
- ca 1862
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Edwin Wesson Match Rifle
- date made
- ca 1849