Ridgeway Civil War Research Center,
A virtual examination of artifacts of the American Civil War
Civil War Artillery

by Harry Ridgeway



Research Center: Artillery2631-GrapeStand
Artillery projectile, stand of grape, contained by rings and plates, iron balls, no sabot, smoothbore or rifled 12 pounder, 4.62in.
The stand of grape was the artillerist's weapon of last resort. Once the enemy got close to the battery, the gunners would load these rounds, and the flimsy stand would burst on firing sending the contents in scatter fashion against the troops charging the cannon. The fire was devastating against the troops but the enemy would be so close that options to reload and shoot would have been limited. The stand of grape consisted of top and bottom plates, held together with a bolt and nut, three rows of three balls (9 total) were stacked around the post, and held in place with two rings and the bolt. The bolt is held in place by a threaded nut on the top, bottom is loosely fitted into a slightly irregular hole on the bottom plate. Based on the diameter of this projectile, it is believed that this could be used with any 12 pounder cannon, 4.62in. Projectile measures: diameter 4.5in., length 6.25in., excluding top nut, weight 13.9lbs. Individual balls will measure 2in. approximately, the balls are often irregular.
Research Center: Artillery2631-GrapeStand, Ref: Bell, Heavy Ordnance, pg. 101.

Details click: http://relicman.com/artillery/Artillery2631-GrapeStand.html.


A0002...Artillery projectile, stand of grape, contained by rings and plates, iron balls, no sabot, smoothbore or rifled 12 pounder, 4.62in.

The stand of grape was the artillerist's weapon of last resort. Once the enemy got close to the battery, the gunners would load these rounds, and the flimsy stand would burst on firing sending the contents in scatter fashion against the troops charging the cannon. The fire was devastating against the troops but the enemy would be so close that options to reload and shoot would have been limited. The stand of grape consisted of top and bottom plates, held together with a bolt and nut, three rows of three balls (9 total) were stacked around the post, and held in place with two rings and the bolt. The bolt is held in place by a threaded nut on the top, bottom is loosely fitted into a slightly irregular hole on the bottom plate. Based on the diameter of this projectile, it is believed that this could be used with any 12 pounder cannon, 4.62in. Projectile measures: diameter 4.5in., length 6.25in., excluding top nut, weight 13.9lbs. Individual balls will measure 2in. approximately, the balls are often irregular. Nondug stand, all parts intact. Projectile is disarmed, castings are solid iron, never had a bursting charge. Recovered: surplus stocks.
Ref: Bell, Heavy Ordnance, pg. 101.

A0868..Artillery projectile, stand of grape, contained by rings and plates, iron balls, no sabot, smoothbore or rifled 12 pounder, 4.62in.
The stand of grape was the artillerist's weapon of last resort. Once the enemy got close to the battery, the gunners would load these rounds, and the flimsy stand would burst on firing sending the contents in scatter fashion against the troops charging the cannon. The fire was devastating against the troops but the enemy would be so close that options to reload and shoot would have been limited. The stand of grape consisted of top and bottom plates, held together with a bolt and nut, three rows of three balls (9 total) were stacked around the post, and held in place with two rings and the bolt. The bolt is held in place by a threaded nut on the top, bottom is loosely fitted into a slightly irregular hole on the bottom plate. Based on the diameter of this projectile, it is believed that this could be used with any 12 pounder cannon, 4.62in. Projectile measures: diameter 4.5in., length 6.25in., excluding top nut, weight 13.9lbs. Individual balls will measure 2in. approximately, the balls are often irregular. Nondug stand, all parts intact. Projectile is disarmed, castings are solid iron, never had a bursting charge. Recovered: surplus stocks.
Ref: Bell, Heavy Ordnance, pg. 101.


This is the "Ridgeway Civil War Research Center", a research tool for educational purposes only, and is provided at no cost to the reader. Some of the relics listed are retained in the author's collection, most reside in other collections and are not owned by the author. None of the items listed in this section are for sale, please refer to relicman.com sales listings for items offered for sale. This is a work in progress, I list items as I get to them, there are many patterns that are not listed yet, this list will be regularly updated as I get pictures and descriptions for more items. I will also correct mistakes, so if you see any please tell me. All items listed are believed to be authentic to the Civil War or as otherwise described. This information is available for research purposes, pictures may be used by permission only.
All excavated artifacts have been recovered from private property with owner's permission.
All projectiles listed have been disarmed.

Most information on this page is from:
Field Artillery Projectiles of the American Civil War, 1993 Edition. by Thomas S. Dickey and Peter C. George.
Civil War Heavy Explosive Ordnance, A Guide to Large Artillery Prjectiles, Torpedoes, and Mines, by Jack Bell.
Artillery Fuses of the Civil War, by Charles H. Jones.
Pictures are by the author, unless otherwise indicated.


Ridgeway Civil War Research Center,
A virtual examination of artifacts of the American Civil War.
Artillery
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Research center, artillery, click: http://relicman.com/artillery/Artillery0000-Index.html.


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