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

Research Center: Artillery4425-James

Rifled artillery projectile, James design, Federal manufacture, bursting shell, "case shot"iron balls packed in sulfur matrix, open base with slots, lead and tin sleeve sabot, tie ring base, James percussion fuze, James 14 pounder rifle, 3.8in. Projectile was manufactured in the Federal arsenals following the invention of Charles James. The pattern utilized a hollow caged cavity (called a "birdcage") covered by a thin sleeve of lead, tin, and canvass, the thin sabot would expand into the rifling, and then be discharged after the projectile left the bore. This meant that there always be flying metal debris which could be a problem for forward troops . Four small holes were drilled into the base, these are thought to have been vent holes, however they are often lead filled. A ring around the base was originally installed to hold an iron cup, however it appears the iron cup may not have been used and the tie ring either was abandoned or used to secure the powder bag. Shell is " case shot", explosive charge with iron balls, packed in sulfur matrix. It is highly unusual for a shell to be equipped with a percussion fuze and case shot, normally case shot shells use time fuzes to explode near an enemy line without needing to strike the target. However, at least one battery was given percussion fuzed case shot shells, any that actually hit the target would also have spread case shot, it is doubtful this was effective. Fuze employed was the James brass anvil percussion fuze, "West Point" two part fuze, Jones pg. 30 . Projectile measures: diameter 3.7in., length 6.75in. weight 11lbs, with sabot, and case shot. Research Center: Artillery4425-James, Ref: Dickey & George, Field Artillery (1993 Edition), pg. 189. Details click: http://relicman.com/artillery/Artillery4425-James.html.

A1888...Rifled artillery projectile, James design, Federal manufacture, bursting shell, "case shot"iron balls packed in sulfur matrix, open base with slots, lead and tin sleeve sabot, tie ring base, James percussion fuze, James 14 pounder rifle, 3.8in. Projectile was manufactured in the Federal arsenals following the invention of Charles James. The pattern utilized a hollow caged cavity (called a "birdcage") covered by a thin sleeve of lead, tin, and canvass, the thin sabot would expand into the rifling, and then be discharged after the projectile left the bore. This meant that there always be flying metal debris which could be a problem for forward troops . Four small holes were drilled into the base, these are thought to have been vent holes, however they are often lead filled. A ring around the base was originally installed to hold an iron cup, however it appears the iron cup may not have been used and the tie ring either was abandoned or used to secure the powder bag. Shell is " case shot", explosive charge with iron balls, packed in sulfur matrix. It is highly unusual for a shell to be equipped with a percussion fuze and case shot, normally case shot shells use time fuzes to explode near an enemy line without needing to strike the target. However, at least one battery was given percussion fuzed case shot shells, any that actually hit the target would also have spread case shot, it is doubtful this was effective. Fuze employed was the James brass anvil percussion fuze, "West Point" two part fuze, Jones pg. 30 . Projectile measures: diameter 3.7in., length 6.75in. weight 11lbs, with sabot, and case shot. Sleeve sabot un-fired, intact with small break. West Point percussion fuze intact. Projectile is disarmed, drill hole through the bottom. Recovered: Gauley Bridge, West Virginia. Ref: Dickey & George, Field Artillery (1993 Edition), pg. 189.

A2941...Rifled artillery projectile, James design, Federal manufacture, bursting shell, "case shot"iron balls packed in sulfur matrix, open base with slots, lead and tin sleeve sabot, tie ring base, James percussion fuze, James 14 pounder rifle, 3.8in. Projectile was manufactured in the Federal arsenals following the invention of Charles James. The pattern utilized a hollow caged cavity (called a "birdcage") covered by a thin sleeve of lead, tin, and canvass, the thin sabot would expand into the rifling, and then be discharged after the projectile left the bore. This meant that there always be flying metal debris which could be a problem for forward troops . Four small holes were drilled into the base, these are thought to have been vent holes, however they are often lead filled. A ring around the base was originally installed to hold an iron cup, however it appears the iron cup may not have been used and the tie ring either was abandoned or used to secure the powder bag. Shell is " case shot", explosive charge with iron balls, packed in sulfur matrix. It is highly unusual for a shell to be equipped with a percussion fuze and case shot, normally case shot shells use time fuzes to explode near an enemy line without needing to strike the target. However, at least one battery was given percussion fuzed case shot shells, any that actually hit the target would also have spread case shot, it is doubtful this was effective. Fuze employed was the James brass anvil percussion fuze, "West Point" two part fuze, Jones pg. 30 . Projectile measures: diameter 3.7in., length not meaningful due to split, weight 10.6lb. Fuze and sabot are missing, both presumably separated on firing. Dug shell split into two parts, top and bottom, as moisture entered the shell, the matrix expanded causing shell to split along the line of greatest weakness which was the section around the mid ring, Projectile is disarmed, shell split into to parts fully exposing the interior. Recovered: Gauley Bridge, West Virginia by Dean Weinbrenner, another example shown from the same site and digger, D & G page 530. Ref: Dickey & George, Field Artillery (1993 Edition), pg. 189.

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 Research center, artillery, click: http://relicman.com/artillery/Artillery0000-Index.html. Research center, artillery, click: http://relicman.com/artillery/Artillery0000-Index.html.

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