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

Research Center: Artillery5851-Tennessee

Rifled artillery projectile, Tennessee design, Confederate manufacture, solid bolt, forged iron smooth sides blunt nose, copper disc sabot with 3 studs in the sabot and flush mounted bolt, Confederate rifled 12 pounder rifle, 4.62 in. Projectile was Confederate manufactured and was originally believed to have been developed by Mullane working with Read and others, however, updated research has not been able to confirm the existence of a man named Mullane. Period literature often refers to work as the "Tennessee" design, cup, or sabot, and is attributed to Captain Lardner Gibbon, although official recognition for his development was never granted. This pattern was manufactured from rolled or forged steel, the rolling seams are clearly visible leaving rough sections. This would produce a harder steel than cast iron, and might have been more effective against the ironclads, however it was probably too labor extensive and expensive to produce, so few were produced. The sabot system utilized was a copper disc held in place by studs and secured with a center bolt, a manufacturing innovation allowing the parts made of different metals, copper and iron, to be prepared independent and assembled at the end. This sabot pattern, referred to as Type II, employed three short studs cast into the sabot and fitted into holes drilled on the bottom of the shell, then secured with a center bolt. Performance of this sabot was unsatisfactory, typically the studs or the bolt would break on firing releasing or distorting the copper disc sabot. Projectile measures: diameter 4.53in., length 9in. excluding fuze, weight 35.7lbs. Research Center: Artillery5851-Tennessee, Ref: Bell Heavy Ordnance, pg. 405. Details click: http://relicman.com/artillery/Artillery5851-Tennessee.html.

A0356...Rifled artillery projectile, Tennessee design, Confederate manufacture, solid bolt, forged iron smooth sides blunt nose, copper disc sabot with 3 studs in the sabot and flush mounted bolt, Confederate rifled 12 pounder rifle, 4.62 in. Projectile was Confederate manufactured and was originally believed to have been developed by Mullane working with Read and others, however, updated research has not been able to confirm the existence of a man named Mullane. Period literature often refers to work as the "Tennessee" design, cup, or sabot, and is attributed to Captain Lardner Gibbon, although official recognition for his development was never granted. This pattern was manufactured from rolled or forged steel, the rolling seams are clearly visible leaving rough sections. This would produce a harder steel than cast iron, and might have been more effective against the ironclads, however it was probably too labor extensive and expensive to produce, so few were produced. The sabot system utilized was a copper disc held in place by studs and secured with a center bolt, a manufacturing innovation allowing the parts made of different metals, copper and iron, to be prepared independent and assembled at the end. This sabot pattern, referred to as Type II, employed three short studs cast into the sabot and fitted into holes drilled on the bottom of the shell, then secured with a center bolt. Performance of this sabot was unsatisfactory, typically the studs or the bolt would break on firing releasing or distorting the copper disc sabot. Projectile measures: diameter 4.53in., length 9in. excluding fuze, weight 35.7lbs. Sabot is fired showing weak lands and grooves, and is intact. Metal is solid, minor areas of pitting. Projectile is disarmed: solid iron casting never had a cavity or bursting charge. Recovered: Vicksburg, Mississippi. Ref: Bell Heavy Ordnance, pg. 405., actual example published.

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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