Ridgeway Civil War Research Center, A virtual examination of artifacts of the American Civil War
	Civil War Weapons, all pre 1898
	by Harry Ridgeway

Rifle percussion rifle, Model 1855 Harpers Ferry, .58cal. . Manufactured by Harpers Ferry Armory, Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia). Research Center: Weapon1451-Musket-Model-1855-Harpers-Ferry . Details click: http://relicman.com/weapons/Weapon1451-Musket-Model-1855-Harpers-Ferry.html

Rifle percussion rifle, Model 1855 Harpers Ferry, with two brass bands, brass patchbox, long range sight, brass trigger guard, brass forenend cap, fitted for saber bayonet, 1858, .58cal. . The model 1855 was the first long arm made for the new. 58 caliber minie. The addition of the new Maynard feed system was thought to be an improvement over the earlier percussion nipple system in which caps had to be hand placed, however caps could still be manually placed, and as a practical matter the paper feed system did not work out, and was simply abandoned by the time the next model was introduced in 1861. The Model 1855 long-arm manufactured with two bands was referred to as a percussion rifle, while the same weapon with three bands was a percussion rifle - musket, both are muzzle loading muskets and by 1861, nearly all were three band and are often referred to simply as muskets. Manufactured by Harpers Ferry Armory, Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia). Marks: Lock is marked 1858 behind the hammer, with eagle on the Maynard flap and US / HARPERS FERRY in front, Barrel is marked VP over eagle head, and (date). Buttplate is marked US. Two bands each marked U. Model features: Brass buttplate, brass patchbox cover, patchbox drilled with two slots (unique to Harpers Ferry), C shaped hammer, bolster with clean out screw, early versions employed the long range site, brass trigger guard, two brass barrel bands are flat and held in place with springs, two strap hooks on top band and trigger guard, nose cap is brass, lug placed on right side of barrel for a saber bayonet, ramrod is tulip head with bulge, end is threaded. Research Center: Weapon1451-Musket-Model-1855-Harpers-Ferry-1858 . Reference: Flayderman 9A-309. Barrel length, 33in. Details click: http://relicman.com/weapons/Weapon1451-Musket-Model-1855-Harpers-Ferry-1858.html

Rifle percussion musket, Model 1855 Harpers Ferry, with three iron bands, iron buttplate, iron patchbox, three leaf sight, iron trigger guard, iron forenend cap, fitted for socket bayonet, 1860, .58cal. . The model 1855 was the first long arm made for the new. 58 caliber minie. The addition of the new Maynard feed system was thought to be an improvement over the earlier percussion nipple system in which caps had to be hand placed, however caps could still be manually placed, and as a practical matter the paper feed system did not work out, and was simply abandoned by the time the next model was introduced in 1861. Manufactured by Harpers Ferry Armory, Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia). Marks: Lock is marked 1860 behind the hammer, with eagle on the Maynard flap and US / HARPERS FERRY in front. Barrel is marked VP over eagle head, and (date). Buttplate is marked US. Three bands are each marked U. Model features: Iron buttplate, iron patchbox, C shaped hammer, bolster with clean out screw, three leaf site, iron trigger guard, three iron barrel bands are flat and held in place with springs, two strap hooks on middle band and trigger guard, iron nose cap, ramrod is tulip head with bulge, end is threaded, fitted for socket bayonet. Research Center: Weapon1451-Musket-Model-1855-Harpers-Ferry-1860 . Reference: Flayderman 9A-308. Barrel length, 40in. Details click: http://relicman.com/weapons/Weapon1451-Musket-Model-1855-Harpers-Ferry-1860.html

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. Any excavated relics have been recovered from private property with owners permission.This information is available for research purposes, pictures may be used by permission only.

All weapons listed on this webpage are strictly manufactured before 1898, and are considered unsafe for actual use. These are antique collectible weapons of the Civil War (most are pre 1865, unless I state otherwise) and actual firing of these weapons is not recommended for any purpose whatsoever! Because these are all "pre 1898" weapons, no licenses are required for ownership, but common sense and good judgment should be applied.

Most information on this page is from:
Flayderman's Guide to Antique American Firearms......
John Thillman series, "Civil War Cavalry & Artillery Sabers...", or "Civil War Army Swords....".

Ridgeway Civil War Research Center, A virtual examination of artifacts of the American Civil War Weapons Research center, weapons, click: http://relicman.com/weapons/Weapon0000-Index.html. Research center, weapons, click: http://relicman.com/weapons/Weapon0000-Index.html.

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