Carbines, Revolving Rifles and Repeating Rifles
by Robert Niepert

The Carbine.
The Civil War was the first modern war.  Its carnage was recorded by the newly improved techniques of photography, messages were sent across hundreds of miles in minutes with the telegraph, and men and material moved quickly on the railroad but perhaps the greatest development in armed warfare since the Minie' ball was the carbine.  The armies of both sides need the advantage of additional firepower on the battlefield.  This need lead to the development of the first successful repeating rifle and carbine designs.

At the start of the war, the Southern cavalry was as well armed as its Northern counterpart, if not better.  Carbines were in short supply in both camps, and so one of the South's favorite weapons was the sawed off shotgun loaded with buckshot, a formidable weapon throughout the war.  Some excellent breech loading carbines were produced in the South during the war, but in very limited numbers.  When the carbine came into common use during the war, it changed forever the way future conflicts would be fought.  Nowhere on Civil War battlefields did American ingenuity and industrial might evidence itself so strongly as in the development and production of rapid firing breech loading carbines.  Carbines, short barreled breech loading versions of rifles were conceived and designed with the cavalry in mind.  They were much easier to handle on horseback compared to the long arms issued at that time.  The carbine itself went through several changes during the war, the most notable the change from paper cartridges and percussion caps to moisture proof metallic cartridges.  The development of these brass and copper cartridges led to still other improvements.  Adding a flange at the base end of the cartridge made extraction of the spent cartridges easier.  Soon the faster firing weapon had magazines that continuously fed new rounds into the breech with just a movement of a lever.

Colt Repeating Rifle.
The Colt-Root Model 1855 percussion repeating rifle was just a large version of the Colt revolver.  Designed and promoted by Elisha Root, the rifle was first used against the Seminoles in Florida in 1837.  General Harney used 100 of these weapons when his Dragoons raided Chieka's Island in 1838.  The Model 1855 became the first type of this weapon officially adopted by the U.S. Government but was not produced or used until 1857 due to problems with the action of the cylinder.  The repeating rifle never caught on with the military like it did with the general public before the war.  The revolving percussion rifles came in calibers ranging from .40 to .64 caliber with cylinders that held either five or six shots.  The weapon weighed 9 pounds 15 ounces.  Berdan's Sharpshooters were issued 1,000 of the 1855 models while waiting to be rearmed with the Sharps carbine.  Some models of the revolving rifle could be fitted with a sword bayonet and were sold for $44.00.  Several states bought them for their militia units.  The U.S. War Department purchased 4,712 of these rifles during the Civil War but they were soon regulated to the storage shed due to their unfortunate tendency to fire all of its cylinders at one time, often removing the fingers of the firer's forward hand.  The rifle's discharge rate was so unpredictable that men often lowered the loading lever and held the weapon by it when they pulled the trigger.  The repeating rifle was also much slower to load than other breech loading carbines so it's military career was very short.  They were eventually sold off by Washington for a mere 42 cents each to get rid of them.

Maynard Carbine.
A favorite with the Confederate cavalry was the "Maynard" rifle which admirably earned it's place in history.  The light weight breech loading carbine was patented by Dr. Edward Maynard in 1856.  In an unusual twist of fate, the Maynard factory in Chicopee, Mass., was shipping the weapon south as late as 1861, four months after the war started through border state agents.  The explanation was that the weapons were being shipped to Southern "sportsmen".  In a glowing testimonial of the Maynard, one Confederate cavalryman stated that the weapon was "warranted to shoot twelve times a minute, and carry a ball effectually to 1,600 yards.  Nothing to do with the Maynard rifle but load her up, turn North and pull the trigger.  If twenty of them don't clean out all Yankeedom, them I'm a liar, that's all."  Some of the Maynards featured a brass frame.  They were 40 inches long with a 21 and 1/2 inch barrel and issued in .52 caliber.

To load the Maynard, the lever which doubled as a trigger guard was pulled down, which tipped the hinged barrel forward (photo at left) from the breech and tipped it down.  A single brass cartridge was inserted in the barrel, which was then locked back into place.  Some of the Maynards featured a "rising Block".  The most unusual thing about this weapon was the percussion cap.  It used Maynard's patented roll of percussion caps, which looked like rolls used in toy cap pistols today.  Pulling back on the hammer positioned the next cap over the nipple and when the trigger was pulled, the hammer smashed the fulminate cap and the resulting spark detonated the cartridge (photo at right).  Unfortunately, the Confederacy could not keep up with the reloading of the brass cartridges.  One Confederate cavalryman said "The Maynard rifle is the favorite with us, and proves a destructive weapon when one becomes accustomed to handling it, mounted, in a skirmish, it is light, simple in structure, and can be used with both caps; the only objection is you have to be careful in preserving the empty brass tubes, or you will not be able to make new cartridges."

Spencer Carbine.
On March 6, 1860 a patent for a new carbine was granted to Christopher M. Spencer.  The reliable rapid firing Spencer carbine with it's brass water resistant cartridges was probably the most advanced weapon of the time.  It was a remarkable gun and went far toward revolutionizing warfare as it was then waged.  At an overall length of 39 inches and a weight of 8 pounds 4 ounces, the carbine could fire seven copper rimfire cartridges from a tubular magazine in the end of the buttstock.  The majority of the Spencer carbines used by Federal troops were of .50 caliber and were chambered for the .56-.56 Spencer rimfire cartridge, having a big 350 grain bullet propelled by 43 to 45 grains of blackpowder making the complete round weight one ounce.  More than 58,000,000 cartridges were purchased for the Spencer, but many of them were used in the Ballard and Joslyn carbines of the same caliber.

At first the seven shot tube fed Spencer was slow to be accepted by the Union army.  To prove its sound design and superior construction, C. M. Spencer arranged to demonstrate the weapon to the Navy in June 1861.  Initial tests included burying a loaded weapon and immersing it in salt water before firing it.  Over a two day test fire, Spencer fired the carbine 250 times without stopping to clean the rifle.  During the rapid fire test, the carbine achieved a sustained rate of fire at twenty one rounds per minute.  Commander John A. Dahlgren was so impressed he ordered 700 Spencers to be used by the Navy.  Brigadier General James W. Ripley was not all that enthused and did not order any of the weapons.  However, General James H. Wilson did like Spencer.  In his report to the Union army's chief of ordnance, he wrote, "There is no doubt that the Spencer carbine is the best firearm yet put into the hands of the solider, both for economy of ammunition and maximum effect, physical and moral."  An excerpt from an official report reads, "We found them simple and compact in construction and think them less liable to get out of order than any other breech loading arm in use and are particularly pleased with the light carbine..."  According to procurement records (January 1, 1861 to June 30, 1866) the Union army did finally order 94,196 of the carbines but the initial delivery date of December 26, 1861 was delayed for more than a year due to a production problem with the gun's extractor.

After the improvements were made, the Spencer was reliable and very easy to use.  Lowering the operating lever dropped the breechblock and extracted the spent cartridge.  The same motion caused the magazine automatically to  feed another round into the chamber, closing the breech seated the cartridge.  Thus, all the solider had to do was cock, aim and pull the trigger.  With the production of the Blakeslee Cartridge Box late in the war, the Spencer carrying soldier had 10 to 13 extra loaded magazine tubes, equaling 70 to 91 rounds at his disposal making him an extremely formidable enemy.

The first Spencers used by Union soldiers, which had been bought privately or by individual units may have appeared on battlefields as early as late spring 1862.  The first government bought Spencers were delivered in October 1863 but were slow in getting to the field.  The Spencer was so popular among the troops that when units were denied issue of such arms, they occasionally took it upon themselves to personally purchase the guns.  When Col. John T. Wilder (of the Lightning Brigade) was refused the Spencer arms, he equipped the men of his brigade with 4,000 of the weapons.  His brigade felt such a need for the gun that each man voted to help with the purchase cost of the new carbine.  When the war ended, 105,804 of the 200,000 Spencers in use were purchased by private individuals.

The seven shot repeaters saw their first real action at the battle of Antietam.  The 7th Connecticut Infantry also used the carbines on November 19, 1863 at the battle of Olustee.  Captain Fort, of the 1st Georgia Regulars while he was skirmishing with the 40th Massachusetts Mounted Infantry in the battle of Olustee; referring to the Spencers said that "they were hard to move, as they seemed to load with marvelous speed and never had their fire drawn".  Capt. Ford was determined to see what sort of fire-arms were opposed to him so he ordered his men to concentrate their fire on a single skirmisher.  That skirmisher was killed and they were able to secure his Spencer.  They carried it around for a long time afterwards as a curiosity.  The repeating Spencer carbines started showing up everywhere and gave the inexperienced Federal troops the added firepower they needed to turn Lee's first attempt to invade the North.  The Confederacy did not have any of the Spencer carbines and those that were captured during the war were virtually useless to them as they had no means to manufacture the weapons cartridges.  Sergeant Sidney W. Cox with the 9th Michigan Cavalry was issued his Spencer and used it through two years of campaigning.  His unit was recorded as being the Federal unit to fire the last shot of the Civil War east of the Mississippi.  He was mustered out in July of 1865 and paid a $10.00 charge to take his rifle home with him.

Henry Repeating Rifle.
Described by one rebel as "that tarnation Yankee rifle they load on Sunday and shoot all week" the Henry repeating rifle was truly a weapon to be reckoned with.  Produced by The New Haven Arms Company in 1860, the fast shooting Henry was in great demand and although Federal orders were small some infantry and cavalry troops started receiving them in late 1863.  The 7th Illinois Infantry color guard (and their mascot dog) proudly display their new Henry repeaters in the photo at right.  The 7th's regimental history shows that the men obtained the Henry at their own expense and paid $50.00 a piece for them.  They put them to use when they fought brilliantly under Sherman and through the Atlanta campaign. The members of Birge's Sharpshooters of the 66th Illinois Infantry replaced their target rifles and also purchased their own Henrys.  It has been argued that the Henry was better built, more reliable and had more fire power than the most popular weapon of the war, the Spencer carbine.  The U.S. government bought 1,731 of the rifles and 4,610,400 cartridges, the last of which was received on November 7, 1865.

The weapon weighed 9.8 pounds and had a 24 inch barrel with a magazine holding 15 rounds (photo at left) located under and running the full length of the barrel.  The rifle was chambered for the .44 Henry Flat, a rimfire cartridge which was propelled by 26 to 28 grains of black powder with a 200 grain bullet.  It had a muzzle velocity of about 1,100 feet per second.  Although that is somewhat underpowered, the Henry still represented a milestone in rifle innovations that ultimately led to the Winchester .44-.40 still popular today.

The Henry was invented at the beginning of the war but the U.S. Army's Ordinance Department had dismissed the new inventions because they thought the rapid firing rifles would cause the soldiers to waste ammunition.  In tests, the rifle's 15 shot magazine could be emptied in less than 11 seconds.  A rate of fire of 120 shots were loaded and fired in 5 minutes and 45 seconds.  The advantage is very clear, keep in mind a well trained infantry solider could load and fire the muzzle loaders only three times a minute.  Fire power wasn't the only asset of the rifle, it could also be fired in a very safe prone position.  In the Battle of Chickamauga, the retreating Federal army was saved by just 535 men with Henry rifles.

The loading and firing of the rifle (refer to letters on drawing at right) was accomplished by: The breechblock "A" was locked by the toggle, by pulling the trigger guard leaver "C" down the toggle "B" was unlocked, which then pulled the breech block straight back.  The hammer was cocked by the block riding over it.  The carrier block "E" with a round from magazine was raised into line with the chamber.  Raising the lever "C" drove a round into the chamber, dropped the carrier block "E" and locked the toggle joint thus securing the breechblock.  Had this extremely accurate close range arm been developed and used earlier, historians of the war believe the conflict could have been shortened by as much as a year, possibly two.

LeMat Revolving Rifle.
Perhaps the most unusual revolving percussion rifle ever made was designed by Jean LeMat.  This weapon was very rare and I found little information on it.  The revolving rifle looked just like the LeMat pistol and even included the 18 gauge shotgun barrel below the .42 caliber top barrel.  The two barrel bands contained the pipes for the ramrod.  The rear sight had one solid and one folding leaf with a high front sight to match.  The ears on the nose of the hammer helped to align the sight picture.  The overall length of the carbine's top barrel was 19 and 11/16 inches and the bottom barrel was 19 and 1/2 inches.  Both the pistol and the carbine were fixed cylinder percussion revolvers.  LeMat manufactured a fine, reliable, high quality weapon although it was large and heavy.  Jean LeMat's profitable partnerships with Girard and Son and Beauregard dissolved with the collapse of the Confederacy.  Surprisingly, this cumbersome carbine with its revolving cylinder was eventually used by the U.S. Army.  Postwar LeMats were equipped to take the new self-contained rimfire or centerfire metallic cartridges that had become standard toward the end of the Civil War.  An antique LeMat carbine was put on auction in September, 2002.  This carbine was marked "SYSTme LEMAT Bte S.C.D.G. PARIS" on the top of the barrel and "(LM" on the right side of the same barrel.  This carbine was in fine condition and sold for $75,000.00.  There are only 14 known carbine examples in existence today.

Sharps Carbine.
It has been debated for almost 135 years now (with no hope of ending) which carbine was the best, the Sharps or the Spencer.  Both have their advantages and disadvantages and the argument seems to boil down to a personal preference.  Some prefer accuracy to firepower, some handling to reliability.

The Sharps Carbine was invented by Christian Sharps of New Jersey and was patented on September 12, 1848.  In 1852 the firm received its first government contract for 200 of the carbines priced at $30.00 each.  The breech loader was soon deemed a necessity for the mounted troops, so it was as a cavalry carbine that this fine weapon saw its most active service.  Over 80,000 were used in the war but government purchases of the rifles totaled less than 10,000.  However, many troops were armed with Sharps at their own expense or by their state governments.  During the Civil War, both the Union and the Confederacy used the Sharps.  In the South, the weapon was called the "Richmond Sharps."  Soon the weapon became the firearm of choice for special regiments known as "Sharpshooters".  The cavalry preferred the gun because of its ease of use and accuracy of up to 600 yards.

The .52 caliber carbine was 39 inches long and weighed 8 pounds.  The Sharps had a rate of fire of up to 10 rounds per minute.  A quick firing breech loading firearm, the Sharps introduced a highly intricate firing mechanism using a lever that doubled as a trigger guard.  When the lever was pushed forward, the breech block was lowered (drawing at right) and opened the gun's chamber so that a linen cartridge could be inserted.  When the chamber was closed, the sharp metallic edge on the breech block would cut open the linen cartridge (photo at lower left) and expose the powder for ignition by the hammer striking a percussion cap.  One major problem with the sharps was blackpowder build up in the fore stock.  When the front breechblock cut through the paper or linen cartridge, some powder spilled out and fell between the fore stock and the barrel.  This powder build up caused a secondary explosion when the percussion cap was detonated to fire a new round.  This additional burn accounted for some minor injuries to the soldier and many split fore stocks.  The problem of secondary ignition is still prevalent in the new reproduction Sharps.  That is why it is necessary to invert the carbine and blow out the extra powder in the breech block occasionally during use.

The carbine was issued with the customary ring and slide for a sling.  An interesting variation was the incorporation of a small coffee mill with a detachable handle in the butt.  The idea was to supply one to every company (coffee was frequently issued in the bean), but only a very few were ever so altered.  The carbine was also manufactured with and without the patch box (see photo at top) built into the rifle's buttstock.

The Cavalry Musketoon.
The musketoon has been around since the mid 1700's.  Do not confuse the Civil War era musketoon with its forerunner the flintlock musketoon or Blunderbuss of 1759.  This newer version of the weapon pictured here on the left was considered a "carbine" because of it's size but it was in reality just a short rifle.  These two muzzle loading Richmond Armory cavalry musketoons were made in late 1862.  They were little more than cut down infantry rifled muskets.  The musketoon was chosen as the Confederate cavalry's official longarm in 1863.  Although it is not well known this short rifle was also used by the artillery on some occasions.  This weapon still had to be loaded the same way as a regular issue musket and was no match for the fast loading, rapid firing carbines used by the Federal army.

References:
Echoes Of Glory
Lords Encyclopedia
Hard Tack And Coffee
Black Powder Gun Digest
North And South Magazine
American Civil War Armies
The National Rifle Association
Illinois State Historical Library
Fighting Men Of The Civil War
The Museum Of The Confederacy