Smith carbine
| Smith Carbine | |
|---|---|
 Smith Carbine | |
| Type | Carbine |
| Place of origin |  United States |
| Service history | |
| Used by | USA |
| Wars | American Civil War |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Gilbert Smith |
| Designed | 1857 |
| No. built | 30,062 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 7.5 lb (3.4 kg) |
| Length | 39.5 in (1,000 mm) |
| Barrel length | 21.6 in (550 mm) |
| Cartridge | .50 Smith |
| Action | Break-action |
| Feed system | Single Shot |
| Sights | Blade (front); Block and single Leaf sight (rear) |
The Smith Carbine was a 0.50 caliber breech-loading rifle patented by Gilbert Smith on June 23, 1857 and successfully completed the Military Trials of the late 1850s. It was used by various cavalry units during the American Civil War.
The Smith Carbine was unique in that it broke apart in the middle for loading and it used rubber cartridges which sealed the gases in the breech. The downside was that these cartridges were difficult to remove.[1]
The carbines were built by Massachusetts Arms Company of Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts; the American Machine Works in Springfield, Massachusetts; or the American Arms Company in Chicopee Falls. The name of the distributor for the manufacturer, Poultney & Trimble of Baltimore, Maryland, is often stamped on the carbine's receivers.[2][3]
Service history
Early versions are often known to modern collectors as Artillery models, but all Smiths were issued to cavalry units. Units known to have received the Smith carbine include:
- 3rd West Virginia Volunteer Cavalry Regiment
- 7th Illinois Cavalry
- 11th Illinois Cavalry
- 1st Connecticut Cavalry
- 7th Pennsylvania Cavalry
- 17th Pennsylvania Cavalry
- 6th Ohio Cavalry
- 9th Ohio Cavalry
- 1st Massachusetts Cavalry
- 10th New York Volunteer Cavalry
References
- ^ Field, Ron; Smith, Robin (2005). Uniforms of the Civil War: An Illustrated Guide for Historians, Collectors, and Reenactors. Globe Pequot Press. p. 64. ISBN 978-1-59228-525-9.
- ^ James, Garry (October 2010). "The Hated Smith Carbine". Guns & Ammo.
- ^ Graf, John F. (2009). Standard Catalog of Civil War Firearms. Iola, Wisconsin: Krause Publications. p. 170. ISBN 1-4402-2696-2.
4. 72 Days at Gettysburg: Organization of the Tenth New York Volunteer Cavalry and Assignment to the Town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania (December 1861 to March 1862) /George Rummel page 151