American Military Shoulder Arms, Volume II
American Military Shoulder Arms, Volume II

Author: George D. Moller

Publisher: UNM Press

Published: 2011-11-15

Total Pages: 557

ISBN-13: 0826349994

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New data surrounding the procurement and modifications of arms produced by the national armories, and under federal contract procured by the individual states and by individual members of militias, is presented here for the first time. This information, interwoven with military, political, economic, and social factors, results in new and better definitions and a clearer understanding of the arms’ historical context. Though this work focuses on military flintlock shoulder arms, details on the federal government’s procurement of arms for Indians during rapidly changing military policies of the period is also included. American Military Shoulder Arms, Volume II, contains more than three hundred photographs. As with the previous volume, Volume II is written primarily for students of arms, but also contains material of interest to historians, museum specialists, collectors, and dealers of antique arms.

Firearms of the American West, 1803-1865
Firearms of the American West, 1803-1865

Author: Louis A. Garavaglia

Publisher:

Published: 1998

Total Pages: 424

ISBN-13:

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In 1803 Lewis and Clark set out on their epic expedition across the American wilderness west of the Mississippi, armed with the typical weapon of their day, the single-shot muzzle-loading rifle. By 1865, a variety of breech-loading and repeating arms had been invented there were both easier to use and more accurate. This encyclopaedic study, part one of a two-part book, traces the development and uses of firearms on the frontier during that period, drawing on primary sources such as correspondence and diaries, newspaper accounts, government reports, and patent materials. Then, as now, most of the advances in weaponry were made in response to the military's needs, becoming available somewhat later to civilians, and then to Indians. The authors thoroughly cover the refinements and adaptations of weapons for employ by these three groups and by explorers and trappers, describing in detail each gun, its modifications, operations, and uses. In many ways the history of firearms on the frontier parallels the history of the development of the West.

The Mexican War: A Military History Research Collection Bibliography
The Mexican War: A Military History Research Collection Bibliography

Author:

Publisher:

Published: 1973

Total Pages: 126

ISBN-13:

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This bibliography differs from the previous publications in this series since it concerns a specific time in American history, the Mexican War period from 1835 to 1850. From a military standpoint, the victorious efforts of American military forces can be considered as the proving ground for the Army and the Navy that emerged during the Civil War. The annexation of Texas and the acquisition of lands from Mexico predestined both the expansion of the United States to the Pacific and the conflict which divided brother from brother. This bibliography lists pertinent materials to be found in the Military History Research Collection related to this part of American history and is not intended to be a definite listing of bibliographic references on the period.

Kearny's Dragoons Out West
Kearny's Dragoons Out West

Author: Will Gorenfeld

Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press

Published: 2016-10-13

Total Pages: 531

ISBN-13: 0806156554

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Having banished eastern Native peoples to lands west of the Mississippi, President Andrew Jackson’s government by 1833 needed a new type of soldier to keep displaced Indians from returning home. And so the 1st Dragoons came into being. Will and John Gorenfeld tell their story—an epic of exploration, conquest, and diplomacy from the outposts of western history—in this book-length treatment of the force that became the U.S. Cavalry. The 1st Dragoons represented a new regiment of horsemen that drew on the combined skills and clashing visions of two types of leaders: old Indian killers and backwoodsmen such as loudmouth miner Henry Dodge; and straight-arrow battlefield veterans such as Stephen Watts Kearny, who had fought Redcoats in 1812 but now negotiated treaties with Indian tribes and enforced the new order of the West. Drawing on soldiers’ journals and other never-before-used sources, Kearny’s Dragoons Out West reconstructs this forgotten, often surprising moment in U.S. history. Under Kearny, the 1st Dragoons performed its mission through diplomacy and intimidation rather than violence, even protecting Indians from white settlers. Following the regiment up to the U.S.-Mexican War, when diplomacy gave way to open violence, this book introduces readers to future Civil War generals. Colorful characters appearing in these pages include Private Thomas Russell, a young attorney tricked by a horse thief into joining the army; James Hildreth, who authored two books on the 1st Dragoons; and English drill sergeant Long Ned Stanley, whose tenure in the 1st reveals much about American immigrants’ experience in 1833–48. The promises made in Kearny’s well-intentioned treaty making were ultimately broken. This detailed and in-depth look back at his legacy offers a glimpse of a lost world—and an intriguing turning point in the history of western expansion.

Making Arms in the Machine Age
Making Arms in the Machine Age

Author: James J. Farley

Publisher: Penn State Press

Published: 1994

Total Pages: 164

ISBN-13: 9780271010007

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Making Arms in the Machine Age traces the growth and development of the United States Arsenal at Frankford, Pennsylvania, from its origin in 1816 to 1870. During this period, the arsenal evolved from a small post where skilled workers hand-produced small arms ammunition to a full-scale industrial complex employing a large civilian workforce. James Farley uses the history of the arsenal to examine larger issues including the changing technology of early nineteenth-century warfare, the impact of new technology on the United States Army, and the reactions of workers and their families and communities to the coming of industrialization. Shortly after the War of 1812, the U. S. Army founded several new arsenals, including Frankford, to build up supplies of arms and ammunition then in short supply. At that time, the Army was held in low regard because of its perceived poor performance in the war, so the arrival of arsenals was not welcomed. By 1870, however, the arsenal at Frankford had integrated itself into the community and become a valued and respected member of it. Farley argues that the Ordnance Department of the U. S. Army created an industrial system of manufacture at Frankford well in advance of private industry. He also contends that the evolution of the Army into an employer of a large-scale civilian workforce helped to end the isolation and anti-militarism that plagued it after the War of 1812. Farley's study joins recent work in the history of technology, such as Judith McGaw's That Wonderful Machine, that seeks to understand technological change in its social and cultural context.