Bullet and Shell Civil War Projectiles Forum

Author Topic: Sleeved  (Read 1982 times)

Woodenhead

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Sleeved
« on: July 14, 2018, 11:38:02 AM »
At least twice during the war the CS dropped the smooth-sided Read-Parrott design in favor of a new and improved configuration. Each time after a few months they officially returned to the original smooth-sided design. The first time was July or August 1862 when the Richmond Arsenal sent new pattern drawings to the nearby foundries and across the South. The original orders have not turned up yet in research but the first page shown below gives us a good idea of its shape. Made in the fall of 1862 by the premiere Richmond foundry, Samson & Pae, it has as smaller nose and a recessed band around the base. Records and surviving example confirm that S & P had returned to the old smooth-sided shape by November 1862. Foundries and distant Arsenal took liberties with producing the new sleeved pattern. I believe it was a response to complaints from the field about oversized noses sometimes hindering their use along with the addition of a lubrication groove at the bottom which had been a constant concern of the artillerists. It was not an anti-chipping feature. Several letters among the ordnance officers discuss lubricating the bottoms of the projectiles. None of the research I've examined including the detailed shell tests and studies conducted primarily by the Augusta Arsenal express much concern with the chipping other than acknowledging that it happened. They wanted extra lube to make loading easier and reduce wear on the cannon bores. The deep channel in the lower part of the second page below made by an unknown Deep South foundry seems to have obviously been intended as a lubrication groove. Its wood fuze plug is consistent with late 1862 production. By Jan. 1863, the shift to copper fuze plugs had happened across the South.

The third page below shows a 10 pdr. Read-Parrott with a recessed base from the camping area along Adams Run, S.C. It appears to be Deep South production - probably Charleston or Augusta who regularly supplied the 25 or so batteries of the Army of North Carolina and Southern Virginia. Its wood fuze plug supports late 1862 production prior the intro of copper fuze plugs.

The 4th page below shows a typical Virginia "sleeved-body" Read-Parrott found by Pete At Banks Ford in the early 1980s. While leaving the woods on the previous trip, I heard a deep reading and excavated a similar (no side plug) Read-Parrott with recessed base and wood fuze plug. About half of these sleeved shells have wooden plugs. As nearly as I can pin it down, the copper fuze plug did not become mandatory in the Virginia theater until November or December of 1862. Pete returned alone (it was his spot!) and dug seven beautiful Read-Parrotts in the vicinity. Over the years, many of this recessed base style have been dug around the Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville area and a lesser number at Gettysburg. Richmond sent about 1,000 Read-Parrotts to Vicksburg in November 1862 including many of the sleeved body design. This was the only time I can document that VA shells were sent out of state.

To summarize: if you have one of these shells with a lubrication groove or sleeved appearance, it was an official pattern probably made in late 1862.

Woodenhead