The Breechloading Rifle of Columbus
Breech of a breechloading rifle manufactured at the Columbus Naval Ironworks in 1863.
Many thanks to friend of the page John Carroll for sharing photos of the breechloader as now displayed in the Columbus Museum and information on it!
Breechloading Rifle at the Columbus Museum
This little breechloading rifle was manufactured in 1863 by engineer W.J. McAllister using the wheel shaft of the sunken riverboat John C. Calhoun at the Columbus Naval Ironworks Company (during the war the “Confederate Naval Ironworks). Warren Ripley measured the bore at 2.75 inches. Ripley also gives the length overall as 61.25 inches, though he states that this doesn’t include the breechblock link (pg. 181). Lathework on the little rifle was done by Jacob G. Burrus. A 1978 newspaper article quoted a 1961 research paper by John C. Meyers which in turn quoted Burrus’s brother as recounting:
"On a visit to my brother at the Columbus Iron Works, I found him engaged at the lathe turning the gun. When completed, it was tested three times, but the recoil broke the stirrup through which the breech screws passed for holding the breech plug in place. "It was finally pronounced a failure. The federal raiders broke off a trunnion to prevent its further use. But it did service as a corner post at Springer's corner. " (1978 Article from the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer. - Thanks to The Civil War Picket for pointing us to that article in his great post on the cannon.)
Again, many thanks to John Carroll for sharing photos of this unique and innovative little cannon!
Trunnion Band of the Columbus Breechloader
Chase of the Columbus Breechloader
The little breechloader used to be displayed outside of the museum. Photos of it outside may be seen on the pages of
The Civil War Picket: https://civil-war-picket.blogspot.com/2019/12/in-hindsight-this-failed-confederate.html
And the Historical Marker Database: https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=113891
The Columbus Breechloader as previously displayed outside the Columbus Museum. Photographed by J. Makali Bruton, December 25, 2017. Posted on the Historical Marker Database.
