1. Weapons Technology & Medicine
Civil War
Weapons Technology & Medicine

2. Weapons Technology Fast Facts
Weapons Technology advanced more rapidly during the Civil War than battle field tactics and medical practices.
What problem do you think this could cause?
Better weapons used in conjunction with old tactics led to extremely high casualty rates on the battle field.
What do you think caused more death than weapons technology?
Diseases caused the most deaths in the war.
2x as many men died of disease than died of battle field wounds.

3. Pre-Civil War Guns
Before the Civil War, infantry soldiers typically carried muskets
Muskets held just one bullet at a time
They had a range of about 250 yards
Its “effective range” was only about 80 yards

4. Civil War Guns
The Civil War saw the invention of new guns known as Rifled-Muskets
Rifles had a much greater range
Rifles could shoot a bullet up to 1,000 yards
They were much more accurate
Soldiers could load rifles with the new bullet the Minié Ball much more quickly

5. The Rifle-Musket
Rifling consists of grooves cut or formed in a spiral nature, lengthwise down the barrel of a firearm.
Rifling is placed in the barrels of guns to spin the bullets that pass through it.
Model 1861 was the standard rifle-musket used throughout the war

6. Hand Guns
Colt Model 1860 Army Revolver was primary handgun used by Union troops during the Civil War
It was reliable
It was a six-shot, .44 caliber revolver

7. New Bullets The French army officer Claude-Etienne
Minié invented the Minié bullet in 1849.
B. It was a cylindrical bullet with a hollow base that expanded when fired
C. The Minié Ball was lethally accurate over long distances
D. During the American Civil War in 1861, both Union and Confederate soldiers used the "minnie" bullet in their muzzle-loading rifles.

8. The Gatling Gun Gatling gun- one of the earliest machine guns.
Developed during the American Civil War
Early machine guns could fire more than 120 shots per minute.
They were fired using a hand crank
Early machine guns had many mechanical glitches
They were heavy and unwieldy
They tended to overheat
They were difficult to use

9. Ironclad Ships Ironclads were ships covered with iron.
These ships were a major improvement over wooden ships
Ironclads made wooded hulled ships obsolete
The invention of these ship introduced a new age in naval warfare
The First two ironclads to meet in battle were the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia (The Merrimack)
The sea battle these two ships fought in was called the Battle of Hampton Roads

10. The Horrors of Civil War Surgery
Soft lead bullets caused most Civil War battle wounds, often leaving broken and splintered bones and large, ragged holes in the body. If a soldier was shot in the head, chest or stomach, is chances for survival were slim. Because of the extensive damage to bone and muscle tissue, wounded arms and legs often had to be amputated—as quickly as possible to minimize suffering and loss of blood. Like Northern doctors, Confederate physicians used ether and chloroform to anesthetize patients for surgery. But when supplies ran out, they operated without anesthesia. Not surprisingly, many soldiers feared surgery more than death itself. Unaware of how infections develop, doctors operated without washing hands or sterilizing tools. They rinsed wounds with water contaminated by the pus and blood of other patients. In fact, infected wounds were so common that physicians thought pus was a necessary part of the healing process. Even when an operation went well, some patients died of tetanus, blood poisoning or gangrene afterward.

11. Civil War Amputation Kit
Mexican Civil War amputation kit belonging to Dr. John King. 7th Prov. Reg't. Enrolled in Missouri Milita, Dr. King was from Mt. Vernon, Missouri. And enlisted in Springfield Missouri on November 1, 1863. 

13. Civil War Amputation Kit
Upper tray:
1.  Bone dust brush
2.  Amputation saw
3.  Handle for small trephine
4.  Trepanning scalpel
5.  Hey saw for trepanning
6.  Gouging bone chisel
7.  Trepanning elevator
8.  Straight end bone chisel
9.  Trepanning raspatory
10 & 11. Chain saw handles (2)
12. Olive arterial forceps
13. Bandage or tissue scissor
14. Trephine head (small)
Lower tray:
15. Chain saw blades
16. Bone holding forceps
17. Liston Bone forceps (heavy)
18. Bone rongeur forceps
19. Set of bone drills (4) with handle
20. Liston knee curve cutting forceps
21. Bone chisel mallet

14. Civil War Amputation Kit
Removable tray:
22. Handle for large trephine
23. Trephine head (large)
24. Tourniquet (brass frame) w/strap
25. Set of muscle retractors (2)
26. Needles, suture, bone wax   compartment
27. Aneurysm needle holders
28. Scalpels, Bistouries, tenaculeum
29. Amputation knives, catlin, finger saw
30. Spare bone saw blade

15. Tools of a Surgeon: Amputation Kit
Tourniquet – used to stop the blood flow so patients would not bleed out during operations & amputations

16. Tools of a Surgeon: Amputation Kit
Knives – came in various sizes for the different body parts they were used on
Used to cut soft tissue in major and minor operations
Came in two pieces - blade and handle
Septic waist got caught in the attaching parts of these knives leading to infection

17. Tools of a Surgeon: Amputation Kit
Forceps- used for seizing and holding divided vessels after an operation and for closer.

18. Tools of a Surgeon: Amputation Kit
Bone saws
Saw used for cutting through bone.
Varied in size and shape depending on size and location of bone

19. Tools of a Surgeon: Amputation Kit
Bone Forceps
rounding the edges in amputations
Gnawing off projecting parts that were not accessible to other instruments.

20. Amputation: Surgeons Guide

21. Amputation: Surgeons Guide

22. Amputation: Surgeons Guide

23. Death by Disease
People remember the Civil War for its tragically high casualty rates
Approximately 1,200,000 in all
Among soldiers, disease actually killed far more men than battlefield wounds.
1 in 4 men died after an amputation
Bacterial infection caused death
“Surgical fevers” were a result
of un-sterilized equipment.

24. Amputations Amputated limbs often were thrown outside of medical tents
Piles of amputated limbs could be found near medical tents.