Replica, "City Class", Federal Gunboat, Cairo in Memphis, TN

[Cannoneer]

This is information on the three cast iron Army 42pdr conversion rifles that went down with, and were later recovered from the U.S. Gunboat Cairo, as taken from page 165 of the National Park Service document (that DD already posted), and the National Registry of Known Surviving Civil War Artillery.

Location on the Cairo: Port bow (when looking forward toward the bow, the left gun of the three bow guns) - Marked on right trunnion, K & W (Knap and Wade, foundry owners names), F.P.F. (Fort Pitt Foundry) - Right rimbase, 312 (foundry no.) - Left trunnion, 1856 (year tube was cast) - Breech, 8,359 lbs (weight of tube) - Muzzle face, No.8 (U.S. registry number), B.H. (barrel inspected by Benjamin Huger) - Top of barrel between the trunnions marked U.S. - Rifling, 9 grooves right hand twist. 42-pounder seacoast gun, Model of 1845; smoothbore converted to James system rifling.

Starboard bow (right gun of the three bow guns) - Right trunnion, K & W, F.P.F. - Right rimbase, 324 - Left trunnion, 1856 - Breech, 8,397 lbs - Muzzle, No.20, B.H. - Between trunnions, U.S. - 9 grooves right hand twist. M1845 42pdr converted rifle. From "The Encyclopedia Of Civil War Artillery":42-pounder seacoast gun, Models of 1840 and 1845. Total length, 129 inches; weight, 8500 pounds. While orders, inspections, and deliveries are recorded as two separate model years with separate series of Registry Numbers, there is no dimensional difference between the two models. The only disparity is that Model of 1840 are lathe-turned only at critical components (muzzle, breech, trunnions and rimbases) while Model of 1845 are fully lathe-turned. Total production: 40 Model of 1840 by Columbia and West Point foundries from 1841 to 1845; 318 Model of 1845 by Alger, Bellona, Fort Pitt, Tredegar and West Point foundries; known survivors, 3 Model of 1840, 29 Model of 1845. More than half of the known survivors were rifled by both sides (some also banded) during the Civil War.

1st starboard broadside gun - Right trunnion, J.M. (General John Mason, owner of foundry), C.F. (Columbia Foundry) - Left trunnion, 1837 (year tube was cast) - Breech, 8,620 lbs (weight of tube) - Muzzle face, No. 26 (U.S. registry number) - Top of barrel between trunnions marked U.S. - Barrel inspected by James Wolfe Ripley - Rifling, 9 grooves right hand twist. Model 1831, 42-pounder SB converted to James system rifling. From "The Encyclopedia Of Civil War Artillery": 42-pounder seacoast gun, Model of 1831. Total length, 129.4 inches; weight, 8687 pounds; total production, 167 by Bellona, Columbia and West Point foundries from 1831 to 1840; known survivors, 8. Its single 52.2-inch reinforce and breeching ring are distinctive features.

[Cannoneer]

Hi guys, I am Smokinbeaver, Brokenpole's wife that took the pictures on the Cairo. Some of the cannons had the "elevation screw" to raise and lower the back of the cannon, and some had a wooden wedge like block there with no screw. I was wondering what that was for, but guess it was to hold the barrel in place. It shows in some of the pictures of the cannon taken from the inside of the ship. Just wondered if it was there because the screw was missing. Those carriages were not origional as you can tell.

Sharon
smokinbeaver

Sharon, according to the National Park Service document, the larger carriages that were used to mount the three 42 pounder rifled conversions, and the three 8-inch smoothbores, had elevating screws, and the smaller carriages were equipped with quoins to elevate their barrels. Both carriages appear to be of the same design, the only differences being their sizes, and means of elevating the barrels.

[seacoastartillery]

     Sharon,   We realy love your photos of this ship; they let the air out of certain pronouncements, like ours which claimed a gun was missing and others like the one I just read recently that had all the large gun carriages for the Army 42 pdr. conversion rifles AND the Navy, 8" chambered cannon of 63 cwt. were equipped with the elevation screw and capstan wheel.  Your picture No. 25 shows all the 42 pdrs, yet only one, the port bow gun, has an elevation screw.  The other two 42 pdrs, the starboard bow gun and the starboard No. 1 broadside gun, the pattern 1831 gun with the breaching ring above the cascable, both clearly have wooden quoins for elevation.  Also the large Navy smoothbore in the center bow position has a quoin for elevation.  Don't you just love great pics like these?  Who is going to explain these contradictions to Sharon?  We can't.

Regards,

Tracy and Mike

[Double D]

Hi guys, I am Smokinbeaver, Brokenpole's wife that took the pictures on the Cairo. Some of the cannons had the "elevation screw" to raise and lower the back of the cannon, and some had a wooden wedge like block there with no screw. I was wondering what that was for, but guess it was to hold the barrel in place. It shows in some of the pictures of the cannon taken from the inside of the ship. Just wondered if it was there because the screw was missing. Those carriages were not origional as you can tell.

Sharon
smokinbeaver

Sharon,

Your picture helped solve some riddles that have puzzled us for some time.  The Screw Elevator and the key chain pictures were the most helpful for me.  You confirmed the screw elevator carriage did exist, something that I have never been able to to confirm before. 

All of use learned a great deal about this ship and these guns  this past week and your pictures were critical to our learning process.

The wedges are called quoins and sounds  like coin with a "Q".  The were used to adjust elevation of the barrel. The screw elevator at the time was more common on Army Field carriages.

[Cat Whisperer]

Sharon -

WELCOME to the board!

What you have described are two methods of raising and lowering the breech of the cannon to adjust for range.

One is expensive to machine but very precise, the other is cheap to make but more difficult to adjust.

[Cannoneer]

     Sharon,   We realy love your photos of this ship; they let the air out of certain pronouncements, like ours which claimed a gun was missing and others like the one I just read recently that had all the large gun carriages for the Army 42 pdr. conversion rifles AND the Navy, 8" chambered cannon of 63 cwt. were equipped with the elevation screw and capstan wheel.  Your picture No. 25 shows all the 42 pdrs, yet only one, the port bow gun, has an elevation screw.  The other two 42 pdrs, the starboard bow gun and the starboard No. 1 broadside gun, the pattern 1831 gun with the breaching ring above the cascable, both clearly have wooden quoins for elevation.  Also the large Navy smoothbore in the center bow position has a quoin for elevation.  Don't you just love great pics like these?  Who is going to explain these contradictions to Sharon?  We can't.

Regards,



Tracy and Mike

Sharon, I have the feeling that you are a very gracious lady, so I am hereby giving you an open invitation to let the air out of any of my pronouncements whenever your judgement informs you that they are in need of deflation.

In the NPS document there is one (and this is the only reference to this subject that I could find in this document) drawing of plans with elevations of two different sized carriages, the larger shown with an elevation screw, and the smaller shown with a quoin for elevation, and I'm well aware that this drawing goes a long way in proving absolutely nothing about which method was used to elevate the Cairo's guns. The legend above one carriage reads LARGE CARRIAGE to fit: 8'[sic] smoothbores 42pounder rifles, and the legend above the other reads SMALL CARRIAGE to fit: 32pounder smoothbores 30pound parrot[sic] rifle, and this information is all that I was intending to convey in my not very well composed post. I certainly did view all of the photos you took of the Cairo's guns and carriages before I posted the reply that is evidently so confounding to some. Double D's model has been discussed on this forum before, and I think that he has himself made the comment that photos of this gunboat's carriages seem to show more quoins than screws. I myself have looked at more than a few websites with pics of the Cairo's guns, so I'm aware that there are only a few carriages out of the thirteen that were fitted with elevation screws; the port bow 42-pounder rifle being one of them. I'm not sure if any contradictions have been explained with this post, but I tried.

[brokenpole]

Okay...now that my lovely lady got her question answered I came up with one of my own.  I am fully aware of the pdr. designation but what the heck is cwt.?  I have never seen that one before.

[carronader]

cwt. is British,short for hundredweight,.........14 pounds= 1 stone.....8 stones=1 cwt........20 cwt=1 ton   

 Coal used to delivered to your home in cwt. sacks.

[brokenpole]

cwt. is British,short for hundredweight,.........14 pounds= 1 stone.....8 stones=1 cwt........20 cwt=1 ton   

 Coal used to delivered to your home in cwt. sacks.

Thanks carronader. 

I am old but I'm not that old.  Actually I have never lived in a house that was heated by coal so I never knew how it was delivered.

[carronader]

Scotland was full of the stuff,made sense ,it fuelled possibly the fastest and most innovative period of advancement the world has yet seen.
 Betcha Casey Jones would have known what cwt was.

[Double D]

This from Ms. Joyner Museum Curator this morning.

In addition to the 42-PDR there are two other cannon also with the screw elevation system on Cairo, an 8-inch positioned as the number two port gun and a 32-PDR positioned on the starboard stern

[Double D]

This is the latest from Elizabeth Joyner Museum Curator Vicksburg Military park.

I am attaching a picture of the Rear gun sight for a 42-PDR.

Attached please find several photographs of the number two port gun. From the photographs, you can see where it appears that a notch has been, I guess, filed out for the sight.

These photos are posted with permission of and by courtesy of Vicksburg NMP

I enlarged the pictures so you can better see the sight.  I will need better photo's with more detail before I take a file to my gun.

[Oldshooter]

DD that bore looks like it needs some attention! 

[Double D]

Randy,

It probably has something to do with laying in the bottom of the river for 100 years.

[Cannoneer]

I will need better photo's with more detail before I take a file to my gun.

DD, I think that's a good decision to have reached; the front sights should be investigated further. In the National Park Service PDF on pp. 164 & 165 all the Cairo's guns except the Parrott are listed as having the "muzzle swell top filed to form front sight blade."
Why would this have been done when brass/bronze front sights were (or at least should have been) readily available?
Wouldn't the diameter of the muzzle ring on the M1845 42-PDR's be below 'the line of metal' as described by the diameter of the base ring?
Are there any threaded blind holes on the tops of the guns near the muzzles, or on the line of metal in front of the trunnions?
Could it be that the tops of the muzzle swells were filed to mark the center of the line of metal on the tubes for positioning sights there? 
The photo (not very high quality) posted below is of a display of artifacts shown in the indoor Cairo Museum; the display contains ammunition, U.S. Navy "slap hammer" type gun locks, and in the left foreground, two sight blades that were recovered from the Cairo. I have never seen that type of large heavy blade sight before (behind the sight in the foreground), and I can't make out any holes drilled for attaching it to the tube. 

She did tell me an interesting piece of information, that I didn't know, but don't realy find surprising.  Some of the guns on the Cairo were mounted on field carriages.

I think it's probable that Elizabeth Joyner (in her statement above) was speaking about the 12 PDR Dahlgren boat Howitzer that is documented as having been removed from the Cairo's armament when the 30-PDR Parrott was brought onboard. There is a Dahlgren Howitzer on display in the museum, but it's not the cannon that was originally on the gunboat.

This from Ms. Joyner Museum Curator this morning.

In addition to the 42-PDR there are two other cannon also with the screw elevation system on Cairo, an 8-inch positioned as the number two port gun and a 32-PDR positioned on the starboard stern

Double D, thanks for posing that question to Eliz. Joyner; after seeing Sharon's clear pic of the rear of the 8-inch #2 port gun I knew there were definitely two carriages with elevation screws, and another of Sharon's photos (showing the aft starboard 32-pounder in the backround) made me think there might be a third, but I wasn't sure about the stern gun.

This is a photo of the two original carriages that mounted the M1845 42-PDR's (the middle, 8-inch gun's quoin is blocked by the capstan).




Sharon's pic (I cropped it) that shows the starboard stern 32-PDR, and its carriage with an elevation screw (if you save the pic, and zoom in on the carriage, you can " kinda " make out the screw).

[GGaskill]

Although this image is of a Victory gun and port, if the Cairo had ports of similar height, one might expect that a significantly raised front sight might depart the muzzle during a recoil event having snagged the upper surface of the gun port.  And since the Cairo would have been intended to engage targets above the level of the river, it would have fired with some degree of elevation on most every shot.

[Double D]

George I agree. I don't think the screwed on front sight would have lasted very long either.  The Cairo was at one time under under Navy Control.  Perhaps, and this is just specualtion, the Navy influence brought about this filed in sight.

The whole topic might make for some interesting research.  Cannonmn-John, you are our chief National Archives Researcher, can you look into this?  Since you were Navy this should be right up your alley!! 

The field carriage gun was on the Hurricane deck and was removed after the boat sank.

[GGaskill]

Another point would be that the now very low front sight would give greater elevation to the sight plane.

[carronader]

 DD,
       Rather than these filings being related to sights,could they not be for the lay of the barrel in relation to the carriage or for sighting when the ship is heeling over or such like manoeuvre when bringing the gun to bear . just a thought.

[Double D]

Tom,

These were stern wheel river boats and didn't heel over like sailing ships, good thought though.

[seacoastartillery]

  And since the Cairo would have been intended to engage targets above the level of the river, it would have fired with some degree of elevation on most every shot.

Another point would be that the now very low front sight would give greater elevation to the sight plane.

     From our reading about Riverine Operations on the mighty Mississippi River and it's tributaries, we think these sights would have worked very well indeed, as 90 to 95% of the targets that these gunboats engaged would have been on the riverbanks at elevated artillery batteries large and small.  In our opinion, even more tube elevation via quoin or elevation screw adjustment would have been required to hit most of these targets as battery locations were usually on bluffs overlooking a reach or specific section of the river.
     
Regards,

Tracy and Mike

[brokenpole]

  And since the Cairo would have been intended to engage targets above the level of the river, it would have fired with some degree of elevation on most every shot.

Another point would be that the now very low front sight would give greater elevation to the sight plane.

     From our reading about Riverine Operations on the mighty Mississippi River and it's tributaries, we think these sights would have worked very well indeed, as 90 to 95% of the targets that these gunboats engaged would have been on the riverbanks at elevated artillery batteries large and small.  In our opinion, even more tube elevation via quoin or elevation screw adjustment would have been required to hit most of these targets as battery locations were usually on bluffs overlooking a reach or specific section of the river.
     
Regards,

Tracy and Mike

And lest you think that there are no bluffs over looking the Mississippi in Vicksburg, I can send pictures that prove there are.

[Cannoneer]

 Sharon, HELP! They're ganging up on me, they've got their needles out, and they're trying their darnedest to DEFLATE my impromptu souffle. Well, they've also offered up what appear to be some quickly thrown together dishes, so lets see how they rate in a taste test. I'm a slow man with a slow digestive system so I'm going to start with just a nibble.

The field carriage gun was on the Hurricane deck and was removed after the boat sank.

Douglas, what or whom is the source that provides you with this information?
What was the type of artillery piece that was mounted on a field carriage, and which type of field carriage was it on?
Does the source that you got this information from, state what was done with this barrel and carriage once the divers recovered it (or was it salvaged at an earlier time) from the Cairo wreck that was resting in the mud on the bottom of the Yazoo River, and does it give the present whereabouts of the cannon and carriage? 

[seacoastartillery]

     Brokenpole,   Living there, you know those bluffs much better than we do, but we have read a bit about the Siege of Vicksburg in 1863 and accounts of Whistling Dick, the rifled 18 Pdr iron siege gun and the Widow Blakely are very interesting.  Tying the use of these cannon into our study of 42 pdrs. and Pook Turtles is not hard.  Take a look at a portion of the front page of Harper's Weekly from the summer of 1863.

                  THE IRON-CLAD CINCINNATI

       "ON this page we publish a picture of the iron-clad gun-boat Cincinnati, as she appeared before she went into the recent fight at Vicksburg, where she was sunk. Our picture is from a photograph by Lieut. Julius H. Krohl, who writes, under date of 27th May:
"This morning the so called iron clad Cincinnati, Lieut. Bache commanding, went down the river to silence a battery on the top of a bluff just above Vicksburg, which could not be silenced by Sherman's artillery."

" She went gallantly into action, rounded the point, and blazed away at the rebel batteries, but the latter were not idle, and all the guns that could be brought to bear—rifled and smooth bore — opened on her. Her tiller -ropes were shot away, and she got some heavy shot into her sides. The pilot was killed at the wheel, and her commander took his place. All the men at the wheel were wounded, but Lieut. Bache escaped unharmed."

"She started up the river, as she made a great deal of water, rounded again the point of the peninsula opposite Vicksburg, and was struck by a plunging 10-inch smooth-bore or 7-inch rifled shot ; she then commenced to sink, and her captain ran her inshore, where she sank to her hammock netting. The officers and crew saved nothing.  According to the captain the Cincinnati lost about thirty men in killed and wounded, and 15 to 20 drowned."

" The Cincinnati was one of the Western river-built boats. She had 2 1/2-inch iron plating forward, extending aft to about amidships ; the after-part was entirely unprotected. The photograph I send I took yesterday before her after-part was covered with bales of hay. The Cincinnati only returned last Sunday from Cairo, where she had been repaired and had a tower for riflemen." From the sonofthesouth website.


     As most of you know, the Union Army, then Union Navy Gunboat, Cincinnati was one of seven such gunboats built by James Eads, including the Cairo, which were designed to open up the western rivers from Confederate control.  Some accounts have Whistling Dick participating in the bombardment and sinking of this Federal Navy Gunboat, but we have not researched this battle enough to know for sure.  It is certain that plunging fire from high bluffs had a lot to do with the sinking.

     One thing we have always wondered about is the methods used to keep the shot or shell in the large smoothbore cannon while the tubes were at steep angles of depression.  Any ideas?

Regards,

Mike and Tracy


Note the armored tower for riflemen. 

[Double D]

I just spoke with MS. Elizabeth Joyner at Vicksburg Battlefield. She has confirmed that two of three 42 Pounders on the Cairo, had screw elevators.  She did not check the records on the 4th 42 PDR gun as she didn't have them at hand.  Ms.  Joyner is going to send me some information on the 42 PDRs.  She was familiar with William Green drawings.  She said she thought they had some Green drawings on file that were used during restoration projects.  We talked about the fact Green referred to the 42 PDRs as 1841 pattern when the they are 1840 pattern.  She specualted that perhaps the one Green measured was made in 1841 and that is where he came up with M-1841.

Now I sit here waiting for the email with a couple of pictures, so I can send her my mailing address for a whole packet on the 42 PDR's. Is it Christmas yet?

She did tell me an interesting piece of information, that I didn't know, but don't realy find surprising.  Some of the guns on the Cairo were mounted on field carriages.

Here is the response I got from Ms Joyner on the subject of the missing 42  PDRthis morning.

I'm not aware of another 42-PDR. The only gun that was not found with Cairo was the 12-PDR Boat Howitzer which had been removed prior to her sinking. It had been positioned on the hurricane deck. We don't know what happened to that gun after it was removed.
 
I may have found the source of the confusion over the model 1841 gun. In looking over material to mail to you, I found a statistical error on one of the bulletins listing one of the 42-PDR's as an 1841 model. As you saw in the information sent yesterday, two of the guns were manufactured in 1856 and one in 1837.

Pick up the phone and call  Ms. Joyner, I'm sure she will be able to provide you the details,  I can't. I really don't have an interest in such guns. My interest is only in the 42 PDR that was modeled by William Green.

[brokenpole]

Now I have no idea whether this was the gun on the field carrage that was on Cario or not.  I don't even know if it's a howitzer.  I don't even know how to spell howitzer!!!   

But this is a pic a little closer up of the gun in the museum.  I may go up there tomorrow and see if I can get some more information if anyone is interested.

[Cannoneer]

Pick up the phone and call  Ms. Joyner, I'm sure she will be able to provide you the details,  I can't. I really don't have an interest in such guns. My interest is only in the 42 PDR that was modeled by William Green.

Thank you for your suggestion, but I don't think it will be necessary for me to take up any of Elizabeth Joyner's time.

[Cannoneer]

Now I have no idea whether this was the gun on the field carrage that was on Cario or not.  I don't even know if it's a howitzer.  I don't even know how to spell howitzer!!!  

But this is a pic a little closer up of the gun in the museum.  I may go up there tomorrow and see if I can get some more information if anyone is interested.

Brokenpole, that's a lot better than the pic I glommed off the net, thanks for posting it. What do you mean, you don't know how to spell howitzer? You already did, twice.

Elizabeth Joyner has already stated that the gun in the photo is not the boat howitzer that was originally part of the armament of the Cairo.

Here is the response I got from Ms Joyner on the subject of the missing 42  PDRthis morning.

I'm not aware of another 42-PDR. The only gun that was not found with Cairo was the 12-PDR Boat Howitzer which had been removed prior to her sinking. It had been positioned on the hurricane deck. We don't know what happened to that gun after it was removed.
I may have found the source of the confusion over the model 1841 gun. In looking over material to mail to you, I found a statistical error on one of the bulletins listing one of the 42-PDR's as an 1841 model. As you saw in the information sent yesterday, two of the guns were manufactured in 1856 and one in 1837.

When you and your wife were on the Cairo, you were both viewing (and taking fine photos) of the real deal. All thirteen of the cannon barrels that you saw were the entire armament of the "hard-luck" Cairo when she went down, and they were all raised along with the thirteen four-truck naval carriages that they were originally mounted on.

I myself am interested in all cannons to some degree, and to most things that relate to artillery. The boat howitzers we're discussing were designed by John Adolphus Dahlgren, the first model was produced in 1849, and they were officially adopted by the U.S. Navy in 1850, and were kept in active service until near the end of the nineteenth century, which is in itself a testament to the brilliance of Dahlgren's design.

[Victor3]

 Are there any detailed pictures available of the Cairo's Parrott rifle (or a similar one)?

 I'd like to rework mine to make it look similar...

[brokenpole]

Are there any detailed pictures available of the Cairo's Parrott rifle (or a similar one)?

 I'd like to rework mine to make it look similar...

According to the layout seacoast provided, the 4.2" parrot would have been located on the port side stern position.  I have a kind of long range pic of the end of that gun.



It may be possible to get a little closer and provide some better pics.  My wife has the camera at the ready and said she will take them as long as I buy her some crawdads.

How can I resist?