1st New Mexico Volunteer Infantry
"Kit Carson's Own"
Ordnance Department
Making Authentic Cartridges
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A History of the Ordnance Department
Submitted by Ordnance Sgt. Patrick Hernandez
The Ordnance Department was established on May 14,1812 as
a separate branch in the U.S. Army, however in 1821 it was merged with the
Artillery. The department was restored to its original status by Congress as
of April 5,1832. The Ordnance Department adopted the "Shell and Flame" as its
official insignia in 1832, but it wasn’t until 1851 when uniform changes were
taking place that the "Shell and Flame" became the distinctive insignia of the
Ordnance Department being worn by both officers and enlisted men. About the
same time a new button was authorized for the Ordnance Department being of
gilt, convex in shape and with a plain border, having the crossed cannon and
bombshell and a circular scroll, over and across the cannon, containing the
words "Ordnance Department U.S.A.". In 1851 the Ordnance Department also
adopted "Crimson" as its official branch color.
The Ordnance Department was responsible for supplying weapons and the items that supported the Army's weapons and were called Ordnance and Ordnance Stores. The general denomination Ordnance and Ordnance Stores, comprehends all cannons, howitzers, mortars, cannon balls, shot, and shells, for the land service; all gun carriages, mortar beds, caissons, and traveling forges, with their equipments; and all other apparatus and machines required for the service and maneuvers of artillery, in garrisons, at sieges, or in the field; together with the materials for their construction, preservation, and repair. Also, all small arms, side arms, and accoutrements, for artillery, cavalry, infantry, and rifleman; all ammunition, for ordnance and small arms; and all stores of expenditure, for the service of the various arms; materials for the construction and repair of Ordnance buildings; utensils and stores for laboratories, including standard weights, gauges, and measures; and all other tools and utensils required for the performance of Ordnance duty.
The War Department produced two very important publications, which governed the operation, organization, and procedures of the Ordnance Department:
1.Regulations for the Government of the Ordnance Department and,
2. The Ordnance Manual for the
Use of the Officers of the United States Army.
The first detailed the duties of the Ordnance officers
and even provided examples of the Ordnance forms and explanations of how to
fill them out. It also had tables that listed all the parts of small arms and
their costs as well as the approved accoutrements with their associated costs.
The second publication provided the Ordnance officers, contractors, regimental
officers and other government officials with detailed listings of all the
parts of Ordnance and Ordnance Stores, their dimensions, instructions on
inspection procedures, paints and tanning procedures.
The Ordnance Department was headed by a Colonel in the
1850's and elevated to the rank of Brigadier General on August 3,1861. The
overall head of the Ordnance Department was called the Chief of Ordnance. The
center of the Ordnance Department's operation was the Ordnance Office, located
in the Winder Building on 17th Street, NW; in Washington D.C. The majority of
the Ordnance officers were located at armories, arsenals, and depots or with
the armies in the field. Each geographic department was assigned an Ordnance
Officer, whose responsibility was to report all matters of his department to
the Chief of Ordnance.
The development, production, and storage of ordnance and
ordnance stores were located throughout the country in three types of
facilities; Armories, Arsenals, and Depots.
Armories are facilities for the manufacturing of arms;
Arsenals are facilities where Ordnance and Ordnance Stores can be constructed,
repaired, and deposited. Arsenals were categorized by the work carried out in
them. Depots are facilities for the storage of Ordnance and Ordnance Stores.
It became apparent to the Ordnance Department that there was a need for Ordnance and Ordnance Stores to be contracted. The purchase of Ordnance and Ordnance Stores was governed by regulations found in the U.S. Army Regulations of 1857 and Revised Regulations of 1861 covered by Articles 939 to 944. Article 940 stipulated that all contracts had to be initiated by an announcement in a form of an advertisement requesting proposals to furnish the current models and patterns desired. In times of emergencies, however the advertisement procedure could be dispensed with. Article 944 stated that the Ordnance Department was authorized to purchase Ordnance and Ordnance Stores by an open contract or purchases with normal contractors being utilized. All the contracts had to be signed by the contractor, Chief of Ordnance, and Secretary of War to become official. According to Article 1236 of the regulations, in a time of war an army general in the field could order ordnance supplies simply by signing for them and sending the bills to the Ordnance Department for payment.
The War Department required that the Ordnance Department have a process to assure that the Ordnance and Ordnance Stores being fabricated and purchased were up to the standards required by the U.S. Army. Regulations of the Ordnance Department, Articles 9 to 13 described the procedures to establish approved models and patterns of Ordnance and Ordnance Stores, set up in the form of an Ordnance Board. The board was made up of officers from the Ordnance Department, as well as regimental officers of the Infantry, Artillery, and Cavalry. The board examined new and experimental Ordnance and Ordnance Stores submitted by the contractors or armories and then presented their recommendations to the Chief of Ordnance. The Chief of Ordnance then either accepted or rejected those recommendations, which then in turn sent them to the Secretary of War who had the final authority.
After approval there was to be models and patterns made
of the item, which were inspected and marked with an "USM" or if the part was
to small with just an "M". Firearms were normally cased with sets of standard
gauges for all the parts of the model, and accoutrements were usually several
complete sets. The models and patterns were then sent to both of the national
armories, the Inspector of Contract Arms and Accoutrements, who happened to be
the Commanding Officer of the New York Arsenal; who then in turn wrote to the
Chief of Ordnance asking permission to travel to the contractors location to
inspect and receive the goods.
When permission was granted, an inspection team known as sub-inspectors went to the contractor’s location. The inspection team was comprised of experienced workmen from the two national armories.
These men were on a daily basis to inspect the individual
parts and approve the assembled items for final inspection by the Inspector of
Contract Arms and Accoutrements. Each and every firearm was stamped with the
sub-inspectors and Inspector of Contract Arms and Accoutrements initials on
the left side of the stock. Usually the accoutrements were not stamped with
inspectors name or initial until 1864,but the makers name and place of
manufacture was to be placed on the items. Once the war began however, the
Inspector of Contract Arms and Accoutrements became far to busy to give each
model and pattern this kind of attention he allowed the sub-inspectors to
finalize the products without his approval. Once the inspection was completed,
the goods were boxed up, sealed in the presence of the inspector then he
initialed the box and had them transported to an arsenal, or to units in the
field that requested the items.
To pay for the manufacturing and purchasing of Ordnance
and Ordnance Stores, Congress allotted two funds to the Ordnance Department.
The first was called "Ordnance and Ordnance Stores" which purchased ordnance
items to be issued to the Regular Army units. The second was called "Arming
the Militia, Law of 1808" which purchased ordnance for the arming and
equipping of militia units of each state of the Union. Each year both the
national armories and arsenals received allocated money for their annual
expenses from both the regular army or militia funds when they received
purchasing directions from the Ordnance Department.
For a U.S. Army unit to receive any ordnance stores, the commander of the unit had to submit a form (Form 22,Requisition for Ordnance Stores) requesting such stores, called a Requisition, which was always the basis for issuance of any Ordnance and Ordnance stores. This form was filled out when a unit was first formed and requested to be outfitted, when ordnance items were lost or worn out, when additional men joined a unit, or when a new model or pattern were introduced, usually by a General Order that was issued by the Chief of Ordnance directing unit commanders of a new item.
When the Ordnance Office received the requisition forms, an "Order for Supplies" form was filled out, and given a sequential number for that particular request and year. The Chief of Ordnance would review all requests and either approve or disapprove the order. If none of the arsenals had such stores on hand, or if it was too large that it depleted the supplies to be kept on hand, an order was given to purchase the items from contractors or have them manufactured by the armories or arsenals. All of these procedures were designed to keep the Chief of Ordnance in the decision-making process rather than the individual commanders taking the initiative. Even with these procedures in place it was still the Secretary of War who had the final authority for approval or disapproval for anything being done.