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EXCEPTIONALLY RARE BERDAN SHARPSHOOTER CARTRIDGE BOX

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Berdan's Sharpshooters of 1862 and beyond issued this Infantry style cartridge box to accommodate the custom breechloading Sharps Rifles used by the 1^st and 2^nd United States Sharpshooters.

This box was designed for belt carriage, negating the need for a shining brass breast plate mounted to a sling.  This box uses double tins designed for a wooden block to fit into the top trays of the tins, while the bottom trays held unopened cartridge packs. The blocks were to hold the relatively fragile paper or linen Sharps .52 cartridges.  The box shows evidence of having had a box plate in the form of two small vertical cuts in the front flap to accommodate the loop attachments of the plate but also shows evidence of having another style of plate attached – a possible indicator of post-war militia use. The wooden block is in a great condition with evidence of use within many of the drilled cartridge holes.  It is a lighter color, perhaps protected from aging by the flap of the box.  The tins are in excellent shape with only minor discoloration in limited areas.  The leather is in good condition with minimal crazing on the outer flap, along with some light cracking to the finished leather.  The interior implement pouch has been removed.  The box body leather is in great condition with minimal wear. The inner flap is soft and supple with virtually no wear.  All stitching is intact and strong throughout.  The measurements of the box are approximately 8.25”x 6.75” across the outer flap.  The body measures 7” x just over 5”, while the depth of the body of the box stands at 1.75” – like the bodies of p1861 cartridge boxes for .58 caliber Minié Balls. A small, printed card was found between the wood block and inner leather that reads “FROM THE COLLECTION OF WILLIAM G. PHILLIPS” – a decades-long collector from New Jersey whose items graced museums and private collections.

Hiram Berdan, one of the wealthiest men of the Civil War period and reputed marksman, funded the raising of two regiments whose exploits and skills made them the deadliest of all units across both sides of the conflict, with the highest documented tally of casualties inflicted upon the enemy during the Civil War.  Famed members included Truman Head, more popularly known as “California Joe” – a middle-aged man who lied about his late age to qualify for military service with Berdan’s new regiments.  He secured one of the longest confirmed kills in US History until the 20^th century – alleged to have been well over 1,200 yards – fired through the opening of a small window to neutralize a Confederate sharpshooter than had been causing much grief during the Peninsula Campaign of 1862.

Switching between various long guns with higher rates of fire including the Colt Revolving Rifle, heavy bench-rested target rifles, a modified Hall Breechloading pattern rifle, and finally the favored Sharps Rifle – customized on order with the addition of a double set trigger.  Two triggers are found on the Berdan pattern Sharps, one to set the trigger and remove all but a miniscule amount of resistant by pre-cocking, and the other to fire with a trigger pull weigh of under 2lbs – even less in some examples.  The Sharps proved accurate, and the fire rate was more than double that of a muzzle loading standard issue rifle musket.  It could also be loaded from awkward positions by not needing to be loaded from the muzzle.

Among Civil War cartridge boxes, the customized Berdan style box is one of the most difficult to find – with very few having been offered for sale to the collector market.  If you are looking to fill this specific hole in your collection, this is an exceptional opportunity.  [cm][ph:L]

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