Harpers Ferry Armory
Encyclopedia
Harpers Ferry Armory, more formally known as the United States Armory and Arsenal at Harpers Ferry, was the second federal armory commissioned by the United States government located in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
(then part of Virginia
), the first federal armory being the Springfield Armory
located in Springfield, Massachusetts
. In many books the town is called "Harper's Ferry" with an apostrophe s.
The national armory has been associated with many prominent historical events throughout the history of the United States. The armory hosted wonderful ancient 18th-century U.S. architecture, effected an effective method of military arms production, and played an important role in the Civil War as a uniquely strategic geographical battleground.
Harpers Ferry National Armory was both an armory and an arsenal. An arsenal
is a place for the storage and the production of arms and military equipment
while an armory
is just a place of storage for such equipment.
founded the community of Harpers Ferry in the mid-18th century. Robert Harper was born in 1718 in Oxford Township
near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Since he was a builder, Harper was asked by a group of Quakers in 1747 to build a meeting house in the Shenandoah Valley near the present site of Winchester, Virginia
. Traveling through Maryland on his way to the Shenandoah Valley, Harper proceeded to the area where the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers met. Attracted and amazed by the ample latent waterpower that resided in the rivers and by the strategic location for travel and transport, Harper obtained a patent for 125 acre (0.5058575 km²) of the land in 1751. He built a ferry to cross the Shenandoah River to help pioneers reach their destination in the new western lands. After the creation of the ferry, more people were attracted to the area and it became a transportation hub dotted with flourishing businesses.
passed a bill
calling "for the erecting and repairing of Arsenals and Magazines". President George Washington
, given wide latitude in carrying out this order, selected Harpers Ferry, then a part of Virginia
, for the location of the Harpers Ferry National Armory. In 1796, the United States government purchased a 125 acre (0.5058575 km²) parcel of land from the heirs of Robert Harper
. Subsequently in 1799, construction began on the national armory. Three years later, mass production of military arms commenced.
The national armory at Harpers Ferry was actually the second national armory. The first was the Springfield Armory
, constructed in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1794 after Congress approved the bill to create the nation's first national armory.
Upon its grand opening, the armory's size seemed inadequate for a work force. It consisted of only one room, and the workers numbered a mere twenty-five. Nevertheless, the armory produced many muskets, rifles, and later pistols for the United States. The average annual production rate was estimated to have been ten thousand weapons per year. The building relied on river power to drive the armory's machinery.
In addition, more people were employed to work at the armory than before: the labor force increased from a minuscule twenty-five in 1802 to about four hundred workers in 1859. Furthermore, the working conditions improved, but only slightly.
, which, while unsuccessful in inciting a slave revolt, helped precipitate the American Civil War
and the eventual emancipation of slaves in the United States.
and the Union
.
Close to the beginning of the war on April 18, 1861, just a day after Virginia's conventional ratification of secession, Union soldiers, outnumbered and deprived of reinforcements, set fire to their own armory in an attempt to thwart the usage of it by an advancing Virginian Confederate militia numbering 360 men in all. Harpers Ferry residents (many of who made their living off the armory) were able to put out the fires swiftly enough to save most of the armory's weapon-making machinery. After rescuing the equipment, the Confederates shipped it south. Two weeks later, the Confederates abandoned Harpers Ferry. The Southern forces confiscated what was left in the armory and burned the rest of the remaining armory buildings. They also blew up the railroad bridge of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
.
During the Civil War, the armory became a site of great strategic importance because it was located very close to the Mason-Dixon line
, or the border between the free and the slave-holding states. Consequently, the Union used it as an effective means to supply troops with weapons quickly as they marched into battle. The downside to being on the border was that the armory could easily change hands and fall into Confederate control - the armory changed hands a total of seven times during the Civil War.
Furthermore, the armory proved to be a very strategic location as a battleground because it was situated beside a major river (the Potomac) which served as a natural defense on the north side. Another feature is that almost the whole area of Harpers Ferry is surrounded by mountains, which supplemented the defense provided by the river. However, transportation was easily facilitated, as the B&O railway
ran along the area where the armory was.
was the only building to survive the destruction wrought upon it by the Confederates and the Union. The building was named after John Brown for his notorious raid on the Harpers Ferry Armory in 1859. The building was the armory's fire engine and guard house.
Today the site is mostly covered by railroad track embankments.
required a significant amount of work. The four main parts of the gun had to be manufactured and assembled at the armory: the lock
, mounting, stock
, and barrel. The lock was by far the most difficult part to make and assemble. The lock's main job is to trigger the hammer by a spring to shoot the gun. To make the lock, one first needs to get a piece of wrought iron
, heat it in a forge
, and smith it. Once after the iron cools for a certain period of time, it must be sent to an annealing
furnace to restore its malleability. Then, sulfuric acid is placed on the metal to prevent rust. Then a drill
is used to drill a hole on each side of the lock to make room for screws to mount the lock onto the body of the gun. The other parts of the musket were fairly easy to make and required less skill.
Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
Harpers Ferry is a historic town in Jefferson County, West Virginia, United States. In many books the town is called "Harper's Ferry" with an apostrophe....
(then part of Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
), the first federal armory being the Springfield Armory
Springfield Armory
The Springfield Armory, located in the City of Springfield, Massachusetts - from 1777 until its closing in 1968 - was the primary center for the manufacture of U.S. military firearms. After its controversial closing during the Vietnam War, the Springfield Armory was declared Western Massachusetts'...
located in Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
. In many books the town is called "Harper's Ferry" with an apostrophe s.
The national armory has been associated with many prominent historical events throughout the history of the United States. The armory hosted wonderful ancient 18th-century U.S. architecture, effected an effective method of military arms production, and played an important role in the Civil War as a uniquely strategic geographical battleground.
Harpers Ferry National Armory was both an armory and an arsenal. An arsenal
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, issued to authorized users, or any combination of those...
is a place for the storage and the production of arms and military equipment
Materiel
Materiel is a term used in English to refer to the equipment and supplies in military and commercial supply chain management....
while an armory
Armory (military)
An armory or armoury is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, issued to authorized users, or any combination of those...
is just a place of storage for such equipment.
Harpers Ferry
Robert HarperRobert Harper
Robert Harper may refer to:* Robert Goodloe Harper , US senator from Maryland* Robert Harper * Robert Harper...
founded the community of Harpers Ferry in the mid-18th century. Robert Harper was born in 1718 in Oxford Township
Oxford Township, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania
Oxford Township, is a defunct township that was located in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania. The township ceased to exist and was incorporated into the City of Philadelphia following the passage of the Act of Consolidation, 1854.-History:...
near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Since he was a builder, Harper was asked by a group of Quakers in 1747 to build a meeting house in the Shenandoah Valley near the present site of Winchester, Virginia
Winchester, Virginia
Winchester is an independent city located in the northwestern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the USA. The city's population was 26,203 according to the 2010 Census...
. Traveling through Maryland on his way to the Shenandoah Valley, Harper proceeded to the area where the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers met. Attracted and amazed by the ample latent waterpower that resided in the rivers and by the strategic location for travel and transport, Harper obtained a patent for 125 acre (0.5058575 km²) of the land in 1751. He built a ferry to cross the Shenandoah River to help pioneers reach their destination in the new western lands. After the creation of the ferry, more people were attracted to the area and it became a transportation hub dotted with flourishing businesses.
The national armory
In 1794, the United States CongressUnited States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
passed a bill
Bill (proposed law)
A bill is a proposed law under consideration by a legislature. A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature and, in most cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been enacted into law, it is called an act or a statute....
calling "for the erecting and repairing of Arsenals and Magazines". President George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
, given wide latitude in carrying out this order, selected Harpers Ferry, then a part of Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, for the location of the Harpers Ferry National Armory. In 1796, the United States government purchased a 125 acre (0.5058575 km²) parcel of land from the heirs of Robert Harper
Robert Harper
Robert Harper may refer to:* Robert Goodloe Harper , US senator from Maryland* Robert Harper * Robert Harper...
. Subsequently in 1799, construction began on the national armory. Three years later, mass production of military arms commenced.
The national armory at Harpers Ferry was actually the second national armory. The first was the Springfield Armory
Springfield Armory
The Springfield Armory, located in the City of Springfield, Massachusetts - from 1777 until its closing in 1968 - was the primary center for the manufacture of U.S. military firearms. After its controversial closing during the Vietnam War, the Springfield Armory was declared Western Massachusetts'...
, constructed in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1794 after Congress approved the bill to create the nation's first national armory.
Upon its grand opening, the armory's size seemed inadequate for a work force. It consisted of only one room, and the workers numbered a mere twenty-five. Nevertheless, the armory produced many muskets, rifles, and later pistols for the United States. The average annual production rate was estimated to have been ten thousand weapons per year. The building relied on river power to drive the armory's machinery.
Expansion and upgrades
In 1844, the deficient state of the armory was taken into account and demand for military equipment increased, and so the renovation and expansion of the armory was undertaken. The upgrades of the arsenal began in 1845-1854 with the construction of seven brand new workshops and the installation of 121 new machines. The new workshops had a brick superstructure with iron framing and slanted sheet metal roofing. These reconstructed arsenal buildings became collectively known as the "U.S. Musket Factory". The armory canal was enlarged so that more water could get to the armory, which meant it would receive more power. Along with the enlargement of the canal, seven new water turbines were installed. Furthermore, heavier mill work was put into the building, which meant stronger metal equipment used for making the equipment. All the expansions of the armory were done on a heavy stone foundation.In addition, more people were employed to work at the armory than before: the labor force increased from a minuscule twenty-five in 1802 to about four hundred workers in 1859. Furthermore, the working conditions improved, but only slightly.
John Brown's Raid
In 1859, the armory became the site of the famous seizure by abolitionist John BrownJohn Brown (abolitionist)
John Brown was an American revolutionary abolitionist, who in the 1850s advocated and practiced armed insurrection as a means to abolish slavery in the United States. He led the Pottawatomie Massacre during which five men were killed, in 1856 in Bleeding Kansas, and made his name in the...
, which, while unsuccessful in inciting a slave revolt, helped precipitate the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
and the eventual emancipation of slaves in the United States.
During the Civil War
While Virginia was still in the union, the armory regularly shipped manufactured weapons and material throughout the United States. However, once the Civil War began, the national armory became a vital control point for both the ConfederatesConfederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
and the Union
Union (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
.
Close to the beginning of the war on April 18, 1861, just a day after Virginia's conventional ratification of secession, Union soldiers, outnumbered and deprived of reinforcements, set fire to their own armory in an attempt to thwart the usage of it by an advancing Virginian Confederate militia numbering 360 men in all. Harpers Ferry residents (many of who made their living off the armory) were able to put out the fires swiftly enough to save most of the armory's weapon-making machinery. After rescuing the equipment, the Confederates shipped it south. Two weeks later, the Confederates abandoned Harpers Ferry. The Southern forces confiscated what was left in the armory and burned the rest of the remaining armory buildings. They also blew up the railroad bridge of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...
.
The armory's strategic location
During the Civil War, the armory became a site of great strategic importance because it was located very close to the Mason-Dixon line
Mason-Dixon line
The Mason–Dixon Line was surveyed between 1763 and 1767 by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon in the resolution of a border dispute between British colonies in Colonial America. It forms a demarcation line among four U.S. states, forming part of the borders of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and...
, or the border between the free and the slave-holding states. Consequently, the Union used it as an effective means to supply troops with weapons quickly as they marched into battle. The downside to being on the border was that the armory could easily change hands and fall into Confederate control - the armory changed hands a total of seven times during the Civil War.
Furthermore, the armory proved to be a very strategic location as a battleground because it was situated beside a major river (the Potomac) which served as a natural defense on the north side. Another feature is that almost the whole area of Harpers Ferry is surrounded by mountains, which supplemented the defense provided by the river. However, transportation was easily facilitated, as the B&O railway
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...
ran along the area where the armory was.
Aftermath of the Civil War
After the Civil War, John Brown's FortJohn Brown's Fort
John Brown's Fort was the building built in 1848 that was originally constructed for use as a guard and fire engine house for the federal Harpers Ferry Armory in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, then a part of Virginia....
was the only building to survive the destruction wrought upon it by the Confederates and the Union. The building was named after John Brown for his notorious raid on the Harpers Ferry Armory in 1859. The building was the armory's fire engine and guard house.
Today the site is mostly covered by railroad track embankments.
Musket production
To make a basic musketMusket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth bore long gun, fired from the shoulder. Muskets were designed for use by infantry. A soldier armed with a musket had the designation musketman or musketeer....
required a significant amount of work. The four main parts of the gun had to be manufactured and assembled at the armory: the lock
Lock (firearm)
The lock of a firearm is the system used to ignite the propellant. Types of lock include snaplock, matchlock, wheellock, flintlock, modern percussion, rotating bolt, and experimental electronic types. A complete firearm often consists of lock, stock, and barrel...
, mounting, stock
Stock (firearm)
A stock, also known as a buttstock or shoulder stock, is a part of a rifle or other firearm, to which the barrel and firing mechanism are attached, that is held against one's shoulder when firing the gun. Stocks are also found on crossbows though a crossbow stock is more properly referred to as a...
, and barrel. The lock was by far the most difficult part to make and assemble. The lock's main job is to trigger the hammer by a spring to shoot the gun. To make the lock, one first needs to get a piece of wrought iron
Wrought iron
thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...
, heat it in a forge
Forge
A forge is a hearth used for forging. The term "forge" can also refer to the workplace of a smith or a blacksmith, although the term smithy is then more commonly used.The basic smithy contains a forge, also known as a hearth, for heating metals...
, and smith it. Once after the iron cools for a certain period of time, it must be sent to an annealing
Annealing (metallurgy)
Annealing, in metallurgy and materials science, is a heat treatment wherein a material is altered, causing changes in its properties such as strength and hardness. It is a process that produces conditions by heating to above the recrystallization temperature, maintaining a suitable temperature, and...
furnace to restore its malleability. Then, sulfuric acid is placed on the metal to prevent rust. Then a drill
Drill
A drill or drill motor is a tool fitted with a cutting tool attachment or driving tool attachment, usually a drill bit or driver bit, used for drilling holes in various materials or fastening various materials together with the use of fasteners. The attachment is gripped by a chuck at one end of...
is used to drill a hole on each side of the lock to make room for screws to mount the lock onto the body of the gun. The other parts of the musket were fairly easy to make and required less skill.