The history of the SHarpshooters
History of Hiram Berdan and the Berdan Sharpshooters
The 2nd United States Sharpshooters were a group of highly skilled shooters, capable of shooting a soldier from 200 yards away and were active from September 1861 to December 31st, 1864. Hiram Berdan, creator of the Berdan Sharpshooter regiments, was involved in the recruitment of 18 companies from 8 different states. Eventually forming two regiments with the backing of General Winfield Scott and former President Abraham Lincoln. Hiram Berdan was named Colonel for the 1st and 2nd U.S. Sharpshooters on November 30th, 1861. The men he recruited were put through rigorous tests, dressed them in distinctive green wool uniforms, and equipped with the most advanced long-range rifles anyone had seen of its time. The Sharpshooter regiment played important roles in the Battle of Gettysburg, Peach Orchard, and Devil's Den. Hiram Berdan unexpectedly passed away on March 31st, 1893 and was buried at the Arlington National Cemetery, his memory lives on through the spirit of the Berdan Sharpshooter Reenacting groups.
History of the Berdan Sharpshooter regiments
Below is the list of Sharpshooter Companies and where they transferred to
Co. A was in Minnesota & transferred to the 1st Minnesota Volunteer Infantry Co. B was in Michigan & transferred to the 5th Michigan Volunteer Infantry Co. C was in Pennsylvania & transferred to the 105th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Co. D was in Maine & transferred to the 17th Maine Volunteer Infantry Co. E was in Vermont & transferred to the 4th Vermont Volunteer Infantry Both Co. F & Co. G were in New Hampshire & transferred to the 5th New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry Co. H was in Vermont & transferred to the 4th Vermont Volunteer Infantry |
The History of the Sharps Rifle
Christian Sharps invented the Sharps rifle in 1848 in Hartford, Connecticut. It was a single shot percussion lock breech loader that could be fired 8 to 10 times per minute, weighed about 12 pounds, was 47 inches in length with a 30-inch barrel and fired cartridges with a .52 caliber conical ball. The Sharps rifle was accurate up to 600 yards, so the typical Sharpshooter was able to put 20 bullets in a 24-inch pattern from 200 yards away. He got it patented on September 18th, 1828. He was awarded a total of 15 firearms-related patents. Although it wasn’t the first breech-loading rifle, Sharps' was the first to be accepted widely and, with the onset of the American Civil War, the first to be produced in large quantities. The Sharps, in a carbine version, was the most widely-used cavalry carbine by the Union Army. It was so successful that it was copied and manufactured by the Confederate government to arm its mounted troops. Sharps' designed firearms later saw extensive use in the American West as military and hunting weapons. They were also highly regarded as target rifles and were used extensively in international shooting competitions through the late 1800s. The men of the Sharpshooters regiment were armed with various types of rifles, including the Sharps rifle, the Whitworth rifle, sporting arms, and various other custom-made privately owned target weapons. Some of these rifles weighed up to 30 pounds (14 kg) because they contained the first breed of telescope sights. Although they used a few different rifles, the main rifle that the Sharpshooters used was the Sharps Rifle.
History of Christian Sharps
Christian Sharps was born on January 2nd, 1810 and died on March 12th, 1874 from Tuberculosis at the age of 64. He was married to Sarah Elizabeth Chadwick and had two kids, Satella Sharps and Leon Stewart Sharps. Christian Sharps left the company he worked for in 1855 to form his own manufacturing company called "C. Sharps & Co." which produced 4 barrel derringers, and later renamed "Sharps & Hankins", in partnership with William Hankins, in 1862. Both firms were located in Philadelphia. Sharps & Hankins not only produced 4 barrel derringers, but also the single-shot Model 1861 Navy Rifles and the Model 1862 Carbines, both of which featured forward "sliding breech actions" and fired the .56-.52 Spencer rim fire metallic cartridge. The Sharps and Hankins partnership ended in 1867, and Sharps resumed the manufacturing of firearms under the C. Sharps & Co. name.
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Why the green wool uniforms?
The most notable aspect of the Berdan Sharpshooter uniform is the green color, rather than the standard Union blue. They were one of only a few regiments that went outside the typical Potomac Army's uniform. The green uniform gave the sharpshooters the clear advantage of camouflage, but also sometimes was a disadvantage because they were easy to distinguish against the rest of the Union soldiers for Confederate marksmen to spot and target. Sharpshooters were high-priority kills amongst the Confederate army, because they had such high skills and good salvageable equipment. Sharpshooters used more guerrilla warfare battle tactics than the rest of the Union infantry. Along with the green uniform, a soldier was to have no brass on any of their buttons. Their shoes were standard Union issue, but their pants were made of green wool just like the frock coats, with a pair of gaiters. Furthermore, Sharpshooter knapsacks were a Prussian-style fur sack fitted over a wooden frame, as opposed to the usual tarred canvas. However, as the war went on the men were not reissued this clothing and many of the men received standard federal clothing making them harder for rebel troops to notice their elite capabilities. By the Gettysburg campaign most of the men were wearing modified blue uniforms.