Ammunition Supply in the Civil War
Supplying ammunition to the armies of the Civil War must have been a truly Herculean task. The average infantryman was issued 40 to 80 rifle cartridges, with hundreds of rounds per man more in reserve- and that’s just the infantry! This being said, the arsenals of the day were constantly busy with orders. (I know the feeling!) One particular order from May, 1862 that was shipped to Tennessee from the arsenal in Indianapolis contained the following: 921,000 rifle, elongated ba