Civil War Guns

Number of Spencers Purchased Spencer was born at Manchester, Connecticut, June 20, 1833 ; he remained identified with Connecticut industry all his life and died there, prosperous and founder of the famous Billings & Spencer firm, manufacturers of drop forging tools, on January 14, 1922 . Patentee of designs in silk-winding machinery, automatic screw machines and turret lathes, he is known for his development of the seven-shot Spencer repeating rifle and carbine. Buckeridge estimates 230,000 Spencer arms were used in the war; Harold Peterson in a profile on Spencer appearing in American Rifleman, more conservatively noted that 200,000 Spencer rifles and carbines are thought to have been employed in combat. The number is quite large, so large as to suggest error. Some 94,196 Spencer carbines are listed as procured in the war at a cost of $2,393,633.82; and 12,471 Spencer rifles, costing $467,390.56. Spencer cartridges totalling 58,238,294 were bought for $1,419,277.16. These pur...