Research Arsenal

01/12/2026

Henry Cole Smith was born in 1845 to Marcus DeForest Smith and Harriet (Cole) Smith of Kent, Connecticut. He was just fifteen years old when he enlisted in Company E of the 8th Connecticut Infantry on September 28, 1861.

The nine letters in the Research Arsenal collection were written to a friend of Henry Cole Smith named Nancy L. Harrison.

The first letter in our collection was written from Suffolk, Virginia on May 10, 1863. At the time the 8th Connecticut Infantry had recently been involved in the siege of Suffolk. Henry Cole Smith wrote to Nancy about the 8th Connecticut Infantry’s successful capture of a Confederate battery.

“You have probably read about our taking the rebel battery the other side of the river, so I shall not need to say much about that. I was there of course. I fired my rifle 3 times. None of the boys fired more times than that, with one of our rifles, but those who had Sharps Rifles fired 5 times. Some of the boys fired none. One man of this company was wounded in his arm and leg but not seriously.”

Henry Cole Smith was born in 1845 to Marcus DeForest Smith and Harriet (Cole) Smith of Kent, Connecticut. He was just fifteen years old when he enlisted in

01/09/2026

This week for our What's it Wednesday question, we asked you to identify the firearm this cavalry soldier is holding. The answer is, an 1855 Springfield pistol-carbine!

"The Model 1855 Pistol-Carbine was the last single-shot pistol produced as an issue arm for U.S. troops. Slightly more than 4,000 were manufactured at the U.S. Armory in Springfield, Massachusetts. They employed the same Maynard primer system and .58 caliber ammunition as that used in the U.S. Model 1855 Rifle-Musket. These convertible arms were intended for use as a pistol by cavalrymen, and when fitted with the detachable shoulder stock, they could be used as a carbine by dismounted troops.

The service history of the Model 1855 pistol-carbine is quite brief. Originally conceived as a dual-purpose arm for artillery and mounted troops, it soon fell into disfavor, primarily because the angle of jump (and bullet departure) varied greatly, depending on whether the arm was fired from the hand as a pistol or from the shoulder with auxiliary buttstock attached. Other problems included the considerable weight and awkwardness of the arm when fired from the hand, a tendency for the buttstock attachment to loosen in use, and splitting of the pistol-grip in recoil, a defect often noted in surviving arms of this pattern."
https://www.nramuseum.org/guns/the-galleries/a-nation-asunder-1861-to-1865/case-14-union-carbines/us-springfield-model-1855-pistol-carbine.aspx

You can see the fully tagged image here: https://app.researcharsenal.com/imageSingleView/4565

01/08/2026

As collectors, we often know our collections inside and out—where and when we got something, who we got it from, what we paid for it, the significance of it, why we got it, etc. But what we often don’t take into account, is that there may come a day when we can’t remember that information. And there also will come a day when we’re gone from this earth, and unless we’ve written that information down somewhere, it dies with us. Let's start the new year by assessing our collections and getting that documentation in order!

Today I want to highlight the importance of having a well-documented private collection. As collectors, we often know our collections inside and out.

01/07/2026

For our What's it Wednesday this week, can you identify the firearm this cavalry soldier is holding? Post your responses below and check back Friday for the answer!

01/06/2026

It’s not very often you run across a listing of booties(brogans) that specify if they were pegged or sewn!

01/06/2026

For you WWII researchers!!! We are excited to help out and promote a similar project that we are doing with the Civil War. Check out War Department Archives!!

Government‑issued WWII uniforms weren’t handcrafted by tailors or made in small cottage industries. They were mass‑produced in factories under exacting government specifications and strict contract requirements. If a manufacturer couldn’t meet those standards or quantities, their bid simply wasn’t accepted and their production wasn't accepted.

Take the “COATS W.A.A.C., UTILITY” specification as an example. This single garment had a document nearly 20 pages long detailing everything:

- materials required down to the exact type of thread and how that thread had to be produced
- sizes mandated by the U.S. Army
- assembly procedures for each step of construction
- stitch types and placement for every seam and part of construction

Pair that with the Quartermaster Corps patterns, and a factory had everything it needed to start producing uniforms for the war effort.

Whether you’re a collector of original pieces or a reenactor checking the accuracy of your reproductions, quartermaster documents are an incredible resource. They show exactly how these garments were made and the methods used—no guesswork, no myths, just the real history behind the uniforms.

https://www.wdarchives.com/

01/06/2026

Can I hug someone from 165 years ago?!

Another scanning day adventure! Rarely do we find an officer or adjutant who fully describes or completely fills out military forms!!

Here we see a clothing issue document that specifies mounted vs foot trousers, lined blouses and so much more. And his penmanship is readable!

I could just hug this guy!! lol. 😂

01/05/2026

William Prince was the son of a well-known horticulturalist, William Robert Prince, and Charlotte Goodwin (Collins) Prince of Flushing, New York. William Prince initially served as a private in the 9th New York State Militia (later designated the 83rd New York Infantry). He was wounded at the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862. Although he was commissioned as a lieutenant in the 159th New York Infantry, he never served with them and instead took up a position in the Ordnance Department, serving much of his time during the war at the Washington Arsenal.

Most of William Prince’s letters in the Research Arsenal collection were written to his brother, “Banny,” better known as LeBaron Bradford Prince, who later became the 14th Territorial Governor of New Mexico.

William Prince was the son of a well-known horticulturalist, William Robert Prince, and Charlotte Goodwin (Collins) Prince of Flushing, New York. William

01/02/2026

For our What's it Wednesday question this week, we asked you to identify this flag in the photo. The answer is the Union Ninth Corps flag. This particular photo of General William F. Bartlett and his staff was taken in the vicinity of Washington D.C. in July 1865. According to the Smithsonian:

"The Ninth Army Corps used several different flags during its existence between July 22, 1862 and August 1, 1865. The corps badge, authorized on April 19, 1864, called for the design of a shield on which a fouled anchor lies beneath a cannon. The regulation flag bearing the badge design came into use in the late summer of 1864.

The Corps was commanded by Major General Ambrose Burnside from its beginning. It is speculated that the shield represents the seal of the state of Rhode Island, General Burnsides' birthplace, and the fouled anchor refers to the Corp's participation in the Peninsular Campaign."

See the fully tagged image here: https://app.researcharsenal.com/imageSingleView/66757

01/01/2026

As the calendar turned during the Civil War, Americans greeted the New Year not with champagne and fireworks, but with musket fire, prayer, hunger, and reflection. For soldiers in the field, enslaved people awaiting freedom, and civilians struggling on the home front, January 1st was often less a celebration than a reckoning — a moment to take stock of survival and hope in the midst of national catastrophe.

As the calendar turned during the Civil War, Americans greeted the New Year not with champagne and fireworks, but with musket fire, prayer, hunger, and

12/31/2025

For our last What's it Wednesday of this year, how about another "can you identify this flag?" Post your guesses below and check back next year (Friday) for the answer! 😃

12/29/2025

On June 24, 1864, Benjamin Hulbard wrote to his wife from outside Petersburg. He detailed a recent fight where the various Vermont regiments took heavy losses.

“We left the place we were in when Loyal left Tuesday night, marched all night. Did not get more than 8 miles. Came to this place — a point on the railroad — formed our lines, sent out pickets, skirmishers, & pioneers who destroyed about 2 miles of railroad, who were driven back — all that were not killed or taken prisoners. We threw up breastworks in about 15 minutes, planted ourselves behind them expecting an immediate charge upon us as our picket said the rebs had strong skirmish lines & 2 or 3 lines of battle. We lay waiting to pay them off when they presented the charge but it seems they fell back after taking a host of prisoners. We lay till about 10 o’clock, then all left & fell back perhaps a mile & a half or two miles. What our next move will be, I of course can’t tell. On the whole, I call it a hard blow for us but still I don’t know but good will come out of it as a large force of the enemy must have come here & I don’t know but what those of our left where we came from have taken the advantage of the time & attacked Petersburg. I can not particularize — only we have had smart fighting here — gained nothing — lost heavily.

Benjamin Hulburd was born in 1822 in Waterville, Vermont. He was 40 years old when he first enlisted in the 7th Vermont Infantry in 1862. He was discharged