THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF
CIVIL WAR ARTILLERY

Rodmans & Confederate Columbiads

NOTE: 8-inch and 10-inch Confederate Columbiad guns are included on this page because many people will expect to find them here. It is unfortunate that these guns have been associated with Rodmans and are even frequently referred to as "Confederate Rodmans." Both are large guns, and both can be termed "Columbiads." Other than having a superficial resemblance to Rodmans, Confederate Columbiads have very little else in common with Rodmans. Some differences are: For a detailed description of Rodman's work, see Rodman's Great Guns.
-WS

Except for the closeups, all scans are on the same scale relative to the 20-inch Rodman.

8-inch Rodman gun, Model of 1861. Total length, 123.5 inches; weight, 8490 pounds; total production, 148 at Fort Pitt Foundry and Seyfert, McManus & Co. 1861-65; known survivors: 40. An additional 65 8-inch Rodman prototype guns were cast at Fort Pitt and West Point foundries in 1861 of which there are 16 known survivors. These have elevating ratchets rather than the elevating sockets of the Model of 1861 (see below).

Rodman prototype elevating ratchets. The first 65 8-inch, the first 10 10-inch, and the first 15-inch Rodman cast had elevating ratchets like Columbiads, Models of 1842, 1844, 1857, and Confederate Columbiads.

Rodman Model of 1861 elevating sockets. All Rodmans cast after 21 February 1861 had elevating sockets similar to those shown here. Each foundry casting Rodmans used slightly different radii at the socket corners and can be identified by this feature.

10-inch Rodman gun, Model of 1861. Total length, 136.66 inches; weight, 15,050 pounds; total production, 1,291 at Alger, Fort Pitt, West Point foundries and Seyfert, McManus & Co. 1862-67; known survivors, 99. An additional 10 10-inch Rodman prototypes, with elevating ratchets like those pictured above, were cast at Fort Pitt Foundry in 1861. There is no known survivor. As with the 8-inch Rodman prototypes detailed above, the prototypes had elevating ratchets rather than the elevating sockets of the later Model of 1861.

10-inch Rodman gun, sleeved to 8-inch rifle. 210 existing 10-inch Rodmans were sleeved to 8-inch rifles via both muzzle and breech insertion. These alterations were effected at South Boston (Alger) and West Point foundries from 1876 to 1887. Wrought-iron sleeves were first used, with steel sleeves used later. These variations resulted in three series of new Registry Numbers, and original muzzle face markings were removed and replaced with new markings. Of the 99 known surviving 10-inch Rodmans mentioned above, 46 have been sleeved to 8-inch rifles. Except for the bore diameter, the presence of rifling (15 or 24 grooves), and muzzle markings, those sleeved via muzzle insertion have an external appearance exactly like a unaltered 10-inch Rodman.

Muzzle face of 10-inch Rodman gun, sleeved to 8-inch rifle. If there are not too many layers of paint on it, the initials of the company making the sleeve, and of the person inspecting it at that company, can be seen on the middle of the three rings that now appear to form the surface of the muzzle face.

10-inch Rodman gun, evidence of breech insert. 27 10-inch Rodmans were altered to 8-inch rifles at South Boston Foundry (Alger) in 1879 using steel sleeves with 15-groove rifling. The same foundry altered an additional 47 10-inch Rodmans in 1884 using steel sleeves with 24-groove rifling. From this total of 74 guns sleeved via breech insertion, the 14 known survivors have a conspicuous square extension of the threaded breech plug. This provided purchase for the wrench used to tighten the breech plug.

15-inch Rodman gun, Model of 1861. Total length, 190.0 inches; weight, 50,000 pounds; total production, 323 (including one prototype) by Cyrus Alger, Fort Pitt Foundry, and Seyfert, McManus & Co. from 1861 to 1871. Known survivors, 25, including the prototype cast at Fort Pitt Foundry.

20-inch Rodman gun, Model of 1861. Total length, 243.5 inches; weight, 116,497 pounds; total production for U.S. Army Ordnance, 2; known survivors, 2. The first 20-inch Rodman was completed at Fort Pitt Foundry in August 1864 and survives outside Fort Hamilton at Brooklyn NY. The second was cast at Fort Pitt Foundry in 1869 and survives at Fort Hancock NJ. A third was later cast at Fort Pitt Foundry and sold to the government of Peru.

8-inch Confederate Columbiad gun. Total length, 120.0 inches; weight, 8750 pounds. The total quantity of these guns cast is unknown although 69 were cast at Tredegar Foundry from June 1861 through December 1863. About the same quantity were cast at Bellona Foundry. At least six, and probably more, of this pattern were bored and finished as 5.82-inch rifles. There are 7 known survivors, all smoothbores.

10-inch Confederate Columbiad gun. Total length, 123.5 inches; weight, 13,500 pounds; The total quantity of these guns cast is unknown although 128 were cast at Tredegar Foundry from May 1861 through January 1865. Perhaps 70 were cast at Bellona Foundry during that same period. Several were bored and finished as 6.4-inch rifles. Known survivors, 19, including one bored as a 6.4-inch rifle.

8-inch rifle bored from 10-inch Confederate Columbiad gunblock and double banded. Tredegar 10-inch Columbiad castings Nos.1965 and 1977 were cast in November 1863. They were bored and finished as 8-inch rifles, then double banded. The finished weights, after rifling but prior to banding, were 15,043 and 15,250 pounds, respectively. One of those two tubes is shown in this wartime photo taken at an unidentified location.

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