In the beginning of early 19th century, the concept of interchangeable parts started growing and people started manufacturing firearms through interchangeable parts. Simeon North (1765-1852) was the first official pistol maker of United States. North was a small arms contractor for US government and the inventor of first original plain milling machine, one of the fundamental machine of US systems which revolutionized the manufacturing of interchangeable parts. North got his first contract of making 500 horse pistols on March 9, 1799, 14 months after Eli Whitney got the contract from the government. North’s contract for 500 pistols was followed by another contract of 1,500 pistols in the beginning of 1800s. His third contract was for 2,000 …show more content…
Hall (1781-1841) a gun maker from New England, signed a contract with U.S government to manufacture 1,000 breech loading rifles which he designed and patented in 1811. Hall claimed that his rifles are designed to have interchangeable parts from the beginning. He received contract of manufacturing guns at Harpers Ferry Armory, in West Virginia, where he occupied an old Armory sawmill which soon came to be known as Hall’s Rifle Works, and the small island on which it was based was called Lower Hall Island. Hall wanted to work at the Springfield armory, Springfield, Massachusetts, as it was close to his home town, Portland, but he was relocated to Harpers Ferry as it was near to Army Ordnance department and the government wanted to keep an eye on him as he was a private contractor of public armory and the government invested in him due to his claim of producing rifles with interchangeable parts. Hall described his accomplishments at Harpers ferry to Secretary of War John Calhoun on December 1822. During his 20 years tenure at Harpers Ferry, Hall constructed and developed drop-hammers, stock-making machines, balanced pulleys, drilling machines, and special machines for straight-cutting, lever-cutting and curve-cutting. From 1820-1840, Hall dedicatedly worked on developing and implementing the “uniformity principle” of interchangeable manufacture. In 1834, North and Hall joined hand to manufacture Hall’s rifle with interchangeable
Each person has a different view on the world. If a person is asked about their view on a certain subject, they will likely show support or disdain for the subject. For example, some people believe abortion is morally wrong. Others view abortion as the mother’s choice since she is carrying the child. On the issue of gun control, people are usually either for or against stricter gun laws. Why do people view the world in the way they do? How do people decide what stance to take on an issue? To answer these questions, sociologists look at the sociological perspective which “stresses the social contexts in which people live” and “examines how these contexts influence people’s lives” (Henslin, 2013, p. 4). Furthermore, the sociological perspective
Handguns played a major role in the Civil War as far as weaponry was concerned. For instance, the most popular sidearm in the Union army was the Colt Army model 1860, which was a .36 caliber. The Army model 1860 was remodeled after the 1848 Dragoon, which was used in the Mexican War. The Colt model 1860 was a .44 caliber six shot weapon weighing two pounds eleven ounces. During the Civil War, more than 146,800 Colt revolvers were purchased. This made up more than 40 percent of all the handguns bought by the government at that time. In 1851, the .36 caliber revolver was produced by Colt. Colt then sold approximately 215,000 navy models, as they were called. The Star Revolver was a .44 caliber, six shot, double action weapon, which weighed approximately three pounds. 25,000 revolvers were then sold to the government for twelve dollars each. The Figure Eight Revolver was built especially for Civil War use. More than 12,000 of these revolvers were sold to the United States Government in the early war from Great Britain. The most popular pistol was the Le Mat Revo...
Guns have possessed the spotlight of almost every news station. From the latest tragedy of a shooting killing innocent men, women and children to the arguments centering around if our gun laws possess strict enough qualities to keep our country safe. Charles C. W. Cooke, the author of “Gun-Control Dishonesty”, spreads his conservative view on the topic by ripping away any hope for a brighter day. Cooke’s main idea states that if nothing has happened to make gun law more strict even after the lives of innocent children were mercilessly ripped away from their young bodies than nothing should or could ever change. On the other hand, Adam Gopnik wrote his article, “Shooting”, uses a more liberal approach and inspires his audience to act upon the much needed change in our society
Since Martin Bryant’s massacre on Port Arthur, the legal system in Australia is amended and reformed gun laws to create a more effective legislation. Gun-related deaths have since been drawn to more efficient attention in Australian psyche, whilst the issue of gun-laws on a global level still remains as a conspiracy in many countries. The massacre left the Australian nation in shock, with a heavily involved attitude on behalf of local and national police, and thousands devastated at the aftermath. The legislation of gun-laws and amendments continues to be controversial, with punishments including Bryant’s being one of popular debate, and the general ownership and use of guns causing conflict within the interrelationship of the legal system and society.
...waste ammunition.” During the war colonel Hiram Berdan formed a regiment of sharpshooter for the union army called Berdans sharpshooters. These new soldiers would be better shooters against their enemy and would be save great amounts of ammunition and money. Contests were held across the country to find these elite sharpshooters. To make the cut you had put 10 consecutive shots into a target at two hundred yards. Each shot couldn’t be more than to inches from the center of the bull’s eye. At the end of these contests 1,000 winners were enlisted in the 1st United States sharper shooters. The next generation of breechloaders called magazine rifles would prove ever more deadly to confederate opponents. “Guns such as Spencer and Henry repeating rifles were deigned to carry preloaded magazine of seven to fifteen bullets which could be inserted into the rear of the gun.”3
A popular weapon used by both sides was the rifle. Rifles were invented before the Civil War and were greatly used in the War of 1812. However, more types were built and a larger amount was used during the Civil War. Rifles added a spin to bullets for a greater accuracy at longer ranges. Using this weapon, soldiers could fire 400 yards away, as opposed to the average 80 yards (Robertson 50). Rifles were the fastest and hardest weapon of the time. Rifles allowed their bullets to be shot harder and faster towards its target. New inventions, used by the Union more than the Confederate, included Parrott rifles. They were composed of iron. Robert Parker Parrott, an American soldier and inventor, created these weapons, hence the name Parrott rifles. Despite its name, the Parrott rifle was actually a cannon. Its size ranged from 10 to 300 pounders. It was not favored by most because it was considered unsafe (“Civil War Artillery”). Because of its bulkiness and heaviness, it seldom led soldiers to inaccuratel...
Before 1860, the government of the United States provided little interest or encouragement in the inventions of various ordinance experts. The U.S. Ordinance Department generally thought that the United had many preceding wars and battles due to the smoothbore cannon, and thus, no further weapons were needed. Many inventors had spent of years of time and many on this experiments and would face financial crisis if the government did not use them.
Samuel Colt faced many challenges in his early life, but he was able to overcome them and be the successful businessman that he was. Throughout his life Samuel Colt did many things to advance life in America, such as developing new guns and business techniques. Colt was the first of many to develop a fully functioning revolver know as the Colt single action army. Colt’s manufacturing techniques helped him become the leader in gun manufacturing. Today Colt’s company is still at work and has become the leader in gun advancements.
Immediately, he was faced with making 10,000 muskets in a span of two years for the United States. This proved to be a challenge for Whitney as this task took him upwards of 10 years instead of the original two. He created the idea of interchangeable parts, which changed the way muskets were built. The war with France looked promising in the near future, so Whitney must be able to produce these muskets in time, and had a lot of pressure on him.(100) Although Whitney mainly took this contract from the government to make money, he was satisfied with helping out his government in any way possible. Mainly, he helped by building muskets. “ His imagination had enabled him to see that machines could produce muskets of greater precision than could the most carefully trained hands, and faster than an army of gunsmiths.”(108) Building these muskets with interchangeable parts proved to have a major impact for the United States, and was also one of Whitney’s many
In the north, machines, interchangeable parts, and mass production were fast becoming a way of life. Northerners began building factories for mass production. These first factories were used for making textiles and later evolved to manufacturing a wide variety of goods. This created several opportunities for jobs. And with immigrants flooding in from Europe, finding employment was no problem. The factory system was efficient and inexpensive for the north to employ a large work force.
The population of the North consisted of forward thinking individuals. They realized that a change had to be made from agriculture to industry if they were to prosper and for them to use free labor to accomplish prosperity would be to take a step backwards. This ushered in an small and early Industrial Revolution. Factories and mills that produced finished goods sprung up all over the Northern United States along major waterways. These factories produced fabric, iron, machinery, weapons. Raw materials such as cotton was bought from the South and then sold back to them in the form of clothes. Iron workers made iron railroad ties for the growing railroads across the country. More machinery was being built than ever before. These machines were able to multiply the work that could be accomplished. These industries drew in people from rural areas because they were paying for work. As more people came, they settled around the factori...
The next real step in the evolution of the gun came during the Civil War. Rifles were invented that ...
Frates, Chris. “The Gun Debate Isn’t Over Yet.” National Journal (2013): Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Web. 31 Oct. 2013.
People have questioned gun control long time. Many people wonder if anyone, aside from those who join the law force, should be allowed to carry guns. Benjamin Franklin once said, “Those who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety” (Wright 4). Franklin understood that taking guns away from law-abiding citizens would not uphold their liberty. Some people who argue for gun control state many violent crimes involve guns. Others believe a child could find the gun and something bad could happen to the child or others when a gun is unsafely stored. People who argue against gun control might say there is a huge psychological gap between citizens who shoot to protect themselves or their property and those who go into schools and shoot at others. Criminals will always find a way around gun control laws and will be able to obtain and use guns illegally. The second amendment protects gun rights for individual citizens. Reasonable gun control laws and educational steps can be taken to protect the majority of U.S. citizens. Gun control does not only take guns away from criminals, gun control also limits law-abiding citizens from protecting themselves and their families when necessary.