1861 Springfield Rifle Butt Plate – Spotsylvania - Civil War Artifact

Description: An iron shoulder butt plate from a Model 1861 Springfield rifle. Excavated from the Spotsylvania Battlefield it was from a broken rifle stock left on the battlefield. The screws that attached it to the stock are still there. The Springfield Model 1861 was the standard rifle used by Union infantry during the Civil War. The rifle was produced in Springfield Massachusetts, which is where it got its name. The last picture is the stock of a Federal .58 Springfield rifle that was found by J. Howard Wert a few days after the Battle of Gettysburg. It was part of my collection for years of artifacts he recovered from Gettysburg soon after the battle, his hand written note says found in the “wheat field”. Battle fields were littered with broken equipment such as this one. While useable equipment was recovered the rest was just left behind. The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House was the second major battle in Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Overland Campaign of the Civil War. Following the bloody but inconclusive Battle of the Wilderness, Grant's army disengaged from General Robert E. Lee's army and moved to the southeast. Elements of Lee's army beat the Union army to the critical crossroads of Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia, and began entrenching. Fighting occurred on and off from May 8 through May 21, 1864. The artifact comes as shown. It measures 4 ½”. Treated and sealed. All of the artifacts are guaranteed to be original as stated. A hand signed and dated “Certificate of Authenticity” will be issued by Collectors Frame with a photograph and description of the items purchased. Write ups as pictures will also be included. Please see our "About” for more information on the framing and artifacts.

Price: 42 USD

Location: Fredericksburg, Virginia

End Time: 2024-11-11T15:28:39.000Z

Shipping Cost: N/A USD