Arms, Armor & Militaria

1.) US M1850 Army Staff & Field Officer's Sword by C. Roby & Co. - 31" blade. 7" hilt. 1.125" wide at ricasso. 38" overall with hilt and scabbard. Slightly curved single edge spear point saber with 21" off center stopped median fuller and 15" quill fuller to both sides. Blade shows acid etched designs of US military motifs including crossed cannons, US shields, eagles, olive branches, and banners with PRESERVE THE GOVERNMENT text details. Ricasso is marked C. Roby & Co./W. Chelmsford/Mass. on left side. Hilt is brass with a single knuckle bow, single swept up quillon, shagreen wrapped grip, and 13-groove twisted wiring to grip that has come undone. Hilt details include guard chiseled with floral filigree, Phrygian cap pommel, and simple neoclassical floral patterns. Scabbard is leather with brass fittings, including a throat that is inscribed Wm. S. McCaskey/1st Lt. Co. B./79th Pa. Vols./Chaplain Hills/X/Stone River. Item is with leather throat washer. 

2.) US M1902 Army Officer's Saber - 30.5" blade. 6" bilt. 38.5" overall with hilt and scabbard. Slightly curved single edge spear point blade with 22.75" off-center fullers to both sides. Blade is bright, with acid etched patriotic motifs including spread eagle with shield, floral scroll, and crossed cannons. Ricasso is marked THE/M.C. LILLEY/& CO./COLUMBUS, O. on left side. Hilt has a swept up single quillon, four branch knuckle bow, and black wood grip with finger grooves. There is a sticker to top of hilt marked 2U005, possibly an accession number. This sword is not inscribed with McCaskey's name, but included with archive is an original letter of sale with provenance from his great grandson. Scabbard is unmarked. 

Major General William Spencer McCaskey was born in Lancaster County, PA on October 2, 1843. Following his service in the Civil War, McCaskey would go on to have an illustrious and lengthy career in the United States Army. Enlisting as a 17-year old shortly after President Lincoln's call for 75,000 volunteers, McCaskey was mustered in with Company F of the 1st Pennsylvania Infantry on April 20, 1861 and was mustered out on July 27, 1861 in Harrisburg, PA. He re-enlisted shortly after with Company B of the 79th Pennsylvania Infantry as 1st sergeant on September 5, 1861.  This company was primarily made up of Lancaster area recruits and engaged in battles in Kentucky and Tennessee. He was promoted to 2nd lieutenant October 9, 1862, 1st lieutenant on April 10, 1863, and then to captain on July 1, 1863 before returning to Lancaster in 1864. Company B then re-enlisted as part of General Sherman's army in May 1864. McCaskey wrote prolifically about his objections of army life to his family, mostly his brother Jack. Specifically about his engagements in Georgia and South Carolina as part of Sherman's March to the Sea, where he often discussed the campaign, residents, and how the Union army's actions were affecting the south. He was honorably mustered out on July 12, 1865 at Washington DC. Following his Civil War service, he re-enlisted on February 23, 1866 after receiving recommendations and a commission to 2nd lieutenant by US Congressman Thaddeus Stevens. McCaskey would go on to serve another 41 years in the army, commanding troops on frontiers in the Dakotas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, and Texas as well as the Spanish American War and Phillipine Insurrection. He retired in 1907 at the rank of major general, and was the last remaining soldier in the regular army to have answered Lincoln's call for 75,000 volunteers. 

Included with lot are two binders compiled with over 40 authentic documents, letters, and photographs written by/to Maj. Gen. McCaskey to his family and other correspondence from his lengthy military career 1861-1907. Also included is the book The Letters of William S. McCaskey, written by his great grandson Hank Chapman.