Arms, Armor and Militaria

.50 caliber. 22.25" barrel. SN: 17798. Blued barrel, color casehardened receiver, iron furniture, smooth walnut stock with patchbox. Single shot percussion tilting barrel breechloading carbine with folding L-shaped leaf rear sight, dovetailed pinched blade front sight and a saddle bar and ring opposite the lock. Lock marked in two lines at the tail GALLAGER'S PATENT/JULY 17TH, 1860 and in three lines MANUFACT'D BY/RICHARDSON & OVERMAN/PHILADA over the serial number. The trace of a partially legible script RKW cartouche the mark of US arsenal sub-inspector Robert K Whitley is present in the reverse wrist, behind the saddle bar. The name S CASE is lightly and fairly neatly scratched into the patchbox hinge plate. A search of the Historical Data Systems records found a total of 52 soldiers who served the Union with the first initial "S" and the last name "Case". Of those, 11 served in cavalry regiments. This carbine was previously offered by The Horse Soldier in Gettysburg and they had the weapon identified to Sharon Case of the 6th Indiana Volunteer Cavalry. A folder containing copies of Sharon Case's service records accompany the gun. An analysis of issues of carbine to regiments found that Gallagers were issued to at least two dozen cavalry regiments during the war and the 6th Indiana was in possession of 602 of those guns in the fall of 1864. Based upon the regiments that the other "S Case" individuals served in and the known issues of Gallager carbines, the 6th Indiana identification to Sharon Case seems to be extremely probable and is likely correct. Case was from Worthing, OH and initially enlisted as a musician in Company K of the 71st Indiana Volunteer Infantry on August 18, 1862. The 6th Indiana Volunteer Cavalry Regiment was organized on February 23, 1863, from the 71st Indiana Volunteer Infantry. The 71st Indiana Infantry had originally been organized in July and August of 1862 and had fought at the Battle of Richmond, KY, where most of the regiment was captured. After their parole the regiment was sent to Indianapolis, IN where it was reorganized. The regiment next fought on December 27, 1862, at Muldraugh’s Hill (KY), where the regiment was again captured. The ill-fated regiment was then paroled again, and reorganized as the 6th Indiana Cavalry, no doubt to give them a chance to escape their next encounter with the Confederates on horseback. The additional companies L and M of the 6th Indiana Cavalry were organized on September 1 and October 12 of 1863, respectively. The 6th Indiana Cavalry initially served in the Cumberland Gap region of Kentucky and Tennessee and took part in the Knoxville campaign against Confederate General James Longstreet’s detached Corps from the Army of Northern Virginia. The 6th participated in most of the major actions of that campaign, including the fights at Lenoir Station, Campbell’s Station, Bean’s Station and the Siege of Knoxville. In early 1864 the regiment was moved to Dalton, GA and preceded to participate in Sherman’s Atlanta Campaign from May to August of 1864. During that campaign, the regiment fought at a number of major engagements, including Resaca, Dallas, New Hope Church, and Kennesaw, culminating in the Siege of Atlanta itself. The 6th Indiana Cavalry spent the fall of 1864 chasing Confederate General Wheeler’s cavalry force in Northern Alabama and Southern Middle Tennessee. They participated in the Battle of Nashville on December 15 and 16, 1864 and remained on station in Nashville until April of 1865. The regiment then moved to Pulaski, TN and operated in Middle Tennessee as part of the Federal occupation force after the end of the war, with some members mustering out in June and the rest mustering out in September of 1865. During their service, the 6th Indiana Cavalry lost a total of 273 me. A total of 4 officers and 66 enlisted men were killed or mortally wounded in combat, and 2 officers and 201 enlisted men died due to disease. During Case's service he was promoted from musician to corporal in August of 1863, and then sergeant in January of 1864. Case applied for an invalid pension after the war due to "chronic diarrhea" that was attributed to his service and particularly consuming contaminated water. Nearly 18,000 Gallager Carbines were produced during the American Civil War, many seeing US military service, with some two dozen Union volunteer cavalry regiments. A very nice example overall, in much better condition than these carbines are typically found. A spare percussion cone is present in the patchbox. {ANTIQUE}