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I am the proud new owner of a repo Gunner's Level, 6 pdr Tangent Sight, & a Gunner's Quadrant, What I would like to know is if anyone can tell me when the Pendulum haausse began to replace these tools for the aimming of the piece. I have checked both Gibbons & Benton & only find a discription of how they were used. Willard Motsinger
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Re: Pendulum hausse
We recently moved from Ohio to Virginia and almost all my references are still in boxes, so I'm speaking from memory. Regardless, I don't know that I've ever seen any published references that discussed phasing out the tangent sight and replacing it with a pendulum hausse. My suspicion is that the P-H was introduced in the mid to late 1850's, just about the time the Napoleon entered the inventory. The Napoleon did not have a rim base cast on, a feature necessary for tangent sights and levels. With the introduction of iron guns a few years later, sight bases were bolted onto Ordnance rifles and Parrotts had similar sighting devices; both of which compensated for unlevel trunnions. Just based on these new designs, I think that the mid-50's is a pretty close guess.
Have you looked in Berkeimer's, Historical Sketch of the Field Artillery? That may not be the exact title, but it's similar. If there's nothing in there, I think the only other way to find a definate answer will be to look through primary Ordnance Department records and/or patent records.
I hope this helps.James Brenner -
Re: Pendulum hausse
Thanks James, based on your analysis I would say that you have made a fairley good guess. I asked the same question to Fred Chappman who makes the sights & he didn't know.I haven't ran across Berkeimer yet but you can bet that I will be turning over every stone until I do. I hope there is a reprint on him that I can get. Anyway thanks for the information on a new source of material on artillery of the period, & if you do find out more about the subject please keep me in mind. Willard MotsingerComment
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Re: Pendulum hausse
You're welcome. Greenwood Press reprinted Berkheimer several years ago as part of their West Point series. You may be able to get a copy through Abebooks, www.abebooks.com. It's a very good book, tracing American artillery from the Revolution through the Civil War; lots of historicak background on tactics, organization, and materiel. Berkheimer was an artillery officer and wrote the original in the 1870's.
Also, I seem to recall that the pendulum hausse was a European invention.James BrennerComment
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