Original Item: Only One Available. The Springfield Models 1855, 1861, and 1863 were Minié-type percussion rifled musket shoulder-arms used by the United States Army and Marine Corps during the American Civil War. Commonly referred to as the "Springfield" (after its original place of production, Springfield, Massachusetts), it was the most widely used U.S. Army weapon during the Civil War, favored for its range, accuracy, and reliability.

The Springfield superseded the earlier Model 1842 Smoothbore Percussion Musket, which was itself a continuation of the Model 1816 Flintlock Musket developed after the war of 1812. As the barrel was significantly less wide, a new socket bayonet was developed to work with the new rifled muskets. It consists of a standard socket, which locks over the barrel and front sight, and has an attached 18 inch long triangular hollow-ground blade.

This example is quite nice, with a lot of the original finish still present, and a lovely worn patina. The socket is not deformed at all, with a smooth moving lock, which we have tested on several original Springfield Rifled Muskets. It still has the original U.S. marking on the blade ricasso, and is one of the best examples we have had. There is even a rack number P282 on the spine of the blade.

The bayonet comes complete with its original leather scabbard, with attached belt frog. The scabbard has not fared quite as well as the bayonet, however this is typical, as leather is not nearly as resilient as steel. The scabbard finish is flaking, and it does have a bend in the scabbard body. The frog is still retained by copper rivets, however the belt loop has torn through part way, and is somewhat delicate. Still, it presents well, with that great look of age.

A very nice U.S. Civil War bayonet, complete with original scabbard. Ready to fit your Springfield Rifled Musket!

Specifications:
Blade Length: 18"
Socket Length: 3"
Muzzle ring diameter: 0.781" (internal)
Blade Style: Triangular
Overall length: 21“
Scabbard Length: 19" + belt frog

During the American Civil War, well over 1,000,000 US Model 1855 .58 Caliber Socket Bayonets were produced by the Springfield Armory and some two-dozen contractors. The large majority of these bayonets bear no distinguishing markings that allow today’s collectors to determine what company manufactured them.

This is a socket bayonet manufactured - or modified - from the period of 1855 to about 1872; it was the predecessor to the US Model 1873 "Trapdoor" Springfield 45-70 series bayonets. The Model 1855 saw action in the Civil War and probably more of these were used than all other bayonets of the period combined. They are typically American in design in that they do not have a blade "shoulder" and have deep fullers, whereas British bayonets of the period had a shoulder and had shallow fullers that stopped at the shoulder of the blade.

These are attached by fitting them over the barrel muzzle, and fastened into position by means of a mortise slot and locking ring. All metal construction. These were designed to fit the various US manufactured .58 muskets, and the 50-70 Springfield "Trapdoor" Rifles prior to 1873.