Old West history is replete with tales of Winchester rifles and Colt revolvers, but there is one gun that seems to be forgotten. Few people associate machine guns with the Old West, but the Gatling gun was in use during that period. It’s time to take a stroll down a duty memory lane and look at this influential gun.
The Gatling Gun – Old West History
The Gatling gun is a rapid-firing multiple-barrel gun that was invented in 1861 by Richard Jordan Gatling of North Carolina. It is an early machine gun and a forerunner of our modern electric motor-driven rotary cannons like the Vulcan.
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The Gatling gun’s operation centered on a cyclic multi-barrel design, which helped with cooling and synchronized the firing and reloading process. As the operator cranked the handwheel, the barrels rotated, and each barrel sequentially loaded a single round from a top-mounted magazine. It then fires off the shot when it reaches a set position, then ejects the spent casing out of the left side at the bottom. At speed, the gun could fire off up to 200 rounds per minute.
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Intimidating Weapon
Without question, it was the most intimidating weapon of the time. It saw use in the Civil War and the Indian wars. The military knew the power of the gun and ensured most of their outposts were equipped with it. The reputation of the Gatling gun was as powerful as the gun itself. In many cases, its simple presence was enough to deter hostilities. In one case, when placed on the deck of a steamer on a river expedition, a witness commented, “This was a beautiful arm and, when placed in position on the boiler deck of the boat, was enough to strike terror to the hearts of any Indians we might run against, as being ‘bad medicine’ for them.”
The challenge of the gun was its size. Coming in at over 170 pounds, it was not easy to move around. This was especially true in a time of horses and wagons. Because of that, it tended to be a stationary gun rather than a mobile weapon. History shows that General George Custer had access to Gatling guns for the Battle of the Little Bighorn, but declined because they were difficult to move. We can sit and armchair quarterback that decision all day.
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The Gatling Gun
In the end, the Gatling gun was a very influential gun of its time. While most people don’t associate machine guns with this period, this hand-cranked buzz saw was an Old West classic.
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