Murdoch Morrison Gun Factory

Murdoch Morrison Gun Factory. Guns and Smoke. , (preface) The Carolinas Campaign began on February 1, 1865, when Union Gen. William T. Sherman led his army north from Savannah, Georgia, after the March to the Sea. Sherman's objective was to join Gen. Ulysses S. Grant in Virginia to crush Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. Scattered Confederate forces consolidated in North Carolina, the Confederacy's logistical lifeline, where Sherman defeated Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's last-ditch attack at Bentonville. After Sherman was reinforced at Goldsboro late in March, Johnston saw the futility of further resistance and surrendered near Durham on April 26, essentially ending the Civil War., The Murdoch Morrison gun factory was located just in front of you on Gum Swamp Creek, which provided it with water power. Murdoch Morrison operated the factory with his 90-year-old father-in-law, John Buchanan, who had inherited the gunsmith shop established by his father. The factory was noted before the war for hunting rifles, pistols, and Bowie knives., The factory's products varied during the war to meet the Confederacy's demands as well as in reaction to shortages of raw materials caused by Union blockades. In June 1863, the North Carolina ordnance department paid the company for "62 gun locks." Several surviving rifles modeled on the British Enfield rifled musket have been attributed to the Murdoch Morrison gun factory, which may have assembled some of them from parts manufactured by other facilities. On March 9, 1865, Union forces destroyed the gun factory and its equipment., (sidebar) , Old Wire Road, behind you, was one of the earliest roads through the Carolinas. It was the main route from Washington, DC to New Orleans, La., and along its length was strung of the first telegraph lines between the two cities. Laurel Hill developed as a major stop along the road and hosted travelers between Fayetteville, NC, and Columbia, SC., (captions) , John Buchanan's hunting rifles served as models for early Murdoch Morrison Confederate weapons. Courtesy State Senator William Purcell , Record of payment from the state of North Carolina to Murdoch Morrison gun factory for "62 gun locks."Courtesy National Archives and Records Administration