American military weapons may have looked a lot different had it not been for the invention of one Civil War-era firearm—the Gatling gun.

The last war to use only muzzle-loaded guns. 1859 - The first full rim-fire cartridge. 1860 - Spencer repeating carbine patented. Introduced at the start of the Civil War, Spencer repeating guns ...

Lincoln chose swords over pistols, in the hope that his long arms ... Dueling became less common in the years following the Civil War, with the collective public opinion perhaps soured by the ...