The US Model 1832 Foot Artillery Sword was the first sword to be produced by the famous N.P. Ames company of Massachusetts. The sword was based upon the French Modèle 1816 Glaive d’Artillerie à Pied (Model 1816 Sword for Foot Artillery), and its initial design and production was a collaboration between manufactures Nathan P. Ames, who supplied the blades and assembled the swords, Samuel Huse who initially made the cast brass components of the sword, and Robert Dingee who manufactured the scabbards, belts and frogs for use with the swords. Huse was actually related to Ames by marriage and was his brother-in-law. The Huse maker mark appears on the hilts of the earliest of the Model 1832 Foot Artillery Swords, but not on the later ones, which were manufactured after the Ames company established their own in-house brass foundry due to quality control issues with the Huse produced hilts. It is interesting to note that Colonel Bomford, the head of the Ordnance Department when the sword was adopted, initially intended these swords to be used by Non-Commissioned Officers and Musicians, as well as by the foot (heavy) artillery. As a result, these swords were issued to some NCOs and Musicians until around 1841 when the Model 1840 series of swords became widely available for issue. While scholars have debated the actual usefulness of these swords for many years, it appears that they were primarily used as tools and likely saw minimal use as weapons. Since these swords were only issued to Heavy Artillery after the adoption of the Model 1840 Mounted (Light or Field) Artillery saber, it is theorized that these swords were really much more useful for clearing brush, helping to build gun emplacements, etc. Their use as a potential weapon was most likely secondary. 

The sword had a nominally 19” wasp-waisted spear point blade that resembled the Roman Gladius. The overall length was nominally 25”. The blade had a nominally 10 ½” double stopped central fuller about 3 ¼” from the tip and a pair of nominally 3 3/8” double stopped median fullers about am 1 1/8” from the hilt. The 6” hilt was of hollow cast brass and featured 4 ¼” straight cross guard with 3/8” round quillons at the end. The hilt had a fish scale pattern cast into it to provide a good grip with wet or slippery hands and had a bulbous pommel cap with a spread-winged American Eagle cast into it. The blade was secured to the hilt with a full-length tang that was peened at the pommel cap and with three transverse steel pins that passed through the grip.

A total of 16,200 of the swords were manufactured by Ames between 1832 and the end of production in 1862. More than half of the swords were produced during the 1830s, with contracts and orders slowing during the 1840s and 1850s. The outbreak of the American Civil War resulted in a sudden increase in production, but the pressing need for edged weapons meant that the resources of the Ames Manufacturing Company were needed to produce other, more practical items like cavalry sabers, naval cutlasses and saber bayonets. Despite the production of this sword ending in 1862, the Model 1832 Heavy Artillery Sword remained in service as a standard issue sidearm for Heavy Artillery regiments through 1872.  It is interesting to note that Ames expended a lot of energy marketing the sword to the various states, with the theory that the more the swords were requested by the states, the more contracts from the Federal Government would be forthcoming.

The example of the US Model 1832 Foot Artillery Sword offered here is one of the early 1840s production Ames swords and is dated 1842 on the reverse ricasso. This is one of the standard production Ames artillery  swords that were assembled with an Ames produced hilt, as Ames terminated his association with Huse’s foundry during 1834. The sword is clearly marked on the obverse ricasso with usual 

{SPREAD WINGED EAGLE}

N.P. AMES

SPRINGFIELD

The reverse ricasso is marked in three lines: 

UNITED

STATES

1842

JCB

The face of the brass cross guard is marked with the expected inspectors’  acceptance mark for an Ordnance Department contract sword acquired in 1842. There is a clearly stamped W.A.T., the mark of Ordnance Officer Captain William Anderson Thorton on the obverse crossguard, with the “JCB” inspection on the blade’s ricasso being the mark of arsenal sub-inspector Joseph C Bragg. Bragg’s inspection marks are also noted on other Ames products, including the US Model 1840 Heavy Cavalry Saber and the Model 1841 Naval Cutlass.

The cast brass guard is in FINE condition with clear fish scale patterning, and the brass has a lovely, dull golden patina with traces of gilt in the protected areas of the blade. The blade is in about FINE condition as well. It is full-length and has a dulling silvery gray patina with only traces of the high polish arsenal bright finish remaining. The blade does not appear to have ever been sharpened, but sadly there are a few nicks scattered along the edge of the blade. The blade shows a moderate amount of scattered age discoloration, but it is free of any pitting. The sword is accompanied by its original brass mounted leather scabbard, which is in FINE condition as well. The brass mounts have a lightly tarnished, dull golden patina, similar to the hilt. The mounts are securely attached to the leather scabbard body with their original pins, with one pin missing from the reverse of the drag. The leather scabbard body shows some light to moderate crazing but retains the majority of its original finish, with minimal flaked loss. The scabbard retains all of the stitching along the central seam on the back, and the scabbard remains quite strong and stable. There is a fairly significant crease in the leather just above the drag, but no other major condition issues. Overall, the scabbard remains solid and attractive, matching the condition of the sword quite well.

Overall, this is a really attractive and very nice condition example of a desirable pre-Mexican American War dated Ames US Model 1832 Foot Artillery Sword. The sword is in FINE condition and has crisp and clear markings. It is a very nice example of one of the first swords that Ames produced entirely in house and is old enough to have seen service in both the Mexican War and later in the Civil War. If you have ever wanted a high condition, pre-Mexican War production Ames Foot Artillery sword for your collection, this one would hard to pass up and is priced very attractively as well.

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