The clang of the gunsmith’s hammer and the clamor of machines echoed through Harpers Ferry during the first half of the 19th century. From the years of the early republic until the American Civil War, the United States Armory at Harpers Ferry produced weapons to arm the American soldier. Harpers Ferry transformed from a small rural village to a thriving industrial town. The United States Armory that dominated the town for sixty years manufactured approximately 500,000 muskets, rifles, pistols and ordnance for American military use. The improved mechanization processes and weapon development that occurred at the Harpers Ferry Armory improved firepower, thus affecting the science of war.
