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Cumberland Pontoons

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cumberland pontoons were folding pontoon bridges developed during the American Civil War  to

facilitate the movement of Union forces across the rivers of the Mid-outh as the Federal forces

advanced southward through !ennessee and "eorgia#

$arly pontoon bridges during the Civil War were heavy and awkward, and re%uired special long-geared pontoon carriers to transport them to the site of the planned river crossing# !here were two main types

 &the French-designed wooden bateau 'known in the army as a (Cincinnati pontoon() and the *ussian

 pontoon, a canvas boat# +oth types were twenty-two feet in length and took considerable time to set up,re%uiring several men to lift into position and pin the individual sections together #.

$arly in /01, the commander of the Army of the Cumberland, Ma2or "eneral "eorge 3# !homas, was

seeking a light-weight, easy-to-haul and erect pontoon bridge to move his troops across unfordablerivers and streams# 4nowing the limitations of the two systems used by the armies in the Western!heater , he had folding pontoons developed# A similar idea had been instigated by his predecessor

William # *osecrans earlier in the war, but had not been adopted# Captain William $# Merrill,

!homas5s chief engineer, improved on *osecrans5s prototype, making it lighter and stronger# 3ereplaced the pins that held individual sections together with hinges so that the side frame sections

folded together instead of separating# !he new design yielded a portable boat that was lightweight,

small enough to carry on a standard supply wagon, and easier to construct in the field# 6t was alsostrong enough to support horse-drawn artillery and fully loaded wagons#7.

!hese boats soon became popularly known as Cumberland pontoons# Merrill had the first ones

constructed in the army5s engineer workshops in 8ashville, !ennessee, under the supervision of

9ieutenant :ames *# Willet# oon, a train of fifty new boats was transported to the field armies# William!# herman used the new bridges e;tensively during the first two months of the Atlanta Campaign, first

laying them across the $towah *iver # 3e later used them during the March to the ea and the /0<

Carolinas Campaign#=.

References

• >artridge, Charles A#, History of the Ninety-sixth Regiment, Illinois Volunteers# +rown,

>ettibone, //?#• Woodward, teven $#, The Art of Command in the Civil War , University of 8ebraska >ress,

@@/# 6+8 -/=7-1?/artridge, p# 0=#

• Woodward, p# ?#

=# >artridge, 0=-=#

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontoon_bridgehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Civil_Warhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Armyhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_United_Stateshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennesseehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_(U.S._state)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_(U.S._state)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bateauhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumberland_Pontoons#cite_note-1https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumberland_Pontoons#cite_note-1https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Army_of_the_Cumberlandhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_General_(United_States)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_General_(United_States)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Henry_Thomashttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Theater_of_the_American_Civil_Warhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Theater_of_the_American_Civil_Warhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_S._Rosecranshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captain_(United_States)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumberland_Pontoons#cite_note-2https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nashville,_Tennesseehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lieutenanthttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_T._Shermanhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_T._Shermanhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlanta_Campaignhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etowah_Riverhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherman's_March_to_the_Seahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carolinas_Campaignhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumberland_Pontoons#cite_note-3https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0803247850https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Civil_Warhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Armyhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_United_Stateshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennesseehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_(U.S._state)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bateauhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumberland_Pontoons#cite_note-1https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Army_of_the_Cumberlandhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_General_(United_States)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Henry_Thomashttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Theater_of_the_American_Civil_Warhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Theater_of_the_American_Civil_Warhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_S._Rosecranshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captain_(United_States)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumberland_Pontoons#cite_note-2https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nashville,_Tennesseehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lieutenanthttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_T._Shermanhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_T._Shermanhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlanta_Campaignhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etowah_Riverhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherman's_March_to_the_Seahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carolinas_Campaignhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumberland_Pontoons#cite_note-3https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0803247850https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontoon_bridge

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This article aout the American Civil War is a stu! "ou can hel# Wi$i#edia yex#anding it ! 

•

CategoriesB

• American Civil War stubs

•Civil War military e%uipment of the United tates

• "eorgia 'U## state) in the American Civil War 

• >ontoon bridges

• Military bridging e%uipment

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