Percussion cap tin recovered at a NY Cavalry camp at Fredericksburg, VA

This is another great piece being offered, it is an excavated Civil War percussion cap tin. It has a 2 ½” diameter and about ½” high. It was recovered many years ago at a New York Cavalry camp in Fredericksburg, Virginia.

On November 14, 1862, Union General Ambrose Burnside sent a corps to occupy the vicinity of Falmouth near Fredericksburg, Virginia. Lee reacted by entrenching his army on the heights behind the town. On December 13, after pontoon bridges were laid, Union forces crossed the Rappahannock River under fire.

Burnside mounted a series of futile frontal assaults on Prospect Hill and Marye's Heights that resulted in staggering casualties. On December 15, Burnside called off the offensive and recrossed the river, ending the failed campaign.

Although these tins were plentiful during the war, now they are mostly gone because most rusted away. Pieces of these tins show up from time to time, but seldom complete. The tin is in nice condition for being dug. It comes in the glass top display case pictured.