 According to the U. S. Census, the population of the United States
in 1860 numbered 31,443,321 persons. Of these, approximately 23,000,000
were in the 22 Northern states and 9,000,000 in the 11 Southern
states. Of the latter total, 3,500,000 were slaves.
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At one time or another, the Northern armies numbered 2,100,000
soldiers. The Southern armies were considerably smaller. The total
dead on both sides was about 500,000.
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Of the 364,000 on the Union side who lost their lives, a third
were killed or died of wounds and two-thirds died of disease.
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The chance of surviving a wound in Civil War days was 7 to 1;
in the Korean War, 50 to 1.
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About 15 percent of the wounded died in the Civil War; about 8
percent in World War I; about 4 percent in World War II; about
2 percent in the Korean War.
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There were 6,000,000 cases of disease in the Federal armies, which
meant that, on an average, every man was sick at least twice.
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The diseases most prevalent were dysentery, typhoid fever, malaria,
pneumonia, arthritis, and the acute diseases of childhood, such
as measles, mumps, and malnutrition.
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The principal weapon of the war and the one by which 80 percent
of all wounds were produced was a single-shot, muzzle-loading
rifle in the hands of foot soldiers.
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Most wounds were caused by an elongated bullet made of soft lead,
about an inch long, pointed at one end and hollowed out at the
base, and called a "minie" ball, having been invented
by Capt. Minié of the French army.
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Fully armed, a soldier carried about seven pounds of ammunition.
His cartridge box contained 40 rounds, and an additional 60
rounds might be conveyed in the pocket if an extensive battle
was anticipated.
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The muzzle-loading rifle could be loaded at the rate of about
three times a minute. Its maximum range was about 1000 yards.
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Most infantry rifles were equipped with bayonets, but very few
men wounded by bayonet showed up at hospitals. The conclusion
was that the bayonet was not a lethal weapon. The explanation
probably lay in the fact that opposing soldiers did not often
actually come to grips and, when they did, were prone to use their
rifles as clubs.
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Artillery was used extensively, but only about 10 percent of the
wounded were the victims of artillery fire.
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Besides the rifle and cannon, weapons consisted of revolvers,
swords, cutlasses, hand grenades, Greek fire and land mines.
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Many doctors who saw service in the Civil War had never been to
medical school, but had served an apprenticeship in the office
of an established practitioner.
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In the Peninsular campaign in the spring of 1862, as many as 5000
wounded were brought into a hospital where there were only one
medical man and five hospital stewards to care for them.
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The first organized ambulance corps were used in the Peninsular
campaign and at Antietam.
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In the battle of Gettysburg, 1100 ambulances were in use. The
medical director of the Union army boasted that all the wounded
were picked up from the field within 12 hours after the battle
was over. This was a far cry from the second battle of Bull Run,
when many of the wounded were left on the field in the rain, heat,
and sun for three or four days.
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Eighty percent of all wounds during the Civil War were in the
extremities.
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The first U. S. Naval hospital ship, the Red Rover, was
used on the inland waters during the Vicksburg campaign.
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