Constructing a Civil War Era Wooden Wheel

One of the first steps in constructing a wooden wheel is to make whatever tools you feel are necessary for getting the job done. In the book Wheelwrighting: A Modern Introduction (2005) Bruce and Joyce Morrison, describe both the use of various wheelwright tools as well as provide drawings and measurements for making many useful tools.

The No 1 wheel was used on all vehicles that accompanied the No 1 cannon carriage and was the standard wheel used by the armies of the north and south during the American War Between the States. These vehicles, according to the Ordnance Manual of 1863, included the No. 1 Cannon Carriage, Limber ,Battery Wagon , and the blacksmith's Traveling Forge. The illustration shown below of a Civil War Period No 1 Artillery Wheel was drawn circa 1850's by Captain Albert Mordecai, and used by makers supplying wheels to the American military during the mid-19th century.

Note: The photographs below are directly referenced/displayed from the U.S. Library of Congress web site, which contains many high quality historical images worth viewing.

Smith with a Wooden Hub and Spokes

Wooden Wheels