Identified Eagle Drum 4th Massachusetts Heavy Artillery

Identified Eagle Drum 4th Massachusetts Heavy Artillery - Inventory Number: MUS 163

Wonderfully painted Civil War Eagle drum constructed of choice burled wood with a period identification to “Charles N. Paige” in ink on the head of the drum. Paige served in the 4th Massachusetts Heavy Artillery. The drum bears a maker’s label on the interior reads, "S.EMERY, RINDGE, N.H."The shell of the drum secured by a single row of iron nails and painted with a faux woodgrain technique. The circular painted motif shown here is commonly seen on Emory labeled drums. It consists of a rather eagle on a blue/green field surrounded by thirteen six-pointed yellow stars. A circular sun-burst of red trimmed yellow encompass the whole emblazonment.

4th Massachusetts Heavy Artillery

In the late summer of 1864, fourteen companies of heavy artillery were raised throughout Massachusetts for the purpose of coastal defense of the state. They were to be "unattached", thus not part of a regiment, and sent to various military locations for a one-year term. They were numbered 17 through 30 and were the Unattached Companies of Heavy Artillery. They encamped on Gallops Island in Boston Harbor, where they organized and were mustered in during latter part of August and into the first days of September 1864. In September, they were ordered to Washington, DC for garrison duty in the forts surrounding the capital. The last companies to leave, the 29th and 30th, left on 26 Sept and 29 Oct, respectively.

On 12 Nov 1864, a War Department order consolidated 12 of the companies, numbered 17 through 28, into one regiment, the 4th Regiment Massachusetts Heavy Artillery. Col William Sterling King, formerly of the 35th Massachusetts Infantry, was put in command. They remained in Washington for the remainder of the war, until their mustering out on 17 June 1865.

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Inventory Number: MUS 163