#miniball

Civil War Ammo Collection

Civil War Soldiers carried enough ammunition to fire about 60 shots into battle.  Today Soldiers carry hundreds of rounds of ammunition. 

Every Union Infantryman wore a belt set with a cartridge box and sling, cap box, and bayonet scabbard. The leather cartridge box held forty cartridges, paper tubes filled with a Minie ball and black powder issued in small packs of ten.  The cartridge box, with a removable liner made of tin that kept cartridges in order, was the safest way to protect the cartridges from sparks that could set off an explosion. Each cartridge box also had a small pouch for a cleaning kit. Union Soldiers carried sixty to eighty rounds of ammunition.  Extra cartridges that did not fit into the cartridge box were carried in pockets or a knapsack. The cap box, a small leather pouch worn on the front of the belt, held percussion caps, which had to be handled carefully because they were also very explosive. 

http://www.gunslot.com/pictures/civil-war-ammo-collection