The Confederate Powderworks (a.k.a. the Augusta Powderworks) was a

gunpowder Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, carbon (in the form of charcoal) and potassium nitrate (saltpeter). ...

factory during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, the only permanent structures completed by the

Confederate States of America The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...

.Bragg, C. L. (2001) "The Augusta powder works: The Confederacy's manufacturing triumph", ''American Rifleman'' 149(5), pp 58.

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

George Washington Rains George Washington Rains (1817 – March 21, 1898) was a United States Army and later Confederate States Army officer. A skilled engineer and inventor; he was instrumental in providing the Confederacy with much-needed gunpowder throughout the ...

chose the old United States Arsenal site between the Canal and Savannah River in

Augusta, Georgia Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navig ...

, as a secure inland location with good rail and water connections.

History

Rains graduated from

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

with the class of 1842 and served as a chemistry teacher for the Military Academy. He had resigned to become president of an iron works in Newburgh, New York. At the start of the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

he chose allegiance to his native

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

and returned to the south. He was placed in charge of the Gunpowder and Niter Bureau by

Jefferson Davis Jefferson F. Davis (June 3, 1808December 6, 1889) was an American politician who served as the president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. He represented Mississippi in the United States Senate and the House of Representatives as a ...

the president of the Confederacy. Construction began in September 1861, a 130 hp steam engine was purchased from the Atlanta flour mill owned by Richard Peters and the Powderworks was producing gunpowder in just 7 months in 1862. Rains was guided by a pamphlet written by a British artillery officer describing the powder works at

Waltham Abbey Waltham Abbey is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex, within the metropolitan and urban area of London, England, north-east of Charing Cross. It lies on the Greenwich Meridian, between the River Lea in the west and E ...

in Essex County near London, and also found someone who had worked there to advise him. As was customary for gunpowder mills, the buildings were separated and designed to survive explosions, with raw materials starting at one end, and the finished powder ending a mile and a half away at the other end. The

saltpeter Potassium nitrate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . This alkali metal nitrate salt is also known as Indian saltpetre (large deposits of which were historically mined in India). It is an ionic salt of potassium ions K+ and nitrat ...

refinery building was the largest, and was designed in

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

style as a replica of the British

Houses of Parliament The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parliament, the Palace lies on the north bank ...

. The Confederate Powderworks was the second largest gunpowder factory in the world at that time, 1862-1865, during the 19th century, producing 3.5 tons a day. More than 2.75 million pounds of first-quality

(a majority of the powder used by the Confederacy), was produced here before its closure on April 18, 1865.Sibley Mill and Confederate Powder Works Chimney-Augusta: National Park Service
/ref> By comparison, Union gunpowder manufacture was distributed among many mills, with the larger

Hazard Powder Company The Hazard Powder Company is a former American manufacturer of gunpowder and explosives. It was located in Hazardville within the town of Enfield, Connecticut. History The company was founded on the Scantic River in 1835 by Allen Loomis ...

of Connecticut producing forty percent of the annual production of 8.4 million pounds. It has been said the Confederacy never lost a battle for lack of powder. Although the massive works were seized and dismantled after the war ended, the commandant, Colonel G.W. Rains, asked in 1872, that the Obelisk Chimney be spared as he had designed it to "... remain a monument to the Confederacy should the Powderworks pass away". On June 2, 1879, the city of Augusta gave custody of the Chimney to the Confederate Survivors Association of Augusta to "beautify it and protect it from injury as a Confederate Memorial". The CSA of Augusta repaired the square

castellated A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (i.e., a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at interva ...

base, protected the corners and in the face, looking towards the canal inserted a large tablet of Italian marble, bearing this inscription: "This Obelisk Chimney — sole remnant of the extensive Powder Works here erected under the auspices of the Confederate Government — is by the Confederate Survivors' Association of Augusta, with the consent of the City Council, conserved in Honor of a fallen Nation, and inscribed to the memory of those who died in the Southern Armies during the War Between the States".

Today

The 150 foot Powderworks chimney still stands on the

Augusta Canal The Augusta Canal is a historic canal located in Augusta, Georgia, United States. The canal is fed by the Savannah River and passes through three levels (approximately total) in suburban and urban Augusta before the water returns to the river at v ...

and is one of the more recognizable features of the Augusta skyline today, located at the

Sibley Mill The Sibley Mill is a historic building located on the Augusta Canal at 1717 Goodrich Street near downtown Augusta, Georgia, United States. Designed by Jones S. Davis, it was built on a site previously occupied by the Confederate Powderworks, ...

at 1717 Goodrich Street in Augusta. The Sibley cotton mill was built on the site as a private venture in 1880–82, using bricks from the demolished powder works, and became one of the largest and most successful cotton mills in the region, a model of good management and worker relations. It manufactured

denim Denim is a sturdy cotton warp-faced textile in which the weft passes under two or more warp threads. This twill weaving produces a diagonal ribbing that distinguishes it from cotton duck. While a denim predecessor known as dungaree has been pr ...

until 2006, and the mill's water-driven turbines still generate electricity which is sold to Georgia Power. The chimney is the only remaining portion of the original Works. The B/G E. Porter Alexander Camp #158, Sons of Confederate Veterans, spent eight years raising $192,000 to restore the chimney with its historical marker; work started on November 19, 2009, and was completed on March 12, 2010. A rededication ceremony was held on Oct. 9, 2010.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Confederate Powderworks Confederate States of America monuments and memorials in Georgia Manufacturing plants in the United States Georgia (U.S. state) in the American Civil War 1861 establishments in the Confederate States of America 1865 disestablishments in the Confederate States of America Landmarks in Georgia (U.S. state) Buildings and structures in Augusta, Georgia Tourist attractions in Augusta, Georgia Military installations in Georgia (U.S. state) Augusta Canal National Heritage Area Gunpowder mills