Captain Lemon states in his Journals that they were held in reserve; their weapons being inferior....and that the 18th got enfields in time for the 7days campaign. whether the enfields were rifles or rifle muskets i don't know."To Honor These Men" tells of the 18th being issued m1842's captured at Augusta Arsenal....I don't see how they would have been considered "inferior" and relegated the 18th to a support role. Philip Karcher in "the Army of Robert E. Lee says the 18th started out armed with m1842s and m1841"Mississippi" rifles. In a telephone conversation with Mr. Karcher he was unable to recall his source for this information. If the State of Georgia went so far as to officially designate the 18th as heavy infantry wouldn't the 2 flank companies still have been, according to regulations, armed with rifles? Maybe '41s or rifled '42s? I have also wondered if due to the rift between Brown and Davis over the 4th brigade being sent to Richmond under command of Phillips if Brown might have withheld the more modern arms and sent the troops of with something more inferior? Does anyone have copies of Returns for the 18th that show ammunition issues...or know how to obtain them?
I began reenacting in 1984, we were the 5th Ga. cavalry (dismounted); really dismounted, we drilled as infantry....the Georgia Division required us to be mounted or convert to pure infantry. Dana Kitchens and Bob Ballentine asked me to select a Georgia unit for approval by the 5th Ga. Living in Acworth i looked for regiments having companies from northwestern Cobb County.That's how I got started researching the 18th. I've walked almost every field they fought on and participated in a ceremony where Marcus and William Davenport received official headstones. they were Captain Lemon's nephews that he recruited in the spring of 1862. they were killed by the same solid shot in Miller's cornfield at Sharpsburg.Captain Lemon buried them on the battlefield and brought their remains home in 1866. One of the Davenport homes is still standing in Acworth...Davenport was Captain Lemon's wife's family. Navyarms made a reproduction pistol they called the 18th Georgia Le Mat....it is based on the one Company A presented to Captain Lemon on his promotion to captain in March 1863.