author
Joseph Roberts
1814–1898
A career artillery officer, he wrote one of the best-known American artillery manuals of the Civil War era. His practical handbook grew out of work at Fort Monroe and was meant to train officers and enlisted men in the field.
1 Audiobook
The hand-book of artillery
by Joseph Roberts
About the author
Joseph Roberts (1814–1898) is remembered for The Hand-book of Artillery, first published in 1861. The book was recommended for use as a textbook at the Artillery School at Fort Monroe, Virginia, and its question-and-answer format made it a straightforward guide to gunnery, ammunition, and artillery service.
Contemporary and library records identify him as Captain Joseph Roberts, and surviving descriptions of the book place him with the 4th Regiment of Artillery, United States Army. The manual reflects an experienced instructor’s approach: clear, practical, and built for soldiers who needed usable information rather than theory alone.
Although biographical details about his wider life are not easy to confirm from the sources I found, his reputation rests securely on this handbook. It remains a useful window into mid-19th-century American military training and the everyday working knowledge expected of artillery officers and crews.