Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition

By: Richard Hull
Tesla Coil Builders of Richmond
7103 Hermitage Road Richmond, VA 23228

The old patriotic U.S. war tune title of this paper is quite apropos to Tesla's great activities in Colorado Springs in 1899. Did you know that Nikola Tesla purchased and evidently used over 7,200 rounds of ammunition at the Colorado Springs lab in a two month period between October 3^{rd and} November 30^th 1899. Such a curiosity discovered amidst the feverish work of this tireless scientific investigator cries out for explanation.

Thanks to the generosity of my friend and longtime Tesla researcher and author, Leland Anderson, I have in my possession copies of bills presented to Tesla for materials delivered to the Colorado Springs Lab (CSL). The “Shelf and Heavy Hardware” firm of G.S. Barnes & Son billed Tesla monthly for deliveries made over the previous month.

The following is a listing of the dates regarding the purchase of ammunition

• Oct 3- 2 boxes (100 rounds) 32 caliber Smith & Wesson center fire cartridges.
  10 boxes (500 rounds) 22 caliber short rimfire cartridges.
• Oct 12- 2 boxes (100) 32 cal. cartridges.
  10 boxes (500) 22 short cartridges.
• Oct 14- 10 boxes (500) 22 short cartridges.
• Oct 23- 10 boxes (500) 22 short cartridges.
• Oct 27- 10 boxes (500) 22 short cartridges.
• Oct 30- 10 boxes (500) 22 short cartridges.
• Nov 2- (500) 22 short cartridges
• Nov 7- (500) 22 short cartridges
• Nov 11- (500) 22 short cartridges
• Nov 14- (500) 22 short cartridges
• Nov 18- (500) 22 short cartridges
• Nov 22- (500) 22 short cartridges
• Nov 27- (500) 22 short cartridges
• Nov 30- (500) 22 short cartridges

The seemingly tedious date listing above gives certain insights into what Tesla may have been up to and decisions made over time.

The 32-caliber ammunition was for a small vest pocket pistol common to the time. It was a gentleman's pistol designed to offer a small amount of protection and security for traveling men. This was most likely Tesla's personal firearm.

22 caliber rifles and even smaller 22 caliber vest pocket pistols were even more common. Both types of ammunition were considered very low power and of a non-hunting power range. Both caliber weapons and ammunition were quite inexpensive to purchase and shoot. The separately primed casings of the 32 caliber center fire ammunition were more complicated and, therefore, slightly more expensive than the cheaply extruded brass casings of the 22.

Now to figure out what the late Nineteenth century electrical genius was doing to consume so much ammunition. We must look to the Colorado Springs Notes, (CSN). The notes, themselves, which are a near daily record of Tesla's electrical activities at the lab, make no formal mention of the matter of the ammunition or shooting. We must look for clues within the notes.