This October newsletter captures the stories, announcements, and other general information about the Watervliet Arsenal.

1. S ALVO
“Service to the Line, On the Line, On Time”
Vol. 12, No. 10 U.S. Army Watervliet Arsenal, Watervliet, New York Oct. 31, 2012
Gen. Via visits history, charts destiny
Story on page 3
Photos by John B. Snyder

2. Page 2 Salvo Oct. 31, 2012
We have been with the Soldier when they enlisted,
married, and when they were reverently buried. And
therefore, we have a moral and personal duty to not let
their sacrifices be for naught.
Commander’s Your vote does count! According to the Douglas
Corner County Treasurer’s Office in Nevada:
• In 1800 - Thomas Jefferson was elected Presi-
dent by one vote in the House of Representa-
tives after a tie in the Electoral College.
• In 1824 - Andrew Jackson won the presidential
In a few days, the future of America will once popular vote but lost by one vote in the House
again have been determined by a fundamental right of Representatives to John Quincy Adams after
of every American — by the right to vote. From the an Electoral College dead-lock.
highest office in the country to local council members,
• In 1962 - Governors of Maine, Rhode Island
this election will have a profound effect on the direc-
and North Dakota were elected by an average
tion of our country, as well as on our community. of one vote per precinct.
We have all seen and heard campaign ads, debates, • In 2000 - The Presidential election was de-
and the glorious right to free speech exercised for cided by an extremely narrow margin. George
almost 12 months in preparation for Election Day. I W. Bush won the state of Florida by just 537
was in Iraq during the first nation-wide elections for votes, making him the next President of the
Parliament. It was special seeing the campaigning and United States. Close to 6 million voters went
debating in this new society, and I said to myself, that to the polls in Florida. It might not have been
Iraq is now truly free. by one vote, but certainly every vote counted.
I encourage you and your family to get out and
Now with combat operations having ended in Iraq
vote this November 6th. If doing so for yourself is not
and troop withdrawals from Afghanistan begun, the
reason enough, then do it for that Soldier who is still
daily news of our troops who remain in combat rarely
in Afghanistan fighting for your right.
makes it to the front pages our newspapers or into the
6 o’clock TV news. But we are different.
Mark F. Migaleddi
Commanding
Everything we do is to support the warfighter. This
Manufacturer 6
is as true today as it was on that hot July morning in
1813 when the brick and mortar was laid for what
would become the Watervliet Arsenal.
Commander, Col. Mark F. Migaleddi The Arsenal Salvo is an authorized monthly publication for members of the Department
Public Affairs Officer, John B. Snyder of Defense. Contents of the Salvo are not necessarily the official views of, or an endorse-
Editor, John B. Snyder ment by the U.S. Government, the Department of Defense, the Department of the Army, or
Photographer: John B. Snyder the Watervliet Arsenal.
News may be submitted for publication by sending articles to Public Affairs Officer,
Arsenal Facebook Page @ 1 Buffington Street, Bldg. 10, Watervliet, NY 12189, or stop by office #102, Bldg. 10,
http://on.fb.me/sq3LEm Watervliet Arsenal. The editor may also be reached at (518) 266-5055 or by e-mail:
john.b.snyder.civ@mail.mil. The editor reserves the right to edit all information submitted
for publication.

3. Page 3 Salvo Oct. 31, 2012
Watervliet takes AMC CG to a world beyond
simple charts and production numbers
By John B. Snyder production cycle, baseplate testing,
had the potential to yield significant
time savings by tapping into Benét's
"This is your lab, your forge, and
experience in simulation modeling.
your arsenal," said Arsenal Com-
Mortar baseplate samples were
mander Col. Mark F. Migaleddi to
traditionally subjected to out of
Gen. Dennis L. Via during Via's visit
state, live-fire testing. This meant
here Oct. 2.
the Arsenal had to package large
Via, who assumed duties as the
numbers of baseplates and ship them
18th Commander of the Army Ma-
to a test site, which would then put
teriel Command Aug. 7, 2012, was
the baseplates on a mortar system
presented with 200 years of Arsenal
and fire live rounds from them.
history during his first visit to this
This posed several problems. The
historic post. But history doesn't pay
Arsenal did not control the priority
the bills and so, the Arsenal leader-
of work during testing, bad weather
ship quickly focused the discussion
at the test site sometimes affected
on the value the Arsenal provides to
the test time and finally, mortar
today's warfighters.
rounds are expensive.
Woven into the organizational
So, it became clear to Arsenal
charts and mission slides that are
and Benét Lab leadership that if the
a customary part of every Army
Arsenal could test the baseplates at
briefing, Migaleddi hit on something
the Arsenal, then production time
more concrete and tangible. Photo by John B. Snyder
could be reduce, as well as save
"More than 700 line items, from AMC Commander Gen. Dennis L. Via,
money for DOD.
155mm cannons to 120mm mortars, left, arriving at the Watervliet Arsenal
with Col. Mark F. Migaleddi escorting. By using Benét's simulation
are shipped from the Arsenal each
capability at the Arsenal, the live fir-
month with an on-time delivery rate
ing phenomenon that is not replicated ing of rounds could be replicated by
that exceeds 97 percent," Migaleddi
anywhere else in the Department of using hydraulic pile drivers.
said during the command brief. "At
Defense called "From conception to According to Migaleddi, "On av-
the end of the day, our products have
grave synergy." erage, we are currently saving more
helped hundreds of thousands of Sol-
There is no other place in the than $1000 per mortar baseplate
diers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines
Department of Defense where those when compared to costs related to
to come home safely."
who do research and design (Benét shipping and testing at an alternate
John Askew, the deputy director
Labs) are within a five-minute walk test site."
of the Army's Benét Laboratories,
from those who will turn blueprints The Arsenal estimates that more
echoed Migaleddi's comments re-
into finished manufactured products than $2 million has been saved since
garding today's value to U.S. troops
(Watervliet Arsenal), Askew said. testing began in Benét's hammer lab.
by saying that, "Every large caliber
Migaleddi took Askew's words a In regards to protecting lives, the
weapon system on today's battlefield
step further by personally showing Arsenal and Benét Labs often look
that goes bang, began here."
Via how this synergistic effort is not beyond what is called the Technical
During Via's four-hour visit, Arse-
only saving money, but also protect- Data Package or TDP during and
nal and Benét leadership took Via on
ing lives. after the manufacturing process in
a journey to a world beyond simple
Recently, the Arsenal produc- search of product improvement.
charts and production numbers.
tion team looked at the entire mortar One recent product improvement
Because at the end of the day, they
truly wanted Via to know that his manufacturing process and deter- Story continues on page 4,
Arsenal is leveraging a manufactur- mined that one component of the
see Gen. Via

4. Page 4 Salvo Oct. 31, 2012
Gen. Via cont. the breech ring. Removal of the recock mechanism from
behind the weapon removes the need for a Soldier to reach
behind the cannon in the path of the recoil during a misfire
to recock the weapon. This is a significant safety gain
adopted by the Army involved the replacement of more while also eliminating the need for a recock tool.
than 400 breechblocks for the Army'slightweight 105mm But, whether it is breechblocks or mortar baseplates,
howitzer system -- the M119A2 towed howitzer. This Via said that he agreed that the synergy derived by col-
howitzer entered service with the U.S. Army's 7th Infantry locating an Army research facility with its manufacturing
Division in December 1989. base creates a capability that is not replicated anywhere
Benét engineers and Arsenal machinists never stopped else in DOD. That fact should be better communicated to
trying to perfect the breechblock and as a result, developed the Army's senior leaders, Via said.
a redesign of the breechblock that will not only improve Arsenal and Benét leadership were very pleased to
Soldiers' safety, but also may reduce potential downtime. host Via. But more importantly, they were very proud to
The breechblock improvements under this new modi- demonstrate what 200 years of continuous support to our
fication reduced the number of breechblock parts by 30 servicemen and women means to our Army and to our
percent, which should reduce maintenance cost and down- Nation.
time because there will be fewer parts affected by wear It seemed that Via was pleased, too, as he person-
and tear. ally thanked each individual he met telling them that our
The redesigned breechblock also eliminated the recock troops could not do their mission without the great support
mechanism by incorporating this function into the side of the Arsenal is providing.
Got your 200th Anniversary items?

5. Page 5 Salvo Oct. 31, 2012
Army awards Arsenal $4.2M
contract for new mortar baseplate
By John B. Snyder
The Arsenal announced this month that it received
a $4.2 million contract from the U.S. Army to manu-
facture a new lightweight 60mm mortar baseplate that
will enhance Soldiers’ abilities to move more quickly
across the battlefield, while also reducing logistical
requirements.
“This multimil-
lion dollar order will
add to our current
workload more than
Top: 120mm mortar base-
14,000 hours of di- plates being readied for
rect labor,” said Jake painting.
Peart, the Arsenal’s
chief of Production Left: Arsenal General
Foreman Paul Nieck-
Control & Program arz checking a 60mm
Management. “We baseplate casting being
will begin shipping readied for machining.
Although the production
in the fall of 2013
for the new baseplate
and we will com- won’t start until 2013,
plete our produc- the Arsenal continues to
tion in the spring of manufacture baseplates
for the legacy systems.
2015.”
The Army’s new Photos by John B. Snyder
M224A1 lightweight
60mm mortar system that was fielded in 2011 requires loaded weapon system. The Arsenal will continue to
two baseplates: The M7A1 baseplate, which is used manufacture baseplates for the legacy, 60mm mortar
in a conventional firing mode, weighs 9.2 pounds, and system, the M224, until the Army completes its field-
can fire charges 0 to 4; and the M8 baseplate, which ing of the newer, lightweight mortar system.
can be used in a hand-held firing mode, weighs 3.6 Orders for Watervliet’s mortars have greatly in-
pounds, but can fire only a charge 0 or 1. creased since 2007 due directly to the type of ground
The new M7A2 baseplate the Arsenal will begin combat that our military has been doing in Afghani-
manufacturing may be used in a conventional fir- stan. In the last 12 months, the Arsenal has manufac-
ing mode or from a hand-held firing position, weighs tured more than 2,000 various mortar parts, from tubes
only 4.8 pounds, and can fire charges 0-4. Thereby to baseplates.
providing the same firing capabilities as the current The U.S. Army’s Benét Laboratories designed the
two baseplates combined, while reducing the overall M7A2 baseplate, which speaks volumns about the
weight of the mortar system by more than 8 pounds. synergy achieved at Watervliet where those who do
Each additional charge above charge 1 increases the the research and design are only a five-minute walk
range of the mortar round. from those who will machine the design. Nearly four
The 60mm mortar system is a lightweight, high years of research, design, and testing went into the de-
angle of fire, smooth-bore, man-portable, muzzle- velopment of the M7A2.

6. Page 6 Salvo Oct. 31, 2012
NY bridge dedicated to fallen hero
Staff Sgt. Derek Farley will never be forgotten
By John B. Snyder sleep,” Ken said. “If we stopped to take a break, Derek
would immediately wake up as if something was wrong.”
As Derek grew older, his passion was riding his bike and
In the Town of Nassau, N.Y., on Oct. 14, Staff Sgt.
visiting friends. But somehow, between such activities
Derek Farley began greeting each visitor as they entered
he found another passion — watching The Military and
and left this small town. Derek was an Army explosives
History Channels — a passion that would truly define who
ordnance disposal expert who was killed in Afghanistan
Derek was.
on Aug. 17, 2010, but on Sunday, the Route 20 Bridge
At about the age of 11 or 12, Derek started developing
in Nassau was named the Staff
a keen interest in the military,
Sergeant Derek Farley Memorial
especially the World War II period,
Bridge.
Ken said. When as a teenager,
Derek was a free spirit since the
Derek saw the camaraderie
first day he could crawl, said Ken
displayed in the ‘Band of Brothers’
Farley, Derek’s father who works
miniseries and said that was what
at the Watervliet Arsenal as an
he wanted.
electronics technician.
One day in high school, Derek
“One of my fondest memories
came home from school and told
of Derek was when he was
his parents he wanted to have an
learning to walk because he would
Army recruiter visit them. After
walk on his knees,” Ken said.
the visit, Derek signed up for the
“From that day on, I knew we had
Army while still in high school
something special in Derek in that
under the Army’s delayed entry
he would do things his way … he
program, a program that allows
was his own person.”
students to finish their senior year
When Derek was young, he
in high school and then ship out to
was the type of kid that loved the
basic training after graduation.
rain because it would cause mud
Of the hundreds of job
puddles to form on his driveway,
specialties available to Derek, he
Ken said. There was never a
chose an exciting, but extremely
good puddle left untouched by
dangerous specialty called
Derek as he would thrash about
“explosive ordnance disposal” or
getting completely soaked and
EOD specialist.
then he would seal his enjoyment Photo by John B. Snyder
Ken said at first he was taken
by dunking his head into the thick The unveiling of the Staff Sergeant Derek Farley Memo-
rial Bridge in Nassau, N.Y., by Derek’s family. From left: aback by Derek’s job choice. As
of the mud, coming up for air Dylan, Derek’s brother; Ken, father; and Theresa, sister.
a Soldier who served in Vietnam,
laughing. Farley was explosive ordnance disposal specialist who
was killed in Afghanistan. Ken knew just how dangerous the
One of Derek’s first chores
job was to disarming munitions
around the house was keeping the wood box full, which
and bombs. But at the end of the day, Ken also knew that
was a skill he probably learned while still in his playpen.
Derek was a free spirit who would do what he wanted to do
Ken and Derek’s mother, Carrie, kept Derek close by in
and would do so better than anyone else.
his playpen as they prepared and stacked wood for the Within two years of enlisting, Derek was in Iraq at one
winter. The Farley family live in a country setting about of the most dangerous time periods of the war, 2006-2007.
a 30-minute drive from Albany, N.Y. and rely on wood to
heat their home. Story continues on page 7, see Derek
“As long as we kept the wood splitter going, he would

7. Page 7 Salvo Oct. 31, 2012
Derek cont.
This was about the time when Iraqi insurgents had perfect-
ed their weapon of choice — improvised explosive devises
or IEDs. More than 1,700 troops died in 2006 and 2007
supporting combat operations in Iraq.
Despite the danger, Derek thrived in this environment
where just about every day he faced death.
According to Ken, who has through the years talked to
many of Derek’s battle buddies, Derek’s free spirit allowed Carrie Farley, Derek’s mother, talking to the attendees.
him to approach each IED with a sense of uncanny calm-
ness because he wasn’t worried about his own life, but for
the lives of his fellow Soldiers.
Derek was injured by a bomb explosion in Iraq that cost
him the hearing in one ear. He received the Purple Heart
for that injury.
About two years after his redeployment to the United
States, Derek found himself in another war zone.
He deployed to Afghanistan in 2009 as a team leader
for the 702nd EOD Company, covering some 1,200 square
miles of terrain.
For nearly one year, Derek defused a countless numbers
of roadside bombs that saved hundreds of lives. On one of Staff Sgt. Derek Farley’s ceremony under escort by
his last missions before returning back home, Derek died the Patriot Guard Riders.
on Aug. 17, 2010 while disarming a bomb in Afghanistan’s
Farah Province.
Assemblyman Steve McLaughlin, who spearheaded the
effort to propose legislation to name the main bridge in
Nassau after Derek, said at the ceremony that the bridge
was at a perfect spot because people would start and end
their day thinking of Derek and others who are serving.
Rensselaer County Legislator Alex Shannon agreed with
McLaughlin by saying “A lot of people cross this bridge
every day and from this day forward they will never forget
Derek and the sacrifice he made.”
Carrie Farley spoke lovingly of Derek and said that
Derek would be yelling at her if he saw such a memorial to Patriot Guard Riders line the ceremony’s site.
him. “He wouldn’t have wanted the attention. He was a
Soldier through and through.”
Although Derek may not have wanted such attention,
this memorial may somehow transcend Derek and the small
community of Nassau.
For those who knew Derek, they will have a daily re-
minder of his service and sacrifice. But for the thousands
of people who drive through the Town of Nassau every
month who did not know Derek, the Staff Sergeant Derek
Farley Memorial Bridge sign will be a reminder to them of
the brave sacrifices by those who have stepped up to sup-
port and defend our country.
Ken and Carrie love their son and now thousands more Staff Sgt. Derek Farley
will, too. Photos by John B. Snyder

8. Page 8 Salvo Oct. 31, 2012
When standing down makes sense
By John B. Snyder With an understanding that stress one week and pick up a package that
involving money, relationships, and is 5mg and the next week the same
More than 500 Watervliet Arsenal substance abuse may reach a point that package may be 200mg,” Broderick
civilian employees stopped all manu- some may believe there are no other said. “And so, these over-the-counter
facturing operations Wednesday as the options, Kyle Buono, the Arsenal’s products that are easily attainable may
Arsenal participated in a Suicide Pre- Fitness Program Coordinator, offered diminish the decision-making ability
vention Stand Down. some preemptive options. of the abuser that can lead to suicide.”
This was part of the Army-wide “Our Morale, Welfare, and Recre- Josh Roy, the Arsenal’s Applied
stand down to educate leaders and ation program offers a variety of pro- Suicide Intervention Skills Trainer or
their subordinates on the issues that grams, from a fitness center to renting ASIST, highlighted a fact that many
may lead to suicides, as well as what out recreational items, that are avail- Arsenal employees were not aware of.
actions they can take to prevent a able to every Arsenal employee,” Buo- “On the Arsenal, there are 26 vol-
suicide. Despite significant efforts in no said. “And if you don’t know how unteers who have undergone training
recent years, the U.S. military is con- to play a certain sport or how to start a to assist the workforce to identify
fronting an epidemic of suicides. fitness program, I am always available signs that may lead to suicide and to
The Army ordered the provide help those who
stand down following may believe their options
a DOD report claiming in life are few,” Roy said.
that suicides doubled To assist Roy, as well
from June to July. as the Arsenal workforce,
Twenty-six active-duty Mark Marshall, who is a
Soldiers were listed as certified counselor under
potential suicides in July, the ValueOptions pro-
which were the most gram, informed the work-
suicides ever recorded in force that he is available
a month since the Army two days a week to help
began tracking these with work/life balance, re-
figures. lationships, and emotional
Although the Ar- resilience.
senal consists mainly Photo by John B. Snyder Then it was the Albany
of Department of the When the Arsenal wants to communicate to the entire workforce it relies on Stratton VA Medical Cen-
Army Civilians, this does the Historic Big Gun shop to provide the space. About 500 Arsenal employ- ter’s turn.
not exempt them from ees moved into the Big Gun Shop for the Suicide Prevention Stand Down. Dr. Joseph Hunter, who
thoughts or acts of sui- is the Albany VA Medical
cide. And when one drills down into to give you one-on-one training.” Center’s suicide prevention coordina-
the demographics of the workforce, Staff Sgt. Mike Broderick, who is tor, provided the bulk of the training to
they would find that more than 40 the New York State Guard’s Joint Sub- the workforce.
percent are Veterans and some are still stance Abuse Coordinator, highlighted “Veterans are twice as likely to die
serving in the National Guard and Re- today’s contemporary use of stylish from suicide as the U.S. civilian popu-
serves. Therefore, the Arsenal cannot drugs such as bath salts and synthetic lation,” Hunter said.
take the attitude that it is immune from marijuana. Keeping in mind that more than 40
the epidemic that is rolling though the He said that these drugs are often percent of the Arsenal workforce are
active-duty force. And, it didn’t. purchased at local gas stations and Veterans, Hunter’s comment seemed
Arsenal Commander Col. Mark F. convenience markets “for novelty to hit home with the crowd.
Migaleddi kicked off the training by use” or “not for human consumption,” The Arsenal not only did its part to
saying, “We must take dramatic mea- which means that they are for the most support the Army’s suicide prevention
sures to protect our workforce and we part unregulated. Because these po- efforts, it also created an environment
can start that process by not just hear- tential drugs are not being well regu- that it is okay to seek help and once
ing the issues that our fellow workers lated, many people buy them to get a one does, there will be an Arsenal
may tell us, we must listen to them and quick high. family of workers who will be there to
then to take action.” “You may walk into a gas station help.

9. Page 9 Salvo Oct. 31, 2012
CPAC Corner: Estimating retirement
DID YOU KNOW that you can print an ESTIMATE of your retirement annuity online? Requesting an esti-
mate of your retirement annuity is an important part of preparing for retirement.
You may get an estimate from the Employee Benefits Information System (EBIS) by logging onto EBIS using your
Common Access Card (CAC), then enter your Social Security Number (SSN) and Personal Identification Number
(PIN).
Once you have accessed EBIS, clicking on the My Benefits button will provide you with your Personal Statement of
Benefits. The information provided in this statement will give you a quick "snap shot" of your retirement benefits.
Please note: this retirement estimate uses 97% of your current salary as your high-3 salary.
Retirement estimates can also be obtained by clicking on the Calculators button. The retirement calculators will allow
you to calculate a Quick Retirement Estimate, an Advanced Retirement Estimate, and compute your high-3 aver-
age salary. Using the Quick Retirement Estimate will allow you to select the type of retirement (voluntary, early, or
deferred), date of retirement, and enter a high-3 average salary.
The Advanced Retirement Estimate option lets you create different scenarios by adjusting your final salary and high-3
average salary, final sick leave balance, survivor benefit election, and your health insurance and life insurance options.
WARNING! If you have the following types of service, you should contact a benefits counselor through the ABC-C
telephone system to request a formal estimate:
• Non-appropriated Fund (NAF) Service
• Unpaid civilian deposit or redeposit
• Unpaid military deposit
• Part time service
• FERS transferee (elected to transfer to FERS and have 5 years of prior CSRS service)
Blood donations set record
The American Red Cross thanks the Arsenal
workforce for their support to the September
Blood Drive when 67 pints of blood were col-
lected. This blood donation may help up to
201 patients. According to the Red Cross, this
was the most blood collected at the Arsenal on
record.
Farewell Tom & Theresa
Tom and Theresa Lyons were the cover story for
the March 2012 issue of the Salvo. Tom was part
of the Greatest Generation years of the Arsenal who
began working here in 1940 and retired in 1973. His
wife, Theresa, also worked at the Arsenal during
World War II as one of the Arsenal’s machine tool
operators or fondly called our “Rosie the Riveter.”
Sadly, since the cover story was written, both
Tom and Theresa have passed away.

10. Page 10 Salvo Oct. 31, 2012
No hoarders here ... ?
You have all heard about 6S by now – Safety, Sort, Straighten, Shine, Standardize and Sustain. But I’ll bet most of you
think that the goal of a 6S event is all about cleaning and throwing out junk. Or maybe it’s about lots of terrible “before”
and pretty “after” pictures.
But it’s not! The main goal of a 6S event is to improve the process. Every 6S event should determine success or failure
by whether the team improved process performance.
And yes, you can measure floor space reduced, or 6S audit score, or the number of dumpsters of junk thrown out (that’s
all good!) but the main idea is to improve the process. You clean, throw out junk, and find a place for everything during a
6S event. But you do that to improve the process.
Eliminating unnecessary items in an area reduces time spent looking for stuff, eliminates safety hazards and results in
more time doing value-added work for customers. Cleaning machines or desks – and keeping them clean - means more
run-time for value-added operations. With everything in its place operators, technicians and employees providing adminis-
trative support to manufacturing know right where to get that tool or information when they need it.
That’s why 6S is a great opportunity to focus on improving the process. Streamlined physical work spaces make it
easier to do value added work
What else must you know?
-How to map the process
-How to identify the customer
-How to identify the need moving through the process
-How to create visual management of the process
-How to create standard work for the process
Current state, ideal state and future state maps are not just for rapid improvement events – they are just as important
during a 6S event. GEMBA walks and spaghetti diagrams are ideal tools for involving the people who work in the 6S tar-
get area. They know how to eliminate problems, improve the process and ultimately increase customer satisfaction.
How many 6S examples – including
visual management – can you think
of at an average NASCAR event?
Photo by www.trekearth.com
Arsenal conducts its first chamber of commerce
In an effort to promote collaboration and synergistic partnerships through relation-
ship building, the Arsenal conducted its first meeting between the Arsenal leadership
and the Arsenal’s tenant organizations. Very similar to what communities such as
Albany and Rensselaer Counties currently conduct through their Chamber of Com-
merces, the Arsenal has started this quarterly, unofficial chamber-type of meeting.
The October meeting was chaired by the Arsenal commander and co-chaired by the
Benét Labs Director and the President of the Arsenal Business & Technology Partner-
ship.

11. Page 11 Salvo Oct. 31, 2012
Addressing a commander’s service
By Mark Koziol
1 Buffington Street, In 1872, Buffington began design- to operating the Springfield, Mass.,
Watervliet, NY 12189 ing a disappearing artillery gun car- Armory. During his 10 years there,
riage for use at seacoast forts. While he made a major contribution to the
This is the familiar mailing address collaborating with Lt. William Crozier, success of the first rifled gun program
to all Watervliet Arsenal employees, the two men created a functional design designed and built at the Watervliet
but, who was Buffington and why does for a disappearing gun carriage; patent Arsenal. He also designed the first all
he merit a prominent street address? in 1893. In use for more than 20 years, steel field carriage for an artillery gun
Adelbert Rinaldo Buffington’s mili- the carriage system supported guns as well as the accompanying limber,
tary career began with his 1861 gradua- ranging in size from 6-16 inches. caisson, battery wagon, forge and re-
tion as a lieutenant from the West Point When in a resting position, the Sea- coil brake.
Military Academy. For the duration coast guns were 12 feet below a protec- Two other important milestones oc-
of the Civil War, his duties included: tive parapet, thus providing protection curred late in Buffington’s career:
Training volunteer Soldiers in Wash- from the enemy while the artillerymen • He proposed the use of highly
ington, D.C.; serving as an Ordnance reloaded the gun. After being raised flammable nitro cellulose ma-
Officer at the St. Louis, terial instead of nitroglycer-
Mo., Arsenal; inspector of ine powder in ammunition
the Rifled Seacoast can- manufacturing .
non from 1863 to 1864;
and Commander of the • He designed a delayed
New York Arsenal, 1864 explosion mechanism for
to 1865. large artillery payloads.
Lt. Buffington’s hard
work was rewarded with Traditional artillery
a promotion at the end ammo exploded upon im-
of the war to the rank of pact. A delayed exploding
Brevet Major. round would imbed itself in-
Maj. Buffington’s or- side an enemy fort or battle-
ganizational skills led him ship before exploding, thus
to interesting and chal- increasing the damage done
lenging duties. From Oc- to the target and at a higher
tober, 1868 to September, loss of life. Buffington’s
1873, he was stationed at Photo provided by the Arsenal Museum innovations kept the Ameri-
An image of a 50-foot long, 16-inch gun mounted on its Buffington-Crozier
Watervliet Arsenal as an Disappearing Carriage, Watertown, Mass., Arsenal, c.1921.
can seacoast fortifications
Assistant Ordnance Offi- safe from enemy attack for
cer. During his five years in Watervliet, and fired, the gun’s recoil pushed the nearly 20 years.
the Arsenal was used primarily as a carriage backwards and down behind Buffington served as Chief of Ord-
storage facility housing millions of the parapet for loading the next round. nance from 1899 to 1901, and then
rounds of small arms and hundreds of As Watervliet Arsenal commander, he was forced to retire from the U.S.
excess artillery guns and ammunition. 1880 to 1881, Buffington oversaw Army at age 64, after 40 years of mili-
During the previously mentioned Arsenal operations during one of the tary service. He died at age 85 on July
five years, Buffington spent 15 months many “quiet” eras, highlighted by 10, 1922 at his Madison, N.J., home, a
detailed to work at the Southern Sea- salaries for Master Mechanics being week after his wife Eliza died on July
coast Fortifications covering the forts increased from $4.25 to $5.00 a day. In 2. Buffington and wife are buried at
from Charleston, S.C., to Mobile Bay, July, 1881, Buffington, after 20 years the Arlington National Cemetery.
Ala. There, he was the Assistant Su- in the Ordnance Department, was pro- In 1969, Lt. Col. Buffington was
perintendent of Armaments from Feb- moted to the rank of Lt. Col. one of 32 men inducted into the inau-
ruary 1872 to May 1873. In 1881, Buffington moved on gural class of Ordnance Hall of Fame.

12. Page 12 Salvo Oct. 31, 2012
Albany County’s Veterans’ Day Parade
Monday, 12 November
If you missed your opportunity to support our nation’s Veterans and the Arsenal
during Memorial Day, you will have another chance to join us this November 12th.
As you read this, the Arsenal parade committee is already working hard to prepare
the Arsenal for the Albany County’s Veterans’ Day Parade down Central Avenue. In
addition to two Arsenal floats, we will have several vehicles from Emergency Servic-
es, and about 8 vehicles from the Hudson-Mohawk Military Vehicle Collectors Club.
We need folks to march with us, as well as volunteers to drive a van and the white
VIP Bus to help transport machers from the finish point to the start point.
Photos by John B. Snyder
IF YOU WISH TO SUPPORT...CALL
John Snyder at 266-5055 or
Jim Grenier at 266-5605

13. Page 13 Salvo Oct. 31, 2012
Watervliet Arsenal
200th Anniversary Cookbook
RVLIET ARSE
ATEOUD TRADITION SINCE 181NAL
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Have a great family recipe?
Share it with your Arsenal Family!
We need your help – We are seeking entries for the first ever Arsenal cookbook
to commemorate our 200th anniversary featuring recipes from our workforce.
Whether it is an appetizer, dessert or main course, we want to hear from you!
Cookbooks will be available for pre-order on the 200th Anniversary Memorabilia
order form.
Fill out and submit your recipes online at:
www.wva.army.mil/recipe
Entries will be accepted from November 1, through December 31, 2012