Original Item. Only One Available. This is a very good original U.S. Army No. 2 Hagner cartridge box from the early Indian Wars period, retaining its embossed U.S. front flap, rear No. 2 marking, complete interior canvas cartridge loops,and intact rear belt loops. The black leather body shows heavy age and service wear, particularly to the heavily crazed front flap and closure strap, but it remains in overall good condition.

The Hagner cartridge box was developed in the U.S. Army’s post-Civil War effort to modernize its accoutrements for metallic-cartridge arms. Early Hagner boxes were evaluated during the Army equipment trials of the early 1870s and became closely associated with mounted service during the Indian Wars period. The No. 2 pattern was more compact than the earlier No. 1 and used a revised internal cartridge arrangement. Surviving No. 2 examples are documented with 24 web or canvas cartridge loops.

This example is in good condition although the front flap is heavily worn and crazing. The canvas bullet loops are all intact and the front is embossed US. The back is stamped No. 2. The belt loops on the back are fully intact and the leather is a bit crazed and cracked.

The Hagner system belonged to a transitional period in U.S. Army equipment development when the service was moving away from Civil War-era muzzle-loading accoutrements toward equipment designed around metallic-cartridge rifles and carbines. The adoption of the .45-70 Springfield system in 1873 further accelerated this change, and cartridge boxes of the Hagner, Dyer, and McKeever families represent successive attempts to provide practical ammunition carriage before woven cartridge belts became standard later in the century.

This is a particularly appealing early Indian Wars cartridge box because the principal identifying features remain intact: the U.S. embossed flap, No. 2 rear marking, complete cartridge loops, and original belt loops. The heavily crazed flap is the primary condition issue, while the remainder of the leather retains a strong service-worn appearance consistent with an original early-1870s Army accoutrement.