On this day 163 years and one day ago, an Indianapolis inventor patented a weapon that forever changed warfare with the misunderstood goal of keeping people from conflict.
Driving the (old) news: On Nov. 4, 1862, Richard Gatling received his first patent for the Gatling Gun, a hand-cranked, breech-loading cannon with 10 revolving barrels that could fire some 200 rounds a minute.
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- Born in North Carolina, Gatling moved to Indianapolis in 1854 and was living in the Circle City when the Civil War began.
- Despite his southern roots, he supported the Union and began pondering ideas for a more…