GDG- $83,781,894.64 for Coffee Mill

[Dennis Lawrence]

Orders purchase of 50 "Coffee Mill" guns at $735 each. B

To James W. Ripley 
<http://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=lincoln;cc=lincoln;rgn=div1;view=trgt;idno=lincoln5;id=5_75_4;note=ptr>[1]

Let the fifty guns be ordered on the terms above recommended by Genl. 
McClellan & not otherwise. A LINCOLN

Dec. 19. 1861.


[1]   AES copy, DLC-RTL. Lincoln copied McClellan's recommendation and his 
own endorsement for preservation in his file. The original, sent to General 
Ripley, has not been located. McClellan's undated recommendation as copied 
by Lincoln is as follows: ``I would recommend that fifty of the `Coffee 
Mill' guns be furnished at 20% advance on cost price, which cost may be 
ascertained by competent ordnance officers. I think $1200, entirely too 
high. Geo. B. McClellan Maj. Genl. Commg.'' Although this early machine gun 
was successfully tested and certified by Colonel Charles P. Kingsbury of 
the Ordnance Department (November 30, 1861, ibid.), the guns ordered were 
never used.

Costin terms of 2006

In 2006, $36,750.00 from 1862 is worth:

         $759,876.92     using the Consumer Price Index
         $615,901.56     using the GDP deflator
         $5,539,542.45   using the unskilled wage
         $9,190,124.93   using the nominal GDP per capita
         $83,781,894.64  using the relative share of GDP

*