A Brief History of U.S. Infantry Machine Guns

Machine guns have made a significant impact on the battlefield ever since they were invented. The sustained rate of fire forever changed the way wars were fought and escalated the horrors of war to new heights.

The development of automatic arms in the United States began with the Gatling Gun in the Civil War era and progressed with a series of stumbles through the Great Wars and beyond. Here is an abridged history of U.S. machine guns: