North-South Skirmish Association

October 1956 - Formal adoption of a Constitution & By-Laws, First National Commander Elected.

July 1958 - Incorporation of the association is completed.

January 1961 - Timed scoring system adopted.

July 1961 - 1st Manassas Reenactment, First of many U.S. Civil War Centennial Events, heavily attended and hosted by N-SSA member units.

September 1963 - 28th National, First National Skirmish Held at Fort Shenandoah. May 2012 The 125th Nationals Held at Fort Shenandoah, Tom Shedd and Joseph A. Sansone, Jr. Co-Skirmish Directors.

The standard infantry arm of the American Civil War was the rifle-Musket. These arms were muzzle-loading rifles firing the Minie ball. Major types of musket used by combatants during the Civil War were the Model 1861 and 1863 Springfield, as well as the British-made Pattern 1853 and 1858 Enfield. Although the long 'three-band' muskets (so called because they had three bands fastening the barrel to the stock) were the most widely issued, many N-SSA competitors favor the shorter 'two-band' muskets due to their superior balance and heavier barrels.

As of 2015, an exciting new event, "Traditional Musket" has been added to the event list. Competitors firing in this event must use an as-issued rifle-Musket, with no modifications to stocks, locks, or bedding permitted. Competitors must also wear a full period-correct uniform to fire in these matches, and utilize only period-correct projectiles and paper cartridges.

Carbines were issued to many cavalrymen from the 17th century until the 20th century. The American Civil War was notable for the use of carbines that were of markedly different design than the standard infantry weapon. Although short-barreled versions of the issue musket were used, breechloading designs such as the Sharps carbine and the Burnside carbine were more frequently encountered.

The N-SSA groups muzzle-loading and breech-loading carbines together for competitive purposes. There is considerable debate about which design is the best. The advocates of muzzle-loading carbines argue that their arms are more accurate than most breechloaders, while the breechloader advocates argue that the superior rate of fire makes up for any loss of accuracy.

Revolvers were issued to cavalrymen, artillery troops, and officers during the Civil War, which was one of the first conflicts to see such arms used in quantity. N-SSA revolver competition is limited to revolvers using percussion cap ignition. The major types of revolver used were the Colt Model 1851 and 1860, and the Remington Models of 1858 and 1863.

There is also a single shot pistol competition for individual entry only (i.e. no team events).

The American Civil War was the first conflict in which firearms using self-contained cartridges were widely used. In the mid-1990s, the N-SSA added events for such arms to the competition schedule. Breechloading Rifles, as defined in N-SSA events, include the Henry Rifle and the Spencer Repeating Rifle. This is often referred to as the repeater match, given the ability of these weapons to hold more than one cartridge in its magazine.

In addition to the repeater match listed above, the N-SSA offers a category for single shot breechloading weapons. Both externally primed percussion weapons (mainly the Sharps 1859 rifle and rifle versions of the Maynard) as well as internally primed cartridge guns (such as the Ballard, Frank Wesson, and so on) are used.

Although the American Civil War is frequently thought of as a conflict fought with rifle-muskets, the older smoothbore muskets were commonly used during the first half of the war. The N-SSA instituted matches for smoothbore muskets in the 1990s. Current N-SSA rules require the use of a bare bullet, and prohibit the use of a patched round ball, as is permitted under MLAIC rules. Either flintlock or percussion cap muskets may be used in smoothbore musket competition.

Individual competitions are held with musket, revolver, carbine, repeater, single shot, single shot pistol, and smoothbore arms. Distances are 50 and 100 yards (91 m) with muskets, carbines, and repeaters; and 25 and 50 yards (46 m) with revolvers, single shot pistols, and smoothbore muskets.

All individual matches are slow-fire precision events fired on standard N-SSA paper targets. The dimensions of these targets correspond closely to National Rifle Association targets for rifle and pistol. Individual matches at the National and most Regional Skirmishes are 10 shots for score with unlimited sighter shots, but some Regional and Invitational

In addition to each individual match, there are several aggregate matches, including aggregates for each type of arm, as well as the Grand Aggregate of the musket, carbine, and revolver matches.

Team competitions are rapid-fire events fired against breakable targets. Teams may fire for up to five minutes (two minutes for revolver events) in each event, and a penalty assessed for every unhit target. The total time to complete all events is a team's score, with the team having the lowest total time winning.

The core of the North-South Skirmish Association is the musket team match. For both National and Regional matches, this competition consists of eight members. There are usually five events, one event at a distance of 100 yards (91 m) and four at a distance of 50 yards (46 m).

At the National, 50-yard (46 m) musket team events include: 32 clay pigeons on a cardboard backer, 16 hanging 4"x4" ceramic tiles, 16 hanging clay pigeons, and 16 hanging clay flower pots. The 100-yard (91 m) musket team event at a National is 10 hanging 6"x6" ceramic tiles.

Regional musket matches are free to substitute other targets in place of the ones listed above. Other typical targets for the 50-yard (46 m) events are 12 ounce drink cans or 8 ounce styrofoam cups filled with water. Another typical target for the 100-yard (91 m) event would be 2 liter bottles filled with colored water.

The second largest (next to the musket match) competition within the North-South Skirmish Association is the carbine team match. For the national matches, this competition consists of eight members, and targets are usually the same as musket team.

Regional carbine matches quite often consist of five members; this is done to increase the number of teams competing since there are a smaller number of people attending. There are usually four or five events, one event at a distance of 100 yards (91 m) and three or four at a distance of 50 yards (46 m).

Revolver team events are quite popular in the N-SSA. Revolver teams consist of four shooters at the National matches, and usually three shooters at other Skirmishes.

The normal target set for the revolver team match is: 1. Three clay pigeons on a cardboard backer per shooter 2. Two hanging clay pigeons per shooter 3. Two other hanging targets (wood blocks or clay pots) per shooter

Among the newest events to be added to the skirmish schedule, repeater, single shot, and smoothbore events consist anywhere from 3 members (at regional demonstration events) to 4 members (at official national match events). Targets are usually similar to other matches held during a skirmish.

The most distinctive competition within the North-South Skirmish Association is the artillery team match, this match is broken down into mortar, rifled, smoothbore, and howitzer artillery.

Mortar - 100-yard (91 m) range, 7 shots, fired at stake, scoring determined by distance measured to 5 closest hits to stake.

Rifled cannon - 200-yard (180 m) range, 1 Hour Limit, 12 shots, best 10 for score, fired at two paper targets, a bullseye, and a counter battery, scoring is determined by points system. Best score: 50-5V. Common rifled cannon included in this match are the 10pdr. Parrott, the 10pdr. Ordnance Rifle, and the James Rifle.

Smoothbore cannon - 200-yard (180 m) range, 1 Hour Limit, 12 shots, best 10 for score, fired at two paper targets, a bullseye, and a counter battery, scoring is determined by points system. Best score: 50-5V. Common smoothbore cannon include the 12pdr. Napoleon and the 6pdr. Smoothbore Field Gun.