History of the American Longrifle

[Michael Ford]

Hi Guys
I am a Muzzleloader from the UK and have a burning desire to build myself a traditional American Plains/Long Rifle from a kit maybe from TOTW but cannot find any books in the UK with the history of these guns. I would like to do my research before I decide which model to build, whether a Kentucky or a Bedford or a Hawken etc etc. Any help you guys can give me would be appreciated?

 

[54ball]

Wow...
This is a very convoluted subject.

For a simple example you can't beat a Lancaster for the typical "American Longrifle"...

Builders like...
Dickert...
J.P. Beck Lancaster/Lebonon
Isacc Haines

There are several books on the subject. the best are Kindigs Thoughts on the Kentucky Rifle and Rifles of Colonial America 1 and 2 by Shumway Publishing. These should be available from Track or Shumway Direct.

Plains Rifle....later period and many like the Hawken Rifles are based on English Sporting Rifles of the period.

 

[Stumpkiller]

Welcome to the forum!

You'll have to build two rifles. A Plains Rifle and a Long Rifle are different beasts.

But there is no question that long rifles were carried into the Plains.

"Kentucky" is one of the many places where rifles were used, but "Pennsylvania" is the place many were made. It's like calling a Toyota an Irish car because someone in Dublin drives one there. ;-) (Just kidding - but it is something I like to point out).

Here is a website that has descriptions of the various "schools" of longrifles.
http://americankentuckyrifleart.com/identify-maker-and-school.html


Note also that that website has a "Books" menu tab for suggestions in researching the subject.

 

[Col. Batguano]

If you are trying to choose which style appeals to you, make a list of the features or characteristics of your generic gun that appeal to you the most. e.g.;
long, thin and svelte vs shorter and stouter
large calibre vs. small calibre
thinner hooked butt vs. wider flatter butt
flint vs percussion--drum or patent breech
half stock vs. full stock
high sights vs. low sights
double triggers vs. single triggers
carving;
none, incised, raised, or metal inlays
baroque or rococco
Patch box
none, sliding wood, simple flat lid, domed lid, side opening, hidden, 2-piece, 4-piece with or w/o piercings
metal inlays--yes or no
engraving
rococco or baroque
single tool made plain vs. complex, highly detailed & shaded

Once you narrow down in your own mind what it is exactly that you like the most as far as features, then you can start narrowing it down as to styles that fit within those features. Otherwise, you will be like a kid in a candy store. They ALL look good!

 

[Grenadier1758]

For the combination of American Plains Rifle and Eastern Long rifle, the book to get is the "Trade Rifle Sketchbook" by Charles Hanson. Its not an expensive book. I used it to build the flintlock Deringer rifle.

From the Track of the Wolf's description of the book:
A reprinting of historian Charles E. Hanson's classic Trade Rifle Sketchbook. Features life size, hand drawings of historic Indian trade rifles. Details such as stock profiles and screw and pin placements are included, which gunmakers will find useful.

Includes sketches of a 1790 - 1800 Wheeler rifle, a J. Henry Lancaster, English, and scroll-guard pattern, a Deringer flint and percussion rifle, Krider, Tryon, and Leman rifles, and pistols by Wheeler, Deringer, and Chance & Son. A classic book revisited.

 

[Zonie]

Hi Guys
I am a Muzzleloader from the UK and have a burning desire to build myself a traditional American Plains/Long Rifle from a kit maybe from TOTW but cannot find any books in the UK with the history of these guns. I would like to do my research before I decide which model to build, whether a Kentucky or a Bedford or a Hawken etc etc. Any help you guys can give me would be appreciated?

The "Kentucky" rifle was typically used between 1760 and 1830, primarily in the Eastern half of the United States.
It is thought to be based on the German Jaeger rifle, usually with a much longer barrel and smaller bore.
It is almost always a full stock rifle and used brass for the trigger guard, butt plate and the rest of the furniture.

The earlier Kentucky's have rather wide butt plates (around 2") with a rather flat or slightly curved shape.
The later Kentucky rifles butt plate was fairly narrow and often had a very deeply shaped curve made to be shot off of the upper arm rather than the shoulder.

The Plains rifle was used primarily in the Western half of the United States between the years 1825-1860.
It us usually a heavy rifle shooting a large round ball and used the half-stock design.
The butt plate and trigger guard along with the rest of the furniture was iron.

The heavy weight resulted from the large caliber plus the fact that these rifles were very robust. The last thing a man in the Western US wanted was something that was flimsy and easily broken.

Their weight was no problem for the men who used them as they usually rode horses.

 

[dave_person]

Hi,
Others have given you some book titles for history, I would recommend you purchase Peter Alexander's "Gunsmith of Grenville County". He discusses quite a bit of history but also compares some schools. He also covers the nuances of building a long rifle ad nauseum. Just like it takes a lot of study and looking at originals to build an English fowling gun properly, it requires that same effort to understand long rifles.

dave

 

[rich pierce]

For me, such decisions are usually driven by interest in a particular historical period and activity, intended use, and what originals appeal to me.

You can narrow things down by answering the first 2 questions: what period of history, and what’s the intended use?

American rifles changed a lot over time even within regional styles, so a 1760s and 1780s gun were different, and tge 1780s gun different from one made around 1800, and so on, and so on.

If I were a Brit I’d be interested in British trade rifles used here, or a Kentucky rifle in the 1770s period. Those are comfortable shooters.

If the fur trade interests you, be warned, fur trade rifles were very heavy and that hooked buttplate is no fun after the first 10 shots off a bench. I’m not sure why narrow stocks and booked buttplates came into style. Possibly to keep the gun on the shoulder on horseback. But I have enough trouble shooting standing on my own two legs. Probably just a style thing without a practical explanation.

After that, start researching originals to see what appeals.

 

[Michael Ford]

Hey Guys
Thanks for the information, enough to keep me busy for quite a few hours following up the info!
My main interest was Napoleonic firearms and have a ANIX F/lock Pistol & Carbine plus an original Short Land Pattern Brown Bess and a Baker Rifle, but after firing a friends Kentucky Rifle I was smitten!

 

[dave_person]

Hi,
The rifles below can give you a sense of some of the styles through time identified for American longrifles. I am not much for later 19th century rifles so I concentrate on the colonial, Revolutionary War, and post Rev War periods. The first gun is a large, robust pre-Rev war longrifle from eastern Pennsylvania. The butt stock is wide, carving is spare but well done, patchbox is wood, bore is pretty big. The second is Rev war from Reading, Pennsylvania. Again robust, spare but good carving, simple brass patchbox. The third rifle is Rev war styling perhaps from northern Virginia. It has an English round-faced lock, imaginative carving that includes local folk art. The hardware is browned steel at the request of the owner but it should be brass. The fourth rifle is post Rev war and within what we call the "Golden Age" of long rifles (about 1780-1810 or so). The gun is slimmer, caliber smaller, the stock is typical of Lancaster, York, or Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. The carving is very stylized and profuse with a high standard of quality. The original that inspired this gun had a beautifully engraved brass patchbox. By this period, wooden boxes had largely disappeared. Later, makers included more metal inlays and carving degenerated and then mostly disappeared altogether. All of these guns have "swamped" barrels which means they are large at the breech, taper toward the muzzle and then flare out a little at the muzzle. That shaping brings the weight back toward the shoulder making very well balanced rifles despite the long barrels. During the 19th century, straight barrels were more common and the rifles were often very muzzle heavy.

dave

 

[RAEDWALD]

Unless things have changed Darcytt if you make an appointment with the London Proof House and ask nicely you can take it there yourself and they may let you see them doing the proofing (from safely outside the room) and you can ask them to put the proof stampings under the barrel so they do not appear when the barrel is in the stock. If they will still do that make sure you get the certificate of proofing at the same time.

 

[nchawkeye]

Order the book Foxfire V, it has a pretty good discussion on American Long Rifles...

 

[54ball]

Dave,
I'm in love with that Reading.
It is perfect.

 

[Stumpkiller]

You and me both. It really is a very well proportioned and executed rifle.

 

[Elnathan]

THis might be helpful, though it deals specifically with Virginia-made rifles: http://americansocietyofarmscollec...fles-of-the-Shenandoah-Valley-B074_Gusler.pdf

Unfortunately there isn't a good, up-to-date general history of the Kentucky rifle. Lots of good regional studies, particularly of non-Pennsylvania guns, but nothing that looks at the whole history of the weapon. I think everyone is sort of waiting until Gusler, the author of the linked piece, actually publishes his book (which will likely be posthumously).

I second the recommendation for Kindig's and Shumway's books, but would disagree with the suggestion for Peter Alexander's book - while it is a good book to learn to build his history chapter is poor, at least in the edition I have.

 

[Zonie]

For a fairly good book about Kentucky rifles that can often be found at used book stores, look for

THE PENNSYLVANIA KENTUCKY RIFLE ,© MCMLX by Henry J. Kauffman.

Another long out of print book that often shows up at used book stores is

The Kentucky Rifle ,© 1924 by Captian John G. W. Dillin.

Althought there are some things in these books that have since been proven to be in error, both of them offer very good information about the Kentucky rifles history in America.

The halfstock rifles of the American plains is covered very well in the book

THE PLAINS RIFLE , © 1960 by Charles E. Hanson, Jr.

I prefer this book to many because it covers many different gun makers rather than doing as many books do and dwelling just on the Hawken Rifle.

Although these books are not in print today they do not command high prices so check out the used book stores in your area or those found on the web.

A lot of information can be found for not a lot of money.

 

[TFoley]

I have a copy of Charles Hanson's book, originally priced at $11.95. I bought it way back at a going-back to 'merca house-sale for £1 - then about $2.50.

A great bargain, I'm sure you'd agree.

Still looks mostly like new, too.

tac