History of the SMR / TN rifle

[oreclan]

I’m not sure that the makers or iron mounted Tennessee and western NC rifles apprenticed with Pennsylvania makers. Can you name examples?
There is no evidence of scarcity of brass or that an abundance of iron led to the iron mounted rifle style. I cannot imagine a scenario where they could get locks but not brass hardware. And they did get locks.
It’s more likely that all-round blacksmiths extended their wares into gunmaking.

Mike Miller in a U-tube interview stated that iron was harder to get in the back-country and that the Virginia made rifles used brass furniture as a result.

 

[tenngun]

I’m not sure that the makers or iron mounted Tennessee and western NC rifles apprenticed with Pennsylvania makers. Can you name examples?
There is no evidence of scarcity of brass or that an abundance of iron led to the iron mounted rifle style. I cannot imagine a scenario where they could get locks but not brass hardware. And they did get locks.
It’s more likely that all-round blacksmiths extended their wares into gunmaking.

Iron and brass changed places a lot through out ML history. Iron mounted SMR were made at the same time Pennsylvanian gunmakers were sending brass mounted guns west for the fur trade. And silver was stuck on some of these guns. I doubt price of the base metal had any thing to do with it.

 

[plmeek]

...I never thought that designs would evolve in a linear fashion, but was wondering if there was some sort of transition design, and/or what drove builders at the time to change the butt plate and drop the stock.

Nameless, if you or others are interested in SMR and TN rifles you are fortunate because a number of new books have been written about them. SMR's have been getting a lot of attention from collectors in the last few of decades. Probably because the nice Pennsylvania rifles got so expensive, while the SMR's were very affordable, relatively speaking. Several collectors have conducted research and written books about the rifles in their collections.

Here is a list of some of those books for those interested with links where you can buy them.

Kentucky Rifles of the Great Smoky Mountains by Randal Pierce

This book is a documentation of the Kentucky Rifles of the Great Smoky Mountains exhibit held at the Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center in Townsend, Tennessee from May 1 through October 25, 2018. The exhibit, sponsored by the Kentucky Rifle Foundation, Kentucky Rifle Foundation, showcases southern mountain rifles from Eastern Tennessee and Western North Carolina.

C. Michael Briggs has published several books on North Carolina gunmakers. The Longrifle Makers of the Salem School may be the best of the bunch. The link will give you more details on the book and has information on ordering it and the other books by Mr. Briggs.

The Gillespie Gun Makers of East Fork NC by Dennis Glazener is another book worth considering. As the title says, its about a specific family of North Carolina gunmakers.

The Kentucky Rifle Foundation has CD's that one can order with detail photographs of rifles. There are two CD's on the subject.

• Kentucky Rifles of the Great Smoky Mountains Volume I, Issue XIV
  
  
• 2013 KRA President’s Display – Southern Rifles – Volume I, Issue VIII
  

These resources won't give you a simple straight forward answer to you question, but studying the guns, the people who made them, and when and where they lived may provide partial answers. At a minimum, it will give you a greater appreciation for these rifles and where and how they fit in the story of the American longrilfe. Something I doubt you will ever get from the internet.

 

[Nameless Hunter]

Nameless, if you or others are interested in SMR and TN rifles you are fortunate because a number of new books have been written about them. SMR's have been getting a lot of attention from collectors in the last few of decades. Probably because the nice Pennsylvania rifles got so expensive, while the SMR's were very affordable, relatively speaking. Several collectors have conducted research and written books about the rifles in their collections.

Here is a list of some of those books for those interested with links where you can buy them.

Kentucky Rifles of the Great Smoky Mountains by Randal Pierce



C. Michael Briggs has published several books on North Carolina gunmakers. The Longrifle Makers of the Salem School may be the best of the bunch. The link will give you more details on the book and has information on ordering it and the other books by Mr. Briggs.

The Gillespie Gun Makers of East Fork NC by Dennis Glazener is another book worth considering. As the title says, its about a specific family of North Carolina gunmakers.

The Kentucky Rifle Foundation has CD's that one can order with detail photographs of rifles. There are two CD's on the subject.

• Kentucky Rifles of the Great Smoky Mountains Volume I, Issue XIV
  
  
• 2013 KRA President’s Display – Southern Rifles – Volume I, Issue VIII

These resources won't give you a simple straight forward answer to you question, but studying the guns, the people who made them, and when and where they lived may provide partial answers. At a minimum, it will give you a greater appreciation for these rifles and where and how they fit in the story of the American longrilfe. Something I doubt you will ever get from the internet.

Thanks for the book list.
You are so right about the limited info on the internet. As always, one of the hurdles of research is finding the best books to buy/read.