O.K. smoothy historians, here's one for you!

[Wes/Tex]

Reading "April Morning" and found a reference to smoothbore shooting 'pepper & salt shot'...that's a new one on me. Wondered if anyone had heard that one before and knew exactly what it was. Book is set in 1775 by the way.

 

[razorbritches]

what were they shooting at

 

[nchawkeye]

Is it a period account or just some dreamed up novel??? Much of what is written isn't true...

 

[Claude Mathis]

Maybe the author just meant "small" shot?

 

[Rifleman1776]

When I was a boy I was warned to not steal from neighbors garden because I would get shot in the backside with a shotgun using salt for shot. Salt and pepper combo might burn even worster. :shocked2:

 

[MacRob46]

April Morning is a fictional account of the battles of Lexington and Concord see from the patriot side. It was made into a movie for TV some time ago and I recently watched it again on Netflix. While the movie - I haven't read the book - was fictional, it was reasonably accurate in its portrayal of events and equipment. The main characters were using smoothbores - I have to guess that because they never say - and loaded them with small shot. I have not heard the term "salt and pepper shot" before either and do not know if it is a label from that time frame or something the writer made up. I do recommend the movie.

 

[Wes/Tex]

what were they shooting at

Not sure of intended target, the reference was included in the accounting of militia guns available to the 'minute company' at Lexington. This morning my memory wants to make think I've seen the term before but I don't know where else I may have come across it. The whole thing may just be part of Howard Fast's fevered imagination. To give you an idea, the entire quote runs:

"Samuel Hodley took the floor again and gave the results of the weapons count for the village and surrounding area. It came to one hundred and sixteen assorted pieces. As near as father could remember, it broke down something in this fashion: there were seven close-bore guns with rifled barrels, a small number, but rifles are expensive instruments and the very devil to load. There were some sixty odd smoothbore guns, of which about ten were old-fashioned firelocks. Among these sixty were fourteen British army guns, which had traveled to us-that is they belonged to the Committee-a nice way of saying that they were stolen. There were five dragoon pistols, but these were the kind that a family bought to show off on the mantel in the sitting room, and it was questionable whether they would work. All the rest were fowling guns for pepper and salt shot."

Assuming for a moment that some Lexington militia members actually owned "rifles" with "close-bore" barrels, the Massachusetts militia law specified that all guns for muster had to have bayonet fitted, iron ramrod and each member carried "a hundred of shot"...nothing there says rifle. The use of the word "firelock" is also ambiguous since the term in use in the British army was "firelock". The only way to make that work is if "old fashion firelock" referred to early, pre-standard Bess or even doglocks, etc. Interesting to see an author admit that British Besses had made their way to the local militia, since this was true. The only reason I started the thread was simply that I thought I'd seen or heard the term "pepper & salt shot" used somewhere before.

 

[buzz]

Pepper corns maybe?

 

[Wes/Tex]

Maybe the author just meant "small" shot?

I also considered that but if the actual reference meant shot small enough to represent salt & pepper it'd have to be similar to the #12 shot loaded in those old rat-shot , crimped end .22 rounds of years ago. Just the thing for an enraged roach or aggressive spider! :wink:

 

[BrownBear]

From what I recall while investigating the kitchen at Williamsburg, neither salt nor pepper appeared in the household pre-ground. You had to do it yourself, whether for cooking or dispensing at the table. Picture "rock" salt and peppercorns.

"Pepper and salt" would be unlikely to have anything to do with shot so small as #12, if they could even get shot as small as our #12.

 

[George]

I've never heard the term. I think Claude nailed it, he just meant small shot. He specified it was for fowling guns, the shotguns of the day. He didn't mean salt and pepper as shot, just a descriptive term for small shot. At that time they used a very fine shot called mustard seed shot, but they didn't mean actual mustard seeds any more than we mean we shoot dust when we shoot dust shot.

I'd be surprised if it's a period term.

Spence

 

[ZUG]

Maybe the author just meant "small" shot?

I also considered that but if the actual reference meant shot small enough to represent salt & pepper it'd have to be similar to the #12 shot loaded in those old rat-shot , crimped end .22 rounds of years ago. Just the thing for an enraged roach or aggressive spider! :wink:

:rotf: :rotf: :rotf: -- I remember those shells very well, spent good money for useless noise and no umph! Maybe kill the spider or roach with the pellets if you put the barrel on it,s nose!

 

[hanshi]

I can recall from when I was a pup, a couple of incidents where country neighbors/relatives had been known to load the large crystal "rock salt" in shotguns for a punishing but non-lethal deterrent. These were used not only against ill behaved dogs but also against ill behaved humans. Way down South where I grew up it was apparently a more or less common practice for us country folk.

 

[BrownBear]

I can recall from when I was a pup, a couple of incidents where country neighbors/relatives had been known to load the large crystal "rock salt" in shotguns for a punishing but non-lethal deterrent.

I have clear and painful memories of that, having to do with a rash of late night outhouse tipping in the tiny border town where I grew up. One such structure happened to have the lady of the house in it when we tipped it, and when he heard her screams pappa came out shooting.

All I can say is, thank goodness it was rock salt! :rotf:

 

[spudnut]

Ive heard it said when hitting your target with a shotgun "You peppered it" meaning you hit it from end to end or put too much shot in it,So maybe its just a slang term for loose shot.

 

[wulf]

Hanshi and Brown Bear nailed it right on ! You can't trust the movies at all.

 

[Alden]

So, swan shot wasn't made of swans and buckshot comes naught from deer!?

 

[Ike Godsey]

maybe its a later term.
when was the book written?
maybe at the time when the book was writte, this was a well known term in the area where the author comes from (maybe a specific term they used in a valley (but not in the other)?

 

[KHickam]

Perhaps they were shooting rock salt and pepper corns that way the game they shot would already be seasoned :rotf:

 

[Alden]

So our carrying Bear Pepper Spray would kinda be like... Oh my gosh!