Southern Style Percussion

[GDM]

I picked up this rifle at an estate sale this past weekend. Does anyone recognize or know of this builder? Gun is a Southern Style with a 45 “ barrel, caliber is a .425 , with percussion lock , no markings on lock but barrel has J With a weird C if that is what it is and J M D. Thank you in advance for any help.

 

[Gvilleddie]

I don’t have any info to offer but it looks like a neat old rifle. I like the snake on the trigger guard.

 

[GDM]

Yes sir. It is a neat old gun. I imagine it was a flintlock at one time and was converted from the way the lock doesn't fit correctly. The old gun cleaned up good.

 

[user 48679]

What a wonderful find ! !

"J * C" might be an old-time gunmaker, J. M. Caswell, of Lansingburg, NY - the only "J C" in Ned Robert's partial listing of old time rifle makers ( The Muzzle-loading Cap Lock Rifle).

The same listing has two "J D" names, but neither with the middle name/initial of "M".

 

[GDM]

What a wonderful find ! !

"J * C" might be an old-time gunmaker, J. M. Caswell, of Lansingburg, NY - the only "J C" in Ned Robert's partial listing of old time rifle makers ( The Muzzle-loading Cap Lock Rifle).

The same listing has two "J D" names, but neither with the middle name/initial of "M".

Thank you . I appreciate any information. Your info is much appreciated.

 

[Tanselman]

The rifle looks very much like a Tennessee rifle with its iron mountings, banana shaped iron patchbox, and initialed barrel. The gunmaker probably had the initials "J M D" while the original owner had the initials "C M." That is the traditional way to read this type of initialed barrel. There is still a lot for collectors to learn about Tennessee rifles; we do not know who all the makers are, and cannot identify all the different initials that have appeared on rifles. You have a good quality, iron mounted rifle probably from eastern Tennessee, but similar guns were made in the Appalachian Mountain areas of western North Carolina, southwestern Virginia, and perhaps northwestern South Carolina and southeastern Kentucky, all part of the hill country culture that made rather similar rifles. You could get the best, most knowledgeable help with identifying your rifle if you took it to the annual Tennessee Kentucky Rifle Show on the north edge of Knoxville just off I-75 next April. You can probably Google the name and find the show and its dates for next year. That's where the experts on this type of rifle congregate once a year, and they all love to see fresh, new rifles and help the owners with them. Shelby Gallien

 

[GDM]

The rifle looks very much like a Tennessee rifle with its iron mountings, banana shaped iron patchbox, and initialed barrel. The gunmaker probably had the initials "J M D" while the original owner had the initials "C M." That is the traditional way to read this type of initialed barrel. There is still a lot for collectors to learn about Tennessee rifles; we do not know who all the makers are, and cannot identify all the different initials that have appeared on rifles. You have a good quality, iron mounted rifle probably from eastern Tennessee, but similar guns were made in the Appalachian Mountain areas of western North Carolina, southwestern Virginia, and perhaps northwestern South Carolina and southeastern Kentucky, all part of the hill country culture that made rather similar rifles. You could get the best, most knowledgeable help with identifying your rifle if you took it to the annual Tennessee Kentucky Rifle Show on the north edge of Knoxville just off I-75 next April. You can probably Google the name and find the show and its dates for next year. That's where the experts on this type of rifle congregate once a year, and they all love to see fresh, new rifles and help the owners with them. Shelby Gallien

Thank you Shelby . Much appreciated. I doubt I can make it out to the Tennessee show but you never can tell. I have been wanting to to to Knoxville for a long time. Next year might be the year. I live in Texas. Again thank you for the info.