Help Needed - 1836 Harpers Ferry
Re: Help Needed - 1836 Harpers Ferry
That's a U.S. Model 1816 musket, produced at the Harper's Ferry Arsenal - it was originally flintlock and was converted to percussion, likely in the 1840s or 1850s, or possibly in the run up to arm up the volunteer armies during the beginning of the Civil War. It was converted using what's known as the "drum" or French-style conversion system, in which the original flintlock vent hole is drilled out, and a drum is inserted to hold the nipple that holds the percussion cap, and a new percussion hammer replaces the old flintlock hammer. Thousands of these were converted to percussion during the 1840s and 1850s after the U.S. Army adopted the percussion system, and thousands more were converted both right before and in the early part of the Civil War. They were very common on both the U.S. and Confederate side, particularly early in the war. Caliber .69; the issue ammunition was either a round ball or "buck and ball" - a round ball and three buckshot sized pellets. Devastating round at the range these typically were used at during the war. Yours saw a fair amount of use, seeing how rusted and pitted the nipple and drum area are. The lockplate, barrel, barrel bands and stock appear to be in good condition. Value is tough to pin down, but Harpers Ferry muskets tend to carry a bit more value than the Springfield Model 1816s, so I'd say somewhere between $800 and $1200. Nice piece of history - congrats!
Re: Help Needed - 1836 Harpers Ferry
Send an e mail to Mark at oldguns.net He has been very helpful to me and has a wealth of knowledge. Also a pretty cool web page for people who are interested in old guns.
Re: Help Needed - 1836 Harpers Ferry
Quote:
Originally Posted by
indianjack
Send an e mail to Mark at oldguns.net He has been very helpful to me and has a wealth of knowledge. Also a pretty cool web page for people who are interested in old guns.
I just wanted to thank you for this suggestion. Me and John have been discussing over the past few days!
Re: Help Needed - 1836 Harpers Ferry
Quote:
Originally Posted by
shiloh
That's a U.S. Model 1816 musket, produced at the Harper's Ferry Arsenal - it was originally flintlock and was converted to percussion, likely in the 1840s or 1850s, or possibly in the run up to arm up the volunteer armies during the beginning of the Civil War. It was converted using what's known as the "drum" or French-style conversion system, in which the original flintlock vent hole is drilled out, and a drum is inserted to hold the nipple that holds the percussion cap, and a new percussion hammer replaces the old flintlock hammer. Thousands of these were converted to percussion during the 1840s and 1850s after the U.S. Army adopted the percussion system, and thousands more were converted both right before and in the early part of the Civil War. They were very common on both the U.S. and Confederate side, particularly early in the war. Caliber .69; the issue ammunition was either a round ball or "buck and ball" - a round ball and three buckshot sized pellets. Devastating round at the range these typically were used at during the war. Yours saw a fair amount of use, seeing how rusted and pitted the nipple and drum area are. The lockplate, barrel, barrel bands and stock appear to be in good condition. Value is tough to pin down, but Harpers Ferry muskets tend to carry a bit more value than the Springfield Model 1816s, so I'd say somewhere between $800 and $1200. Nice piece of history - congrats!
Thank you for this awesome amount of information!
