Unidentified Musket

[Black Powder Doc]

Hello everyone, I've plugged a few friends with this as well, but, being ever curious, and even less patient (surprising for an amateur historian, I know), I thought I would see what the collective knowledge of The Internet could come up with.

The musket has, stamped on the lock plate, "Springfield", something that vaguely looks like a "75" or "76" (I lean more towards the former), "1806" (though the 1 is lost to age, and the other numbers are so faded as to be almost imaginary), and a shaped stamp that is, to me, indecipherable. On the plate where the trigger goes in is stamped clearly, "77" and, rather less clearly, "BOOK". The top of the butt plate is stamped "77" and "1806", though the 1 on it looks like it was re-scratched in, or perhaps began to rust out, or something to that extant. (Regardless, it doesn't have the nice clear type as the "806") Inside the retaining plate on the left hand side, in the wood, is carved a clear, crisp "V". On the inner part of the hammer, what is typically against the lock plate, is scratched "VIII".

The stock itself is cut down to about a third of it's length. The barrel has been blued, and the firearm is now a percussion cap action. The bayonet is long since gone, and the barrel is bored smooth. There is no bayonet lug on it, but rather, what looks to be a simple bead of metal on the end for use as a front sight. There is no rear sight. The barrel is retained in the stock by a screw through the back tongue, and a pin through the stock. Overall, the firearm is 50" in length.

Links to various pictures of it are below. Thank you for your time!

http://i924.photobucket.com/albums/ad88/BlackPowderDoc/MusketStockTop1.jpg
http://i924.photobucket.com/albums/ad88/BlackPowderDoc/MusketStock31806.jpg
http://i924.photobucket.com/albums/ad88/BlackPowderDoc/MusketStock2.jpg
http://i924.photobucket.com/albums/ad88/BlackPowderDoc/MusketStock1.jpg
http://i924.photobucket.com/albums/ad88/BlackPowderDoc/MusketSpringfield1.jpg
http://i924.photobucket.com/albums/ad88/BlackPowderDoc/MusketEntire1.jpg
http://i924.photobucket.com/albums/ad88/BlackPowderDoc/MusketBarrel3.jpg
http://i924.photobucket.com/albums/ad88/BlackPowderDoc/MusketBarrel2.jpg
http://i924.photobucket.com/albums/ad88/BlackPowderDoc/MusketBarrel1.jpg
http://i924.photobucket.com/albums/ad88/BlackPowderDoc/MusketActionTop1.jpg
http://i924.photobucket.com/albums/ad88/BlackPowderDoc/MusketActionBack1.jpg

[R. McAuley 3014V]

Looks like civilian shotgun converted from a Model 1795 Springfield, the first martial flintlock adopted by the United States, and was based on the French Model 1763/66 Charleville musket.

http://www.servinghistory.com/topics/Model_1795_Musket

http://www.ambroseantiques.com/flongarms/1795.htm

[Black Powder Doc]

You know, I've been thinking the same thing, but the more I look it over, the more I wonder. For example, while on the phone with another friend, I looked it over yet again, and discovered that at some point, there was something attached to the bottom of the barrel about six inches from the end, and again about six inches from where the stock ends. My guesses are either where the barrel hooked into the stock, or something of that nature (I'm not entirely certain what a Springfield 1795 looks like taken apart, but I'm willing to wager the bottom of the barrel is flush like the 1861), or perhaps they were ramrod hoops for after it was "civilianized". I'm really just not certain. And, of course, I'm very curious as to what all the markings mean.

Edit: And, of course, once I figure out just what I have here, the next question is, "What do I do with it?" The barrel and nipple are clear, but I can't really take the nipple off the barrel (it seems rather stuck in), and I can't take the lock out. Do I get the barrel re-lined and attempt to use it in smoothbore matches? Do I try to repair it as best I can and leave it as a nice conversation piece? Or do I just leave it as it is and hang it over a mantel?

[R. McAuley 3014V]

For example, while on the phone with another friend, I looked it over yet again, and discovered that at some point, there was something attached to the bottom of the barrel about six inches from the end, and again about six inches from where the stock ends. My guesses are either where the barrel hooked into the stock, or something of that nature (I'm not entirely certain what a Springfield 1795 looks like taken apart, but I'm willing to wager the bottom of the barrel is flush like the 1861), or perhaps they were ramrod hoops for after it was "civilianized". I'm really just not certain. And, of course, I'm very curious as to what all the markings mean.

Probably what you are seeing on the underside of the barrel and in the inside barrel channel of the stock is where the person who originally cut-down the stock and converted the musket into a civilian shotgun installed a barrel key (likely soldered to the underside of the barrel) for a barrel retaining wedge, to hold the stock to the barrel since they had removed all of the original barrel bands. Sometimes, two wedges (6 or 8-inches apart) might be installed just to increase the rigidity.


Edit: And, of course, once I figure out just what I have here, the next question is, "What do I do with it?" The barrel and nipple are clear, but I can't really take the nipple off the barrel (it seems rather stuck in), and I can't take the lock out. Do I get the barrel re-lined and attempt to use it in smoothbore matches? Do I try to repair it as best I can and leave it as a nice conversation piece? Or do I just leave it as it is and hang it over a mantel?
John Holland can probably best advise on the reuse of this musket, but I seem to recall in the rules there is a restriction on how early a barrel is permitted to be so to be used for skirmishing purposes, and have inserted the rule below. Many of the barrels made prior to 1816 were hand-forged rather than rolled, so will have a seam that could open up or perhaps even burst despite the fact that the barrel may bear proof marks. In your case, the barrel was likely proofed over 200 years ago, and the metallurgy could now be faulty. The Skirmish Rules (Jan 2008) state:

14.4 PROHIBITED ARMS
The use of any firearm employing exposed loaded chambers which must be held so that portions of the body of the competitor, other competitors, or spectators are in the line of fire of unfired chambers is prohibited. Also prohibited from use in N-SSA competition is any US smoothbore musket utilizing a barrel manufactured for a model of firearm prior to the model of 1816. Reproductions of smoothbore muskets and barrels manufactured prior to 1816 must have Small Arms Committee approval.
Observing that the stock was also re-contoured means that you will have to make a visible splice rather than being able to hide the stock extension beneath the bottom barrel band location as others typically do. The stock may also be too dry and brittle, such that you may need to re-stock the musket using a reproduction stock. And since this barrel has already been converted to percussion using a bolster conversion, there's really not much chance of reversing this conversion to flinklock because the heat used in installing the bolster likely further softened the breech by annealling the iron. Also, because on this model the iron flash pan on the original lock was integral (one-piece) to the lock, you'd have to change out the lock too, not to mention reconverting it to flint. Certainly, if you're a millonaire, anything is possible. But best advice on this one is leave it as is, and display it above the mantle.