Owner comments:
This rifle is signed J. H. Johnston and appears to be untouched as far as any repairs other than a period shim under the hammer. Someone at some point did clean the cheek piece inlay and took some of the finish from the wood. It is signed in script J H Johnston on the barrel and it has an Ashmore lock. The barrel is 41-inches long and is the original length. It measures to about .44 caliber and is slightly swamped, .998 at the breach, .916 at the waist and .948 at the muzzle. Length of pull is 12 1/4 inches.
Art DeCamp comments:
"That's a nice and very representative J.H. Johnston rifle. He worked in Waynesboro, PA. He was the father of the James Johnston who started and ran Great Western Gun Works in Pittsburgh, PA. I have a similar one and it is carved in the same basic pattern. His patchboxes were always similar and pleasing to my eye, at least. There is a period newspaper interview of J.H. Johnston published in the book "Gunsmiths of Pen-Mar-VA 1790-1840" by William S. Bowers. This book is pretty hard to find these days.
Art DeCamp"
(https://americanlongrifles.org/images/virtual_library/JH_Johnston/DSC_2240.JPG)
(https://americanlongrifles.org/images/virtual_library/JH_Johnston/DSC_2217.JPG)
(https://americanlongrifles.org/images/virtual_library/JH_Johnston/DSC_2218.JPG)
(https://americanlongrifles.org/images/virtual_library/JH_Johnston/DSC_2219.JPG)
(https://americanlongrifles.org/images/virtual_library/JH_Johnston/DSC_2221.JPG)
(https://americanlongrifles.org/images/virtual_library/JH_Johnston/DSC_2222.JPG)
(https://americanlongrifles.org/images/virtual_library/JH_Johnston/DSC_2224.JPG)
(https://americanlongrifles.org/images/virtual_library/JH_Johnston/DSC_2229.JPG)
(https://americanlongrifles.org/images/virtual_library/JH_Johnston/DSC_2230.JPG)
(https://americanlongrifles.org/images/virtual_library/JH_Johnston/DSC_2232.JPG)
(https://americanlongrifles.org/images/virtual_library/JH_Johnston/DSC_184422.jpg)