Don,
I bought the rifle at a sale in Lancaster Co., and the auctioneer also thought that it had some upper Susquehanna features. I liked the gun for a variety of reasons and thought that it might keep me occupied in researching its origins. The moon on the cheek piece has the date "1811" engraved on it, and that may or may not be original, but I would guess the rifle probably dates somewhere in that period. The incised carving is very nice, and I was especially attracted to the engraving on the barrel. I have seen engraving of this type on a few guns produced in the Snyder/Union County region, but overall, it doesn't "feel" like any other rifle I've seen or held from that area. I was hoping that the unusual patchbox together with the carving and engraving on the barrel would be features that members of this group might recognize and suggest the region where they think if might have originated. While I wouldn't rule out the upper Susquehanna as the area of origin, it is possible that it was made in another region as well.
