Comments:
This is a handsome Tennessee rifle worthy of the Library. I wonder, however, about the attribution to William Douglas. Is it is signed W.D.? There were at least three William Douglas makers in Tennessee, two who worked in Cocke County and one who worked later in Campbell County. The cheekpiece on this rifle is more typical of Unicoi County which is further to the east than Cocke County - in fact it is in far east Tennessee hard up against the North Carolina border. The maker we usually think of as William Douglas was one of the Cocke County makers, and his rifles typically had long, pointed extensions on the trigger guard and sometimes the toe plate. It would be helpful to see pictures of the guard extensions on this rifle.
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Ray McKnight would probably describe this gun as being in the Soddy-Daisy camp, and the cheek rest ledge suggests that. Whatever its origin, or maker, it is a grand example of a mountain 'iron' rifle with great iron and wood work.
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It's a great looking Tennessee rifle...BUT...here we go again without a clear statement about whether the rifle is signed, or attributed by the owner. Any rifle submitted to us, if attributed by an owner, should have at least a couple of comments from the owner to support the attribution. This is a great example of an iron mounted TN rifle with cast nose cap. But for a TN gun, it is missing an important photo of the tang...which is a major design element on many TN rifles, and the rear ramrod pipe, which at times can be a major TN identifying element. It's a good rifle for the virtual museum, but it deserves a little more explanation (maker attributed?) and photo coverage (tang and rear pipe).
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I would hesitate to describe it as "William Douglas" without seeing the guard extensions, tang and (hopefully) a signature. It does belong in the Library as a Tennessee rifle, for sure, its just a question of correct attribution if one is going to be made.
