Hello all--
Now that I have my account back in order (I didn't even notice it was gone until I tried to post this reply), I thought I would add a few tidbits about Samuel Morrison and add a few questions that remain unanswered. Hopefully, this does not rise to heretic status.
I have been told by a reliable source that they are in possession of evidence that Samuel Morrison started his gunmaking career in New Hampshire or Vermont (I can't remember the exact details because the source did not share copies of the evidence, but I believe the earlier is accurate) and eventually moved to Milton, Northumberland County, Pennsylvania. If you look at sideplates on New England rifles circa 1810-20, you will notice a variation of the football shaped sideplate as a common feature. The other noted maker working in Milton, William Fillman, also used the football-shaped sideplate. I think much like Samuel Baum, there may have been two Samuel Morrisons working in Milton (there seems to be two styles of Morrison rifles--one looking like a Joe Long and earlier, less common examples).
Don correctly points out that there was an association between Samuel Morrison and Joe Long, who eventually ended up in Beaver Springs, Snyder County, Pennsylvania. Joe Long's family (his mother and father) eventually ended up living in White Deer Township, Union County, Pennsylvania (which is essentially across the river from Milton); however, the Long family, at the time of Joe's likely apprenticeship was not located in White Deer Township. The consensus guesstimate has always linked Long with Morrison in an apprenticeship setting in Milton.
If you buy the fact that Samuel Morrison (Jr., if there is in fact a Jr.) was working at the same time and apprenticing at the same time as Joe Long, I think it is quite possible that they apprenticed together, not in Milton, but instead in New Berlin, Union County, Pennsylvania. At this time, my records indicate that the Long family lived across Penns Creek in present day northern Snyder County (very close to New Berlin). Rev. Hugh Morrison was an active minister in New Berlin at the time and could have provided a link to New Berlin for Samuel. New Berlin, which served as the county seat of the combined Union and Snyder Counties (now separate), was a bustling community during this period and served as the hub of early cottage industries in the region.
Jim Renn's presentation at the KRA (which I did not attend but am quite familiar with the content) hypothesized that Samuel Baum, Sr. owned a gun factory in New Berlin, which provided jobs for numerous gunmakers in our region who later went out on their own or stayed loyal to the mass production of Baum rifles (hence the relatively large amount of Samuel Baums rifles extant at present). I think in this association, Morrison and Long linked up and worked together. It is quite possible that this is where both developed their style, which has an earlier New England influence with the football-shaped patchbox. Of course, there are quite a few Samuel Baum rifles, one with a New Berlin inscription on its patchbox with a style, including football-shaped sideplate that one would definitely say is a Joe Long without the Baum signature.
I fully realize that there is quite a bit of conjecture above, but there is no question that Long and Morrison had an association at one point, as limited as it may have been. The one question I have, is who made the handmade, forged sidelocks that are particular to Morrison and the Upper Susquehanna school? Morrison seemed to use them most out of the documented makers, so is it possible that he was the maker? Or, was there a blacksmith working in New Berlin at the time (or maybe even someone in Milton) that could have produced these sidelocks? I have taken a particular interest in these sidelocks, but am lost as to who may have made these parts.
Of course, Morrison had a ready supply of parts from the Pennsylvania Canal and he regularly used them. Deeds signed barrels are fairly common on Morrison rifles (no doubt he shipped them in on the Canal), but if the sidelocks were similarly shipped in, you would see similar examples on other regions' rifles. I have a tendency to believe that one of the makers of an ingenious blacksmith was the maker of the Upper Susquehanna sidelock, which did coincidently end up on several northern Pennsylvania rifles.
I certainly threw out some food for thought and wouldn't mind hearing your take on this subject, Don. If you hop in your Miata, I am a much shorter distance.
Jeff Spotts
