E & M BOND, Hooper Square, London

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

I recently had a 24 gauge half stocked English fowler in the shop for re-conversion to flint.  the name engraved on the lock plate is E & M BOND, and on the top flat of the octagon to round barrel, is Hooper Square, London.
Feltwad, or anyone else, can you shed some light on this maker?

[mr. no gold]

Pretty gun and fine job of reconversion which well befits the gun. I have nothing to add about who Bond was, but would like to say that I have a very nice iron barrel blunderbuss, (with top mount, spring bayonet) and saw another go to auction at Little Johns, a year or so ago. The latter had a brass barrel and belonged upon my wall, but the funds were lacking. Also a dealer friend had a great Bond pistol which I had to pass on for the reason stated above.
I do hope that Feltwad will comment and give us some history about this fine gunmaker.
Dick

[Daryl]

Bond - perhaps same family, made double guns, rifle, perhaps smooth as well in the mid to later 1800's.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

When I was a Mountie stationed on the Queen Charlotte Islands, off the west coast of BC, the Corporal i/c had a nice double twelve gauge in percussion that was by Bond.  I expect that there were many smiths named Bond over the years in England.

[smart dog]

Hi Taylor,
Very nice gun.  My source for the following information is Blackmore's "Gunmakers of London" so I am sure others will know a lot more.  Based on Blackmore's book, your gun is a bit of an enigma.  There were a number of "Bonds" working in London and your gun may have been built by Edward Philip Bond who finished his apprenticeship in 1842.  He partnered with his uncle William Thomas Bond and sold guns with the name E. & W. Bond between 1845-1861 at the Hooper Square address.  Your gun certainly appears to be an earlier piece, which creates the enigma plus there is no "M" Bond listed by Blackmore.  However, Williams grandfather was Edward Bond of London who died in 1790 and his wife, Mary, continued the business until 1794 when her son Philip, William's father, took over.  They were not located at Hooper Square.  I wonder if the gun was made near the time of Edward's death and included Mary's initial in the name?  Later E. & W. Bond converted it to percussion and added the Hooper Square address?   Blackmore does not list any other Bonds at Hooper Square.  I would certainly think that any guns built by the Bonds at Hooper Square would have been percussion guns but  occasionally a flintlock might have been requested in the 1840's.  They also worked for the East India and Hudson's Bay Companies.  Perhaps they made flint guns for that trade late in the century.

dave   

[T*O*F]

Taylor,
I find no E&M Bond and only one firm at Hoopers Square.

Bond, Edward and Philip, 1774-1865
Edward Bond was apprenticed to Samuel Blanckley on 10 april 1746 and granted the freedom of the Gunmakers Company on 17 June 1754.  He was in business at 59 Lombard Street from 1774 to 1794, becoming master of the Gunmakers Company in 1780.  He was succeeded by Philip Bond, William Bond continued the same business at the same address from 1810 to 1846 with workshops at 31 Nicholas Lane.

Philip Bond was also working at 45 Cornhill from 1800 to 1816, and then Edward J. Bond is shown from 1820 to 1826.  From 1826 to 1854 the firm was managed by E and W Bond and thereafter continued at 142 Leadenhall Street until 1859.  The firm also had premises at Hoopers Square, Goodmans Field from 1851 to 1865.

This is the only reference I have for the Hoopers Square address and none of the numerous Bonds listed have names that begin with M.  Perhaps you viewed it upside down and it was actually E&W Bond. 

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

Those are fabulous reference studies, my friends, and I thank you both very much for the information.  

I am sure the gun was converted in North America, or at least by a person with only a particle of the skill of the Bonds.  The drum was poorly made, and the removal of the pan and fence - a disaster.  They filed away much of the engraving behind and under the pan, and I only guessed at "M" - it could very well have been a "W".  All the holes where flint apparatus screws had been were filled with riveted steel.
The client is not particularly a student of firearms, and wanted me to make the fowler shootable, which it certainly is now.

I removed the drum from the patent breech plug, and found it to be .400" diameter  x 20 tpi.  I made the new liner 7/16"x 20 with a little countersink.  The powder channel was less than 3/16" in diameter through from the bore to the back end, so I opened it up with a 5/16" end mill, and while I had it in the lathe, I gently recut the circular cone at the end of the threads, removing the darkened iron and polishing bright.  The outside of the barrel has its original finish, while the inside had some rust and dark spots.  However, it cleaned up admirably with just abrasive cloth on a drill turned rod, fed from the breech.  It loads nicely, and more importantly, it cleans easily.
We didn't have a lot of time for pattern testing but the preliminary work shows much promise.  At 25 yards, we are getting 84% patterns in a 30" circle, with 50 grains FFg GOEX, 1 "A" (1/8" hard card) wad, a gob of spit down the bore, 1/3 of a "C" (fibre) wad, the equivalent volume (3/4 oz.) of 7 1/2 shot, and one thin "B" over shot wad.  It's very pleasant to shoot this little 24 gauge, and it'll be murder on grouse.

Thanks again for the insight into this darling's history.

[whitebear]

Bond, E&M Bond,  I'm sorry but I coulden't resist.