Colonial muskets of the AWI

[One Shot]

Among the Colonials during the AWI, what would have been the most commonly owned musket by a Colonial?
- Brown Bess
- 1766 Charleville
- Committee of Safety Musket.

I know that Pedersoli Make a BB and a 1766 but does anyone make a good rendition of a CoS musket?

Thank you

[Monty59]

I say yes I saw one or the other on the Fort Frederick Market Fair do not remember who. I bet there are some in the forum who know !

Monty

[Shawn Henderly]

 Are you talking about a militiaman or a solider in the Continental army? Early in the war a privately owned smoothbore multi purpose gun would have been the most common followed by kings muskets aka brown bess because that was what where in the public armories. The Congress had people all over Europe buying muskets of all kinds but France was the most helpful with lots of obsolete parts and older pattern guns being shipped before they declared war on the british. If you join a reenacting group find out what they carry as a group but I think that a first model bess or a big bored smoothy with the stock cut back for a bayonet would be a good choice. Just stay away from indian junk. It will hurt less to buy something quality made and if you need to sell it you will likely get your money back.         

[smart dog]

Hi,
Early in the war colonial soldiers were armed with whatever was available in local arsenals or in their private possession.  Committee of Safety musket production was an emergency stop gap and not very many were made.  The most common firearms would be older long land pattern Brown Bess muskets, commercially made Brown Bess muskets, colonial made militia muskets mostly styled like Brown Besses, and old French muskets captured during the French and Indian War.  Some militia and volunteers might have civilian fowling guns adapted for military use.  As early as 1774, some colonies imported French guns.  More came clandestinely later in the war and finally large shipments arrived after France came in on our side.  The majority of those guns were older French models from 1763-1774 with the bulk being model 1766s and upgraded versions sometimes called model 1768s.  The latter became the model for our first Springfield. By 1778, most continentals were likely armed with French muskets.  Captured British arms both long land and short land patterns likely were the next most common. Militia also would have many French guns but British and other styles would have been common. 

dave

[WESTbury]

Among the Colonials during the AWI, what would have been the most commonly owned musket by a Colonial?

The place for you to start is by doing research into this subject. Jim Mullins book Of Sorts For Provincials covers muskets used during the Seven Years War and very probably during the Rev War. After that Billy Ahearn's Muskets of the Revolution.

Both of these books give the history and context in contrast to George Neumann's book which is really just a picture book.

[Hungry Horse]

Another point not mentioned is that the French primarily, but other sources as well, sent over Shipments of obsolete musket parts. Many of those parts were delivered to major firearms producing regions to be stocked up into working muskets. Spanish, French, Dutch, and others are known. These account for some of the musket with odd combinations of parts stocked in American stock woods.
 A friend owns a musket compiled of a vast array of early French musket parts. The lock on his gun is a 1757 model made in Maubeage that looks like a 1773 Charleville but has a brass pan, and no bridle for the frizzen screw. This I believe is a more likely lock type for a “surplus parts gun” since the 1773 Charleville was still in service during the early part of the American Revolution.

  Hungry Horse

[One Shot]

Thank you for all the help information. I was looking at it, that if I was there as a Militiaman during the AWI what musket would I most likely have acquired and or be issued. I believe that I would most likely have had a period rifle which I have a few as well as a Trade Gun of which I have read were also used by the Colonists. That being said as I do not have a musket of the period I was researching the most common types.

Since there were so few CoS muskets it would be safe to say then that I would most likely would have had a Bess or Charleville then.

The Bess's have sights on the barrel as opposed to the sights on the band of the Charlovilles. Having only shot a few Bess's is there an accuracy difference and would that have been an issue that they would have been concerned with then?

Thank you

[WESTbury]

The Bess's have sights on the barrel as opposed to the sights on the band of the Charlovilles. Having only shot a few Bess's is there an accuracy difference and would that have been an issue that they would have been concerned with then?

The Charlevilles did indeed have a brass sight on the front band. The Long and Short Land muskets had a bayonet lug on the top of the barrel at the muzzle, not a sight.

A small point to make, but in the interest of accuracy, a necessary one.

[smart dog]

Hi,
Here is an example of a colonial musket that I made.  It represents a gun possibly carried by a New Jersey militiaman.  The owner and I researched the components and styles and decided it would have parts salvaged from an old commercial muskets purchased by New Jersey shortly before the French and Indian war.  We used a maple stock of Brown Bess design.  The result could have been made by the Annelly family of gunsmiths in New York and New Jersey.  With respect to shooting, the issue for me is not the sights but the stocks.  The early pattern Besses and model 1728 family of French muskets have more drop at the heel and fit me much better than the later patterns and models.  The later guns tended had straighter stocks and I often find I cannot get my cheek down on them very well for aiming.
     

[conquerordie]

I might be odd but I've always shot my old 1763 Navy Arms Charleville better than any Bess. It's my understanding that the French muskets purchased during the war were issued to Continentals, not owned by them. I doubt anyone owned a 1763 or 1766 or improved 1768 or later French muskets in the colonies. Now older captured pieces from earlier wars, different story.

[WESTbury]

The October 2020 issue of Man at Arms has a great article on a Voigt Committee of Safety Musket that was in the collection of my friend Billy Ahearn. I had the opportunity to examine that musket plus several of Bill's 1740 and 1756 Long Lands.

Bill was a walking encyclopedia on Rev War muskets. I saw him give a 45 minute extemporaneous presentation of the fine old muskets at a 2008 gunshow in Hartford.

[conquerordie]

I was there for that! Use to stop by his table because he had a musket that was supposedly used by a soldier in Alden's Regt at the Cherry Valley massacre in NY. Just so happened I reenacted that unit, and he was gracious enough to let my father and myself examine it.

[lexington1]

Beautiful musket, Smart Dog! I love these old muskets and I would say that you perfectly nailed this one. I have found with originals that it is indeed a mixed bag about how they will fit in regards to the drop in the stock. I have a 1742 Pattern Bess by Jordan that fits pretty well and I can sight down the barrel without any problem. But I also have a commercial Bess by Wilson of roughly the same time period that is so straight that you could go cross eyed trying to aim it. Likewise 2nd Model Besses. One of the early 2nd Model Besses fits well but the others range from somewhat manageable to nearly impossible to get your face into. One of the Dublin Castle examples is so dished out in the comb area that it looks ridiculous, but it was dished out for the owner to try make it shootable.

Hi,
Here is an example of a colonial musket that I made.  It represents a gun possibly carried by a New Jersey militiaman.  The owner and I researched the components and styles and decided it would have parts salvaged from an old commercial muskets purchased by New Jersey shortly before the French and Indian war.  We used a maple stock of Brown Bess design.  The result could have been made by the Annelly family of gunsmiths in New York and New Jersey.  With respect to shooting, the issue for me is not the sights but the stocks.  The early pattern Besses and model 1728 family of French muskets have more drop at the heel and fit me much better than the later patterns and models.  The later guns tended had straighter stocks and I often find I cannot get my cheek down on them very well for aiming.
     

[WESTbury]

Smart Dog---Mr. Wilson could have learned a more than a few things from you.

[lexington1]

You got that right Westbury. My Wilson (top gun) was never as nice as Smart Dogs!

[WESTbury]

Very obviously a clever ruse by Wilson to confuse the enemy.

[Collector]

I think our contemporary sense of things, especially the inevitable march of progress, attributes entirely too much prosperity, too quickly, amongst these early colonists.  Life in these colonies, was very tenuous, at best.     

Here's what I call my Savannah, GA parts gun.  The British lock is signed and dated 1763, has British inspection stamps and was found with its original black English flint still in the jaws.  The smooth bore barrel mikes at .75 inches and the metal at the muzzle is uniformly thin. 

Photos, in no particular order.

     

[Mike Brooks]

Nifty. The trigger guard is cut down remnant from a Belgian/Dutch trade gun  ca. 1720-40.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

Years ago, I built a Long Land Pattern Bess from TOW's "Advanced Builder's" parts sets...I think they were parts from The Rifle Shop.  Upon finishing it and shooting it, I was not at all satisfied with the accuracy, using the bayonet lug alone for a sight.  So I cut a slot lengthwise in the lug and installed a piece of .080" silver.  It made all the difference, and I used the musket in smoothbore matches for many years, doing very well.  I sold the gun, its bayonette and a cartridge box Id made to a subscriber on this site, in a weak moment.  Now of course, the gun and the money are long gone....lesson re-learned.
Anyway, here's some images of that sight, 'case someone wants to improve the shootability of their musket.  I included some notes I made as to sight pictures using this sight.

[lexington1]

That is a great idea! In my mind I had always thought one had to choose between having a usable bayonet lug or a blade. Perfect solution.

[WESTbury]

Made rather simply due to lack of funds?  Made in haste because times demanded it?  Possibly both, but I'll let you decide those questions.  It was however made by a trained and skilled hand with parts that were available locally.  It's even possible that it was made in PA and brought into GA.  I prefer to think it was made around where it was found.
 

Gaylord,  It's a fine old musket. Almost every part has its own story to tell as well as the musket itself, you are fortunate.

Kent

[Collector]

Gaylord,  It's a fine old musket. Almost every part has its own story to tell as well as the musket itself, you are fortunate.

Kent

Kent,
 
Thanks.  Mike's reveal that the trigger guard is Belgian or Dutch ca. 1720-1740's sheds new light on a part I took to be English, so this musket's lineage has evolved.  I think we have a somewhat stylized view of what colonists had at hand at the outset of the AWI and I offered this musket as something of a counterpoint to that view of our early history.  It's a piece of history and intriguing to look at, though it's not quite the musket that would inspire someone to replicate it.   

 
 

   

[smart dog]

Hi,
I don't think anyone contributing to this thread has a stylized view of what the colonists had at the beginning of the AWI.  I for for one, understand completely that there was a range of muskets and quality which was available.  Everyone did not have "poor boy" muskets and not everyone had Hawk, Pomeroy, Doud, Hill, Annely, or Earle fowlers turned into muskets.  Moreover, Americans in general were some of the most prosperous people in the world during the 18th century at least in the Northern and Mid-Atlantic colonies.  It might have been different in the south, where plantation slaves could be farmed out for trade and manual labor, and white wage earners and small farmers may have struggled to compete. The biggest problems for colonial Americans were that they did not have much hard currency, the value of which varied among colonies, and value added manufacturing was suppressed by England.  In addition, most of the action during the early years of the war did not take place on frontiers but in well settled and prosperous NE, NY, NJ, and PA and was fought by colonists from those areas with the addition of some from Virginia and some well equipped troops from Delaware and Maryland.         

dave

[WESTbury]

I for for one, understand completely that there was a range of muskets and quality which was available.  dave

I imagine that, between the Louisburg expeditions involving thousands of Connecticut militia and the Seven Years War they were, as Dave points out, plenty of arms available.

Also as a related point, the New Englanders were very good at retaining their martial skills with their many pre Rev War town militia aka Minutemen organizations. I forget which author it was who stated that, some members of the Massachusetts militia units that decimated the British troops returning to Boston after Lexington & Concord, may have had more combat experience than some of the green Brits.
   

[smart dog]

Hi Kent,
Yes they did.  Ask yourself this question.  Why were the forward light companies of the Army's 4th and 10th regiments of foot marching to Concord under the command of several Royal Marine officers (John Pitcairn and Jesse Adair to name two)?  It was because those officers were some of the few in that expedition who had combat experience.  Gage wanted experienced men leading the way anticipating there would be trouble.  The British troops were mostly green kids.  The Royal Marine units, many with combat experience, did great service as a rear guard preventing a complete rout. That is why my next musket build will be a pattern 1759 Marine and Militia short land musket.  The marine musket and the pattern 1760 light infantry carbine were probably the 2 most important firearms used on that day by the British. 

dave