Scott - that is another great find! Thank you, and please keep them coming.
The connections between the various Moravian communities may have encouraged the Committees to talk to one another? Bethabara and Salem were familiar with purchasing rifle barrels and all sorts of goods from Lancaster over the prior decade, as you noted. Then closer to the time of this letter, the Christian’s Spring gunshop owed Dickert for a few barrels, and Dickert later owed the C’s Spring gunshop for barrels. Both Salem and C’s Spring seem to have been dealing in barrels to and from Lancaster. Your research has shown many arms and components manufactured at Lancaster, and the Committee there may have supplied other locations.
Eric, your memory is close. Here are a few tidbits from the southern arena. I think it was Andreas Betz who was good at barrel making, and Mueller not so much. Betz and the Brunner family may have known each other, or even worked together in Lancaster in the 1740’s, prior to his moving to Bethlehem. Further research might answer this question and give more detail on their trades and apprenticeships. Valentin Beck was sent away from Salem to a small nearby farming community in the summer of 1776, shortly after the Declaration of Independence was distributed. The town fathers hoped to present a neutral stance with Cornwallis and his army passing back and forth through the area, and shuttled the gunstocker out of town.
1766 Nov 21 “Joseph Mueller is in about the same old condition. Once in a while there seems hope for a real change, and the Saviour has been wonderfully good to him. He is apprenticed to Betz, but does not seem to learn much from him.” (Bethlehem Archives, letter # 1-222, Bagge to Seidel)
1766 Nov 23 “We have received the house-clock, 12 gun-barrels and door locks from Will Henry . . . Br. Betz was not quite pleased with the gun-barrels; he is a peculiar man, as you know.” (Bethlehem Archives, letter #1-17, Schropp at Bethabara to Ettwein)
1767 Feb 5 “Today settlement was made in full with Andreas Betz. He turned over a full inventory (might still exist?) of the tools in the locksmith and gunsmith shop, with a list of the outstanding debts, signed a Discharge in the presence of the Brn. Schropp and Loesch, and received about 13 pounds worth of tools with which to start business on his own account.”
1767 Jul 22 “Several days ago we hired a gunsmith who came through on his journey. He had a lame horse that needed resting, and asked for 14 days’ work. He is a single man from Virginia, an excellent workman. He and Jos. Mueller are making gun-barrels. He gets 6 sh apiece and Jos. Mueller profits much in learning.” (Bethlehem Archives letter #1-22, Schropp to Ettwein, Bethabara)
1775 Mar 1 “George Schmidt is in pressing need of money to buy iron; we will buy the 80 rifle-barrels which he has finished, paying him in cash.” (Aufseher Collegium Salem)
1776 Feb “Sir, As glad as I would be to serve you in assisting Mr. Hopkins in purchasing of Arms according to your request, as much it is out of my power; The Gunsmith who lived in this Town, moved from hence 2 years ago, and carries on farming along with his business at present. He also never professed the making of Barrels to any perfection, but as to fitting up Barrels for being stocked, especially rifling them, he is a good hand, tho’ he has no journeyman nor apprentice, & therefore never could undertake quantities to finish. The same it is with the Gunstocker here in Town, who has nobody to work with him besides himself.”
(Letter Bagge in Salem to Cary) The gunsmith was Joseph Müller, who had moved away. The gunstocker still in Salem was Valentin Beck.
