Club-butt fowlers are a bit off to the side of the focus here, but I want to share some thoughts and perhaps promote discussion about a group of guns attributed to New England, that appear to be related.
Guns 1 and 2 There are 2 early fowlers (CB-6 and CB-7) in Tom Grinslade’s book, Flintlock Fowlers, in the club-butt section, that are closely related. CB-6 and CB-7 share features including dual cheekpieces, unusual nautilus shell-like carving, near identical tang carving, and elongated nosecaps attached directly to the barrel by a pin through the front underlug. Sideplates are very similar and have silver inlays or thin silver overlays soldered to the brass sideplates. CB-6 appears to be stocked in American walnut to me, but it could be cherry. CB-7 is stocked in curly maple.
Wester White’s newly released book, Historic Arms of Early New York, 1640 to 1850, also illustrates these 2 guns. Wes White’s S2.15 = Grinslade’s CB6 =, and Wes White’s S2.16 = Grinslade’s CB-7.
Here are some pictures of CB-6
Gun 3 Recently, DaveM shared a short colonial musket with the hallmark nosecap shared by CB-6 and -7, but with no cheekpieces and quite different carving of the buttstock. The sideplate is not reminiscent of sideplates on CB-6 and -7. Here is DaveM’s post:
https://americanlongrifles.org/forum/index.php?topic=82012.msg806747#msg806747 This gun is stocked in curly maple. Based on the nosecap, symmetry of carving on left and right sides, and tang carving, I propose it is closely related to the 2 guns above.
Gun 4 Wes White's book showed a spectacular smooth rifle which has carving around the comb almost identical to Gun 3 above. Tang carving is like the 3 guns above. Unusual features include an inlaid brass “death mask” on the barrel, rifle style guard of quite early form, a rifle-like cheekpiece that fell off (it was glued on and doweled), and a cool buttplate with a comb extension featuring a dragon head eating the buttplate tang extension. The buttplate has engraving of a folksy form such as we might find on powder horns, and in script, “W Wood”, and “1744”. White suggested this W Wood was a NY gunsmith listed in a compilation by R. H Blackburn. We normally view such early dates with great skepticism.
Gun 5 is at auction here
https://live.amoskeagauction.com/lot-details/index/catalog/122/lot/86176/Very-Fine-Unmarked-Club-Butt-Buccaneer-Long-Fowler?url=%2Fauctions%2Fcatalog%2Fid%2F122%3Flotnum%3D364#mz-expanded-view-103043114147 . This gun appears to be later based on the lock marked T Ketland and Co. It shares the common nosecap form and like Gun 4 above, has a “death mask” barrel inlay. The sideplate is shaped and engraved similarly to CB-6 and -7.
Some pictures
Altogether, it seems we have a set of related guns likely made in the same shop, and possibly by the same hand, spanning at least 1770 (Tom Grinslade's estimate for CB-6) to 1790 (proposed date for Gun 5 at Amoskeag auction based on the T Ketland lock). I don't know what to make of the 1744 date for gun 4, but the profile sure looks like a HVF of 1760's, with an early rifle style guard we'd be expecting to find on a pre-1770 rifle. The maker(s) used curly maple, cherry, and possibly walnut, multiple carving tyles (all unusual), and several architectures.
Thoughts?
