Hectic Heaven

Not really homesteading related, but interesting

Last night while talking to my dad he was telling me about a muzzleloader that he was working on of a friend of his.... It seems this friends mom saw the barrel sticking up out of the rocks, and when she made her way down the hill she found this gun(this happened in 1954), the name on the barrel tells who made it...I have found out today he was born in 1809 or so he was one of the few black gunsmiths, There is more information coming to light but it has been very interesting... unfortunatley there is now way of knowing who the man was that died carrying that gun, Im figuring it probably laid out there for some 50 years.... amazing isnt it...

I took some pictures of the hardware part of the gun as the wood pretty much had rotted off, the husband of the women that found this gun restocked it so it does not have the original wood, but the lock(percussion) still works.  In  fact my dad has shot it a couple of times.. 

For those of you unfamiliar with muzzleloaders, they are the guns you put the powder down the barrel followed by the patch and ball, then you use a ramrod to set the load... percussion locks use a little round cap as in ignition source.

Its been a beautiful day here in the Rogue Valley.

 Pleasures:

a dinner date with DH

some nice visiting time with Dad

A very close family

Untitled Comment

06:15, 2006-Jan-24 .. Posted by OurLittleHomestead

How interesting ! Enjoy your date :)

Lisa

That is so neat!

08:19, 2006-Jan-24 .. Posted by horsefeathers

My grandfather ( or pappa as we called him) and my dad used to shoot muzzle loaders. We still have them, I think there are 3, plus some other really old handguns that have to be loaded the same way. I used to love to go out to our property and watch them shoot on a Sunday afternoon! My pappa made his own bullets, and made his own carriers for black powder out of cow horns. He also wore a full fringed deerskin outfit, he really looked the part! My step dad can also shoot the muzzle loaders, and I would like to get him to show the kids how they work, but I think my mom would have a fit if I asked!

I am glad that you posted this, it has brought back some nice memories for me!

Blessings,
Ellie