The M1817 common rifle (also known as Deringer M1817 rifle) was a

flintlock Flintlock is a general term for any firearm that uses a flint-striking lock (firearm), ignition mechanism, the first of which appeared in Western Europe in the early 16th century. The term may also apply to a particular form of the mechanism its ...

muzzle-loaded A muzzleloader is any firearm in which the user loads the projectile and the propellant charge into the muzzle end of the gun (i.e., from the forward, open end of the gun's barrel). This is distinct from the modern designs of breech-loading fire ...

weapon issued due to the Dept. of Ordnance's order of 1814, produced by

Henry Deringer Henry Deringer (October 26, 1786 – February 28, 1868) was an American gunsmith A gunsmith is a person who repairs, modifies, designs, or builds guns. The occupation differs from an armorer, who usually replaces only worn parts in standard ...

and used from the 1820s to 1840s at the American frontier. Unlike the half octagon barreled M1814 common rifle that preceded it, it had a barrel that was round for most of its length. The 36-inch barrel was rifled for .54 caliber bullets. For rifling it had seven grooves. Like the M1814 common rifle, it had a large oval patch box in the stock, however the stock dropped steeper than on the M1814 common rifle. After producing the M1814 common rifle through contractors, the military decided to do the same with the M1817 rifle. The Harper's Ferry Arsenal produced a pattern weapon, which was then taken to gunsmiths to be copied. The rifle was built by Henry Deringer of Philadelphia (13,000 made), Nathan Starr & Co. of Middleton, Conn. (10,200 made), Simeon North of Middleton, Conn. (7,200 made), R. Johnson of Middleton, Conn. (5,000 made), R. & J. D. Johnson of Middleton, Conn. (3,000 made). Over time the rifles became obsolete, but they still saw service during the American Civil War, originally

s, most were converted to

percussion cap The percussion cap, percussion primer, or caplock, introduced in the early 1820s, is a type of single-use percussion ignition device for muzzle loader firearm locks enabling them to fire reliably in any weather condition. Its invention gave ...

for their firing mechanism. They saw service in the west, as far as California, where there were still M1817 rifles in the Bencia, California arsenal in the 1860s.

References

Bibliography

* Russel, Carl P., ''Guns on the early frontiers: A history of firearms from colonial times'', University of Nebraska Press, 1980, 395 p.,

External links

Page with a good picture.
{{USCWWeapons Guns of the American West American Civil War rifles Rifles of the United States Muzzleloaders Early rifles

See also

References

Bibliography

External links