The newer Bedford County rifle pictures
The following set of photos was provided by Dr. Bill Paton. They document a signed percussion muzzleloader double rifle by gunmaker Thomas Oldham of Bedford County, Pennsylvania. This full stock 19th century gun is featured on page 101 of Kauffman's 1960 book "The Pennsylvania-Kentucky Rifle" and on page 129 of the 2001 Whisker & Yantz book "Gunsmiths of Bedford, Fulton, Huntingdon, & Somerset Counties".
The following image provides a general overview of the right-hand side of the Thomas Oldham double rifle. The full octagon barrels are 34-inches long and retained to the stock with keys, rather than pins. Each barrel has its own front and rear sights. The rear sights are mounted over the rear extremity of the ramrod entry pipe. This custom-made Bedford style rifle reportedly weighs approximately 12 pounds.
The following image provides a view of the right-hand rearward part of this fine double barrel black powder rifle, from the crescent buttplate to the lock panel of the refinished curly maple gun stock. The leading and trailing ends of the lock panel are pointed, and the trailing end fades into the shape of the wrist. The teardrop-shaped wrist inlay is duplicated on the left-hand side of the wrist. The comb of the stock is substantially straight, while the belly appears to have an ever-so-slight convex curve. The metal cross-pin that retains the rear portion of the cast brass trigger guard to the stock is visible near the tip of the patch box finial.
The next image provides a closer look at the engraved four-piece brass patch box and the engraved top of the crescent buttplate. The side plates of the patch box are unpierced. The Q-shaped finial has a single piercing. (The Q-shaped finial is often encountered on rifles of the Bedford School.) The relatively long length of the toe plate can also be seen.
The next image provides a closer look at the right-hand percussion lock, which has an engraved rat tail lock plate and an engraved high spur Bedford County style percussion hammer. The nose of the hammer is curved (the noses of some Bedford County hammers are straight). The concave forward face of the hammer spur intersects the convex top of the hammer nose, rather than forming a tangency with the top of the nose. The percussion nipple is mounted on a drum. The shapes formed by the lock plate behind and forward of the drum are very interesting. The shapes seem to form fences to protect the wood from the damaging effect of the flash from percussion cap detonation. The unbeveled tail of the lock plate is thinner than the remainder of the lock plate. Much of the thicker portion of the lock plate is beveled. A vertical concave slash-like element divides the thinner portion of the lock plate from the thicker portion.
The next picture shows the cursive engraved "T. Oldham" signature on the top flat of one barrel and the cursive engraved "Bedford" inscription on the top flat of the other barrel. The "Bedford" marking suggests that this muzzle loading rifle was made before Thomas Oldham moved west.
The following image provides an overview of the left-hand side of the Thomas Oldham double barrel muzzle loading rifle. This is the only photo I have that shows the portion of the left-hand side of the buttstock between the cheekpiece and the crescent-shaped buttplate. It shows an interesting U-shaped carved transition between the rear of the cheekpiece and the adjacent portion of the buttstock. The keys that retain the octagonal barrels to the fore-end of the full-length stock are also visible.
The next image provides an oblique view of the cheekpiece, wrist, and lock portions of the left-hand side of the Oldham double barreled muzzle-loading rifle. Each breech plug has its own pointed tang, and each tang is secured to the rifle stock with a single screw. The barrel signature is visible just forward of the panel for the lock. A screw connects the forward ends of the left and right lock plates. The cheekpiece incorporates an engraved elliptical silver inlay. The lower edge of the cheekpiece incorporates a straight carved line as a decorative element. The top of the wrist incorporates an engraved silver thumb piece. The fences/flash guards on the plate of the left-hand gun lock are considerably taller than those on the right-hand gun lock. I surmise that some of the height of the fences on the right-hand gun lock was lost to the corrosive effect of percussion cap detonation. The double flash guards on the locks of this antique firearm make them unique examples of hand-forged Bedford County locks.
The next image provides a view of the front of the brass nose cap and the muzzle end of the octagonal barrels. The right-hand barrel has 7 cut rifling grooves and the left-hand barrel has eight.
The next image provides a view of the bores of the rifle, showing that the right-hand barrel has spiral grooves and the left-hand barrel has straight grooves. This image also shows that each barrel has its own front sight blade.
The older Bedford County rifle pictures
The following images are from a pair of Ektachrome slides that were taken by a Bedford County resident several decades ago. They show the Thomas Oldham double rifle with a dark wood finish, before the stock was refinished.
The patch box on this side-by-side double rifle is similar to the patch box on the signed Thomas Oldham cap lock rifle that is included on page 132 of the 2001 book "Gunsmiths of Bedford, Fulton, Huntingdon, & Somerset Counties", and is included on an un-numbered page in the 2017 book "Gunsmiths of Bedford County, Pennsylvania". The patch box and stock are scratched in the general vicinity of the patch box hinge.
The following photograph shows the wrist and lock regions of the Thomas Oldham side-by-side muzzle loader. Note the sharpness of the upper edge of the reentrant shape at the front of the comb. Some of this sharpness appears to have been lost when the stock was refinished. The bow of the trigger houses a pair of triggers. Because of the adjustment screw that is located between the two triggers, I suspect (but am not certain) that this is a double set trigger (i.e., set trigger and hair trigger) setup that operates on whichever of the two gun locks happens to be cocked.
When the double gun was captured on the Ektachrome slides, it was next to another Pennsylvania long rifle made by Thomas Oldham, as shown below. Even though the gun in the background is out of focus, the unusually tight bend of the hammer and the dings along the lower edge of the lock panel of the stock prove that the gun in the background is the signed Thomas Oldham gun that is featured on page 128 of the 2001 book "Gunsmiths of Bedford, Fulton, Huntingdon, & Somerset Counties".
L. Dietle
See the Gunsmith Project Index for additional Bedford County rifle pictures.
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