Most of the photographs on this page show an antique 1847-marked muzzleloading rifle stocked in curley maple that was made by the Bedford County, Pennsylvania gunsmith William Border and his son Daniel B. Border. Some of the photos were taken by an individual who made a contemporary replica of the rifle.
The following photo shows the entire right-hand side of this full-stock rifle.
The next photo provides a closer view of the rearward right-hand side of this old 19th century black powder rifle. The low comb and the belly of the buttstock are substantially straight, as is typical with rifles of the Bedford School of gun making. The buttstock mounts a unpierced four-piece engraved patchbox and terminates in a crescent buttplate. The deeply curved spur of the percussion hammer projects high above the stock.
The next photo is zoomed in on the patch box. The lack of piercings and the shape of the finial are unusual for a Bedford County patch box. The patch box screws are brass.
The following photo focuses on the patch box lid, which seems to be engraved with the local surname "Statler". You can also see from this photo and the one above that the buttstock has a quite long toe plate.
The following photo shows the signed rat tail percussion lock, which is engraved "W & D Border" in script. I am sorry the lock photo is so blurry; the rifle was behind glass. The curved band of engraving that is located just forward of the hammer on the lock plate is like the engraving on a William Border-built lock. The lock plate incorporates a short fence/flash guard aft of the percussion drum. Much of the outer periphery of the thickest part of the lock plate is beveled. As is typical on classic Bedford-style locks, a concave vertical slash-like decorative feature crosses the tail portion of the lock plate, dividing the thicker portion of the lock plate from the thinner tail section.
The curved set trigger and the straight hair trigger are visible within the bow of the trigger guard, along with the trigger adjustment screw. The difference in trigger shape facilitates trigger identification by feel. The end of the drum, or a vent screw attached to it, has both wrench flats and a screwdriver slot.
Here is a different view of the gun lock, but it is still a little fuzzy. Per common practice, the nose of the hammer telescopes over the nipple to deflect any debris that is propelled by the detonation of the percussion cap. The nose of the hammer appears to be well-aligned with the nipple.
The next photograph is the best one I have of the cast brass trigger guard. The metal pin that secures the rear of the trigger guard to the rifle stock is visible near the left-hand edge of the picture.
The following image shows a portion of the forearm of the W & D Border rifle. The rear sight is located near the rear of the ramrod entry pipe. The stock transition where the ramrod enters the stock is very smoothly done, and (at least to me) aesthetically pleasing.
In the following image, the original dated lock bolt plate is shown first, and then a contemporary copy is shown. The shield-like portion of the engraving is like the engraving on the lock plate on one of the Daniel Border rifles featured on this web page.
Visit to the Gunsmith Index for more Bedford and Somerset County gunsmithing history.
Go to the home page for more regional history.