This rifle musket shows it saw service and on the bottom of the stock forward of the triggerguard bears a “Q” final inspection stamp of the Confederate Cleaning and Recovery (“C&R”) service. The particular inspector has not been identified, but the mark seems one definitely applied as it passed out of the Richmond Arsenal/ Artillery Workshop on the way to reissue to a Confederate soldier. CS Ordnance teams, aided by some civilians, gathered some 200,000 firearms from battlefields, mostly in the eastern theatre, where Lee’s victories left them in possession of the field, and another 50,000 or so were turned in by CS units. These went largely to CS facilities at Danville, Staunton, Lynchburg, and Richmond. Only in recent years have collectors come to understand the system, the pattern and significance of markings, and the types of repairs that made these arms ready for Confederate soldiers in the field. See Steven W. Knott, “’Captured and Collected’ Confederate Reissued Firearms” for rediscovered history and details of these arms.

On this rifle musket the wood and metal were cleaned as part of the repair process and the stock shows no sign of its original U.S. cartouches. The lockplate can be clearly read, though the markings are rubbed and there is light pitting: 1862 behind the hammer and U.S. Springfield forward, beneath the bolster. A faint “V” of the V/P/eaglehead barrel proof can just be made out at the left breech. The barrel and breechplug tang show clear marks from having been in a vice during the C&R process. No barrel date is visible. The buttplate was clearly salvaged from an 1855 rifle musket: the cutout for the end of the patchbox door is visible. The barrel and sight seem to have been from an 1855 rifle musket as well, the sight being the 1858 type with a pin. It looks like the stock may been altered to accept a Richmond lock but then changed again for the 61/62 Springfield lock. A chunk of wood is out under the hammer and along the breechplug tang. The triggerguard shows inspection marks from a contract made rifle musket. The barrel bands have standard U.S. directional “U” marks. The ramrod is the standard tulip-head rod with swell to the shank introduced in the 1855 series of arms.

The wood has good color generally, but with dings and scratches from field use, the piece out under the hammer, and wear to the ramrod channel showing it has seen action. The metal has dings and marks near the breech, but is good forward with a mottled light gray and brown color. The bore is pretty good, semi-bright with deep rifling and small area of light pitting.

Real Confederate-used arms of any sort are tough to come by. Previously not understood and dismissed as “parts guns,” arms that went through the C&R process are now taking their proper places in Civil War and Confederate collections. This would make a nice addition to a Confederate infantry display. [sr]  [ph:L]

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