Nathan Stuart
2nd Lieutenant
- Joined
- Apr 14, 2020
Whitworths were relatively rare amongst even the sharpshooter's ranks. There were many other rifle types used. Just sayin'.
I agree with you. (I estimate the Confederacy used a total of between 60 and 75 whitworths in all theaters throughout the entire war).Whitworths were relatively rare amongst even the sharpshooter's ranks. There were many other rifle types used. Just sayin'.
Yes, there was a variety of other long-range target rifles used by individual Confederate sharpshooters; some of these were also imported and of high quality.
That's why I'm suggesting there's a good chance, not a definite certainty, that the described unusual rifle recovered was a whitworth. It could possibly have been another kind of well-made target gun, not a whitworth.
Given their rarity of use, it's unlikely Captain Weygant had ever seen a whitworth before to know what it was. But then this could also apply to other kinds of uncommon target rifles too.
So the certain identity of this rifle will remain a mystery.