Rustycannon
Cadet
- Joined
- Jan 10, 2016
- Location
- Gettysburg, PA
Folks,
I signed up for a Gettysburg ‘Association of Licensed Battlefield Guides’ Seminar the weekend of April 8th and 9th… “Wearing the Green: Hiram Berdan and his Elite Union Sharpshooters” which caused me to dust off (not really) my Sharps New Model 1859 Rifle (serial #39869) and peruse some material I had on Sharps Rifles.
I have always been under the impression that the Berdan Sharps Rifles were in the serial number range of 54,000 to 57,000… plus or minus. Re-reading Frank Sellers book (Sharps Firearms), I noticed that he indicates “Most of the Sharpshooters’ rifles (1,500) were issued without set triggers or special finishes. They were New Model 1859 riles with 30-inch barrels. Their serial number range is from 35,000 to 57,000, with a scattered few above this.” Something I also apparently missed in Coates & MacAulay’s book (Civil War Sharps Carbines and Rifles) was a blip indicating “A little-known fact on the Berdan rifles is that the pin punch mark found in the inside cover of the patchbox is the final inspection and approval mark made by John Taylor.
I started to search the Internet and in addition to getting some very annoying Ad-Ware… I found a blip on http.www.berdansharpshooter.org/sharps.htm that indicates “serial range 39573-40872: This is a second range which is believed to have consisted of a few rifles that were ‘on hand’ at the beginning of the Berdan contract and were used to begin filling Berdan’s order. They may have been single triggers that were replaced with double triggers. Some rifles exist in this range, but do not have the ‘J.T.’ inspector mark or do they fit the profile of a Berdan special order rifle. No documented rifles exist and is estimated that less than 25 rifles in this serial number range may have been produced.” The information also indicates that Army inspector John Taylor and others were borrowed from the Colt factory and inspected the 2,000 special order Berdan Sharps Rifles and his inspector mark was a ‘JT’ cartouche on the buttstock and/or a ‘T’ on the barrel at the breech.
My Internet search also identified several Sharps Rifles with double set triggers that were previously for sale (in the 54,000+ serial number range) that have this pin punch mark in the inside cover of the patchbox. Some have the ‘JT’ cartouche.
My Sharps Rifle serial number 39869 has a pin punch mark inside the cover of the patchbox but only has a single trigger. It has a 30 inch barrel, is fitted for a socket bayonet and has all the standard Sharps markings. The sight appears to be graduated to either 700 or 800 yards. No cartouche is visible but numerous other apparent inspector markings are… including a ‘T’ on the inside of the lock.
My quest for assistance… can anyone point me to any additional information regarding identifying possible Berdan Sharps Rifles with serial numbers earlier than 54,000? My research also indicated that Sharps Rifles either assigned to or initially earmarked for Berdan’s Sharpshooters were subsequently utilized by others.
It would be too much to hope for a Berdan Rifle but… also nice to know some background including who may have inspected the Rifle.
Thanks!
Ed K.
I signed up for a Gettysburg ‘Association of Licensed Battlefield Guides’ Seminar the weekend of April 8th and 9th… “Wearing the Green: Hiram Berdan and his Elite Union Sharpshooters” which caused me to dust off (not really) my Sharps New Model 1859 Rifle (serial #39869) and peruse some material I had on Sharps Rifles.
I have always been under the impression that the Berdan Sharps Rifles were in the serial number range of 54,000 to 57,000… plus or minus. Re-reading Frank Sellers book (Sharps Firearms), I noticed that he indicates “Most of the Sharpshooters’ rifles (1,500) were issued without set triggers or special finishes. They were New Model 1859 riles with 30-inch barrels. Their serial number range is from 35,000 to 57,000, with a scattered few above this.” Something I also apparently missed in Coates & MacAulay’s book (Civil War Sharps Carbines and Rifles) was a blip indicating “A little-known fact on the Berdan rifles is that the pin punch mark found in the inside cover of the patchbox is the final inspection and approval mark made by John Taylor.
I started to search the Internet and in addition to getting some very annoying Ad-Ware… I found a blip on http.www.berdansharpshooter.org/sharps.htm that indicates “serial range 39573-40872: This is a second range which is believed to have consisted of a few rifles that were ‘on hand’ at the beginning of the Berdan contract and were used to begin filling Berdan’s order. They may have been single triggers that were replaced with double triggers. Some rifles exist in this range, but do not have the ‘J.T.’ inspector mark or do they fit the profile of a Berdan special order rifle. No documented rifles exist and is estimated that less than 25 rifles in this serial number range may have been produced.” The information also indicates that Army inspector John Taylor and others were borrowed from the Colt factory and inspected the 2,000 special order Berdan Sharps Rifles and his inspector mark was a ‘JT’ cartouche on the buttstock and/or a ‘T’ on the barrel at the breech.
My Internet search also identified several Sharps Rifles with double set triggers that were previously for sale (in the 54,000+ serial number range) that have this pin punch mark in the inside cover of the patchbox. Some have the ‘JT’ cartouche.
My Sharps Rifle serial number 39869 has a pin punch mark inside the cover of the patchbox but only has a single trigger. It has a 30 inch barrel, is fitted for a socket bayonet and has all the standard Sharps markings. The sight appears to be graduated to either 700 or 800 yards. No cartouche is visible but numerous other apparent inspector markings are… including a ‘T’ on the inside of the lock.
My quest for assistance… can anyone point me to any additional information regarding identifying possible Berdan Sharps Rifles with serial numbers earlier than 54,000? My research also indicated that Sharps Rifles either assigned to or initially earmarked for Berdan’s Sharpshooters were subsequently utilized by others.
It would be too much to hope for a Berdan Rifle but… also nice to know some background including who may have inspected the Rifle.
Thanks!
Ed K.