Early Weapons of the American Frontier
by Conrad Coleman
November 23 2024
November 23 2024
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November 23 2024
Flintlocks first appeared in Western Europe around 1610 in France when Marin le Bourgeois court gunsmith for King Louis XIII combined earlier ignition mechanisms like the matchlock and the wheellock to make a weapon better suited for wet weather and less likely to misfire. The flintlock was widely used on the early American Frontier and used in the War of 1812. Gunpowder was poured down the barrel of the flintlock and a lead bullet (ball) was then rammed (pushed with force) down on top of the powder. Gunpowder was then poured in a lock pan, a hammer was cocked back and released striking flint, and causing a spark, which ignited the gunpower in the pan, setting off the gunpowder in the barrel and propelling the lead ball from the gun barrel. Flintlocks were the primary weapon on the western frontier until about 1820 when percussion weapons were introduced.
Percussion weapons were better weapons than flintlocks because percussion weapons had far fewer misfires and performed far better during wet weather. Reverend Alexander John Forsyth, a minister from Scotland, in 1805 created the percussion cap by inserting a fulminate of mercury into a small metallic cap, which produced a spark when struck with a hammer. In 1818 Collinson Hall was awarded for converting a flintlock to use a “hollow nose”, which connected with a nipple that directed the spark into the gun’s barrel. Loading a percussion weapon was like loading a flintlock; however, instead of filling a pan (priming) with gunpowder, a small copper cap was placed on a percussion nipple, readying the weapon for ignition.
Eventually the percussion weapons were replaced by self-contained cartridges where the lead bullet (ball) and gunpowder (charge) were assembled in a paper sheath. The paper cartridge would eventually be replaced by a metallic cartridge for liability and durability.
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ReferenceDave Rodgers (2021)
Weapons of the American West
The Frontier American Illustrated News
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