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THBPattern 1853 Enfield Rifle Musket with Old Capture Tag
About Seller
6270 Este Ave.
Cincinnati , OH 45232
United States
With offices in Cincinnati, Cleveland and Denver, Cowan’s holds over 40 auctions each year, with annual sales exceeding $16M. We reach buyers around the globe, and take pride in our reputation for integrity, customer service and great results. A full-service house, Cowan’s Auctions specializes in Am...Read more
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About Auction
LiveOct 31, 2018
Cowan's is honored to present the Magnificent Sword Collection of William Koch in its two-day firearms, militaria, and American history auction. Cowan's Auctions dawnie@cowans.com
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- Lot Description
Pattern 1853 Enfield Rifle Musket with Old Capture Tag
.577 caliber, 39" barrel secured by three barrel bands, no S/N. Blued and color case hardened finish, brass furniture, smooth walnut stock. Lock marked TOWER/1860 forward of the hammer and with the British crown at the tail of the lock. Breech with standard Birmingham commercial proof marks and a pair of 25 gauge marks. Contractor name C REEVES & Co stamped in the toe line of the stock. The cryptic mark CA26 is stamped in the wood behind the triggerguard. Ramrod is marked T&CG. Retains correct pattern 900 yard musket rear sight, front sight/bayonet lug, both sling swivels, ramrod (missing threads) and all three screw retaining doughnuts on the barrel band tension screws. Barrel and lock with matching file slash mating marks that mate them together, stock with different mating marks in ramrod channel. Stock cut and spliced under middle barrel band. A very old paper tag is affixed to the obverse butt of the musket and reads in two lines, in a lovely period hand in oxidized ink: " Captured in Zollicoffer's entrenchments/after battle Mill Spring Jany 19th, 62." The label seems absolutely authentic and has certainly been on the gun for a long time.
The Battle of Mill Springs, KY (known as "Fishing Creek" by the Confederates) was a disastrous defeat for the Confederate forces under General Zollicoffer, who was killed during the engagement. The poor weather hampered Confederate efforts as many of the men were armed with flintlock muskets and numerous reports from the battle specifically note the inability to use those guns in the rain were a significant contributing factor to the loss. One newspaper account of the battle, written only days later read in part "(The) Rebel force fled to their entrenchments, and Thomas waited until Monday morning to attack and capture or cut them to pieces, but rebels had crossed the Cumberland during the night, leaving everything behind them, without even destroying anything. " (taken from the Official Records of the War of the Rebellion ). This account certainly substantiates the abandonment of Confederate arms on the field of battle, which could have led to the recovery of this gun.
While a fairly small number of Enfield rifle muskets had been delivered to Western Theater Confederate forces from Great Britain at this point in the war, some documented deliveries did occur after the arrival of Blockade Runner's like Gladiator in November of the previous year. Caleb Huse's purchases of Enfield rifle muskets had started in the late spring of 1861 with some vendor's like William Grazebrook delivering arms to Huse as early as May of that year. Grazebrook's arms were primarily obtained directly from gun shops and small makers, and his deliveries were in small batches consistent with a less than effective procurement system. His rifle musket deliveries, which totaled some 2,320 "long Enfields" between May and December of 1861 could certainly have arrived in the south in time to see use at Mill Springs. Most of the other Central Government purchased Enfields to arrive by that time would have been part of Sinclair, Hamilton & Company contracts and would almost certainly have had Confederate inspection marks, particularly those second contract guns which were JS/[anchor] marked and inventory numbered. The Grazebrook delivered long Enfields were most likely not inspected in any way. This gun bears no inspection marks indicating either Confederate or Union use, but conforms in all ways to the typical commercial made P1853s imported by both sides and is devoid of any British military marks. The presence of the 1860 lock date further suggests acquisition from a retail dealer by a re-seller like Grazebrook. While a detailed analysis of the arms issued to the Confederate forces present at the Battle of Mill Springs would have to be done in order completely substantiate that there were Confederate carried P1853 Enfields at the battle, the overall appearance of the gun, taken in conjunction with known historical facts and the presence of the very nice label, make the attribution fairly likely.Good, untouched attic condition. Metal deeply oxidized and well marked, lock mechanically functional, cone broken. Bore poor, rusted and very dirty, but rifling remains visible. Brass dark and untouched, wood crisp showing old haling marks and the previously mentioned cut under the middle band, likely for shipping purposes in the good old days of being collectible arms from sources like Bannerman's. Paper label with some damage and loss. A crisp, untouched example of a gun that was likely imported for Civil War service and that has a lovely old capture tag on the butt.Condition
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