Model 1816 Percussion Conversion

Description

Model 1816 Percussion Conversion

Soldier’s Name on Stock

U.S. Model 1816 musket altered to percussion using the side‑bolster conversion method. The lock is marked U.S. Phila and dated 1837. The .69 caliber smoothbore barrel bears markings including the letters U, L, and P near the breech.

Additional numbered markings appear on the side plate, trigger guard and stock, suggesting militia or rack inventory numbers. The stock retains oval inspector cartouches and the name T.W. Powell is stamped on both sides of the stock neck. No research conducted as of yet.

Both sling swivels remain intact and the musket retains its original button‑tipped ramrod. Arms of this type represent the large number of earlier flintlock muskets modernized for percussion ignition prior to and during the Civil War.

Converted Model 1816 muskets were among the most common stop-gap arms of the 1840s through early Civil War period. Originally produced as flintlocks, they were modernized through cone-in-barrel, side-bolster, or braised-bolster systems in order to extend their useful life after percussion ignition superseded the flint mechanism. These conversions are historically significant because they document the long service life of early U.S. military arms and the enormous demand for shoulder weapons in both state and national service.

Inventory Number: RIF 320