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CONTINENTAL MUSKET PARTS PROCUREMENT Most of the American gunmakers did not manufacture all of the metal components of the muskets they produced during the Revolutionary War. They often stocked muskets usingmetal components made byothers. Some gunmakers could fabricate all of a musket's metal parts except, perhaps, the lock or the barrel, which would be procured from others. Locks and barrels were particulary difficult to obtain during the Revolutionary War, and these two components were the most difficult to fabricate in the small gunmaking operations that existed in America at that time. In addition, there was a growing demand for replacement parts with which to repair the ever-increasing number of service-damaged muskets so they could be returned to the field for use. Information on these arms is in Section 041, "Repair of Arms." The musket parts used to supply these needs were imported from Europe, fabricated at continental facilities, and fabricated byprivate makers under continental contract. Additional musket components were obtained by cannibalizing the serviceable parts from muskets too severelydamaged to repair. IMPORTED MUSKET PARTS 039.2 Included in the vast quantities of military stores imported from France were enough extra locks, barrels, and metal furniture components to repair and rebuild tens of thousands of muskets. There is a great deal of correspondence in the U.S. Archives pertaining to the purchases of components in France. For example, the May 26, 1777, letter from U.S. Commissioner Arthur Lee, cited in the section on French arms because it detailed arms purchases he made in Nantes, also included: 15,400 gun barrels for infantry [muskets] 8,200 ditto, large, for rampart muskets 6,000 short gun barrels, for cavalry Large numbers of musket barrels, described either as "rampart barrels" or "barrels for rampart muskets," were imported from France. The French Model 1717 and 1728 rampart muskets had the same length barrels asthe French Model 1717, 1728, and 1746 infantry muskets. All of these muskets had barrels about 46^" to 463 /4" long. This was about 2" longer than the barrels of subsequent French infantry muskets, beginning with the Model 1754. Rampart barrels were of only a slightly larger external and bore diameters than infantry barrels, and it 039. AMERICAN MILITARY SHOULDER ARMS, VOL. l is doubtful that the U.S. commissioners were aware of the relatively subtle differences between them. The term "rampart barrels" probably was used to describe any and all barrels of the then-obsolete models of infantry and rampart muskets made before the mid-1750s. The useofthis term mayhave disguised the fact that many of these barrels were over fifty years old at the time of the American Revolution. The known importations of musketparts for continental use were as follows: March 24, 1777: The American ship Sally arrived at Philadelphia carrying 1,500 gun locks. January 26, 1778: Four thousand gun locks were shipped from Amsterdam in the Netherlands, on board the Christina,to the port ofNantes. These locks were destined for the United States, but it is not known what ship ultimately delivered them. August 26, 1780: Fourteen chests of gun mountings and seven casks of gun locks and mountings were received at Philadelphia. They had been brought on the frigate Deane, which is believed to have been one of the ships outfitted in France by the U.S. commissioners there. April 28, 1780: The ship Batchelor delivered 1,802 bayonets to Philadelphia. December 1, 1780: Twenty-nine chests, each containing ninety rampart barrels, were shipped on board the U.S. ship Marie from Nantes. This shipment arrived in America sometime between March 1 and April 11, 1781, when Colonel Timothy Pickering of the Quartermaster General's Office wrote that the following had been received from Nantes (including the barrels imported on the Marie): Total 178 chests, each with 90 rampart musket barrels 16,020 63 chests, each with 550 locks 34,650 May 6, 1783: The U.S. frigate America delivered 6,335 bayonets. From the preceding information, which is far from complete, it is apparent that over 40,000 locks were imported during the 1778—1781 period, as well as substantial quantities of barrels and furniture. MUSKET PARTS FABRICATED AT CONTINENTAL, FACILITIES 039.5 The following facilitieswere established and operated by the authority of the Continental Congress. CONTINENTAL GUNLOCK MANUFACTORY 039.52 The Continental Gunlock Manufactory, located in Trenton, NewJersey,was fabricating locks prior to May 1776 and possiblyas early as the beginning of the 142 [3.134.81.206] Project MUSE (2024...

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