Original item: One of a Kind. This is a truly amazing find, recently purchased at a local auction! At the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861 the Confederacy were counting on support from England for Arms and the tools to manufacture them. Unexpectedly, the Union quickly blocked the Confederate Southern States' ports, eliminating importation of the much needed Manufacturing equipment from England.

The war progressed into 1862 and much to the Washington Government’s surprise, the Confederates had considerable successes, including the capture of the Union Arsenal at Harpers Ferry. This achieved, they immediately transferred all the built M1855 Muskets together with mountains of component parts and most importantly, the Machinery to make them. Using these the South started their own manufacturing plant at the Richmond Armory, in Richmond, Virginia, the Capital of the Confederacy.

In short order production produced the RICHMOND PERCUSSION RIFLE, based on the Springfield M-1855 Percussion Musket with certain improvements including using a RIFLED 40".58 Caliber barrel which served the South until the War's end in 1865. The first "Richmond" percussion muskets had HIGH HUMP lock plates, which were made using the M1855 lock plate mold, designed to house a Maynard Tape Primer system. This meant the hump went almost all the way up to the underside of the hammer, and the first of these were simply marked "RICHMOND, VA", as the armory was not yet officially under CSA control. This changed shortly after, resulting in the TYPE 2 lock plate, identical to the TYPE 1, except it was marked "C.S." over the Richmond address.

It was found that unfortunately the "high hump" of the lock plate, left on to save machine time, was in fact a hindrance in the field, as it interfered with installing a new cap in a timely manner. To fix this, the Richmond Armory began filing off the tops of the lock plates, giving rise to the first LOW HUMP lock plate, the TYPE 3. Then, the original M1855 mold needed replacement, so changes were made that produced a LOW HUMP directly from the mold, resulting in the TYPE 4 lock plate. This change happened at the end of 1862, so by 1863, all C.S. Richmond Rifled Muskets and Carbines were made using the Type 4 LOW HUMP lock plate.

Our example has the Classic TYPE 4 LOW HUMP lock plate, NOT incorporating the Maynard tape primer system used on the M-1855 Muskets from Harper's Ferry. It is not ground off, but originally molded as a "low hump", and we have removed the lock to check to make sure everything is in order. The lock is marked C.S. / RICHMOND, VA on the front, with 1862 on the lock plate tail, as per the pattern. The font is correct and identical to other known examples, and the interior of the lock is also completely correct. We checked the lock action, and it holds correctly at half cock, firing at full. We did note that the upper lock screw is broken off, with the end stuck in the lock, which looks to have happened a long ago.

The barrel is the correct 40" in length and there are faint V / P / Eagle's Head proof marks on the breech left facet, which are correct for these rifles, especially the early ones. The bore of the barrel is quite worn, and measures out to about .597-.599". We checked with a bore light and there is no longer any trace of rifling, just past fouling and oxidation. It's fairly typical for Confederate muskets to have seen extensive use while in service.

The musket also looks to have led a somewhat interesting life, as close examination shows that the stock was replaced at some point, we believe during wartime. The left side of the stock has two oval CG cartouches, which indicate inspection by George Curtis, a Union Inspector who worked early in the war. The stocks for the Union and Confederate muskets were virtually identical except for the lock inlet, so this would not have been a major undertaking. At this point the rear sight was also replaced with a Model 1863 two leaf type with a sight hole for 300 yards. This musket has definitely existed in its present form for quite some time, with a matching oxidized patina.

We did note that it still retains the tell tale BRASS butt plate and iron barrel bands, and all bands stamped with the "U", which means they were very possibly left over from the parts taken from Harpers Ferry armory. The first Richmond Rifles used steel butt plates, but they had moved to Brass entirely by 1863.

Overall condition is very nice, showing a lovely aged patina on the metalwork, showing some wear and past peppering, which gives the musket a great service used look. There is no major pit rusting, except some around the cap nipple cone, where powder burn has corroded the surface. We can also see what look to be vise marks, so the breech plug may have been pulled at some point to clean out the breech. The cleanout on the cap bolster still has a good slot, but it is completely seized.

The stock is also in very nice shape, with a lovely color showing the expected wear from long use and having been through a war. We do not see any major repairs or damage, however there is definitely a lot of chipping and some slivers missing on the bottom of the fore stock along the edge of the ramrod channel. There is also a crack running from the lower lock screw to the barrel breech area, a very common place to see these. Both sling swivels are present and move easily, and the original tulip head iron ramrod without an enlarged shank is still present under the barrel, and in good shape.

A fantastic and interesting example of a C.S. Richmond Type 4 "Low Hump" percussion rifle, reworked during the war to see additional service. This would make a great addition to any U.S. Civil war firearms collection. Ready to research and display!

Specifications-

Year of Manufacture: 1862 - Stock replaced later
Caliber: .58"
Cartridge Type: Minié Ball and Powder
Barrel Length: 40 Inches
Overall Length: 56 Inches
Action type: Side Action Lock
Feed System: Muzzle Loaded

NOTE: International orders of antique firearms MUST be shipped using UPS WW Services (courier). USPS Priority Mail international will not accept these. International customers should always consult their country's antique gun laws prior to ordering.