Eli Whitney 1822 US Contract Musket 2nd Contract Dated 1835
Item #: AA3925
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This is a Model 1816 contract musket from the Civil War era. The musket was originally a smooth bore .69 caliber flintlock weapon that was produced under government contract by Eli Whitney of New Haven, Connecticut in 1835. Whitney obtained two contracts with the federal government to produce the US Model 1816 flintlock musket with the 1822 improvements from 1822 until 1841. The second contract was signed in 1830 and extended through 1841 for a total of 24,000 Model 1816/1822 muskets. This musket is from that contract, being produced in 1835. During the Civil War many of the Model 1822 muskets were converted from flintlock to percussion. This converted musket measures 58" in length with a 42" barrel. The barrel has a bright bore with no pitting or rust visible with a bore light and gauges out at .70 caliber. The exterior of the barrel has a smooth, pit free surface. The barrel still retains the majority of the National Bright finish, with some areas of the original finish being slightly muted. The three barrel bands have a matching patina. The barrel has the top bayonet lug applied, the front sight is on the rear strap of the double strap front barrel band. There has been no rear sight added to the barrel. The barrel has several stamps, TW for Thomas Warner, the circled P proof mark, the number 210 and MS all on the breech. The barrel tang is dated 1835. The lockplate, hammer, trigger guard and butt plate all have the same patina as the barrel and bands. The lockplate is marked with a crossed olive branch and arrow with U.S stamped over and E. WHITNEY under forward of the hammer and NEW/HAVEN/1835 behind the hammer. The action is very crisp and the hammer holds both half and full cock. The hammer strikes the nipple strongly when the trigger is depressed. The trigger guard has rounded finials. The rear sling swivel is still on the trigger guard bow, the front sling swivel on the middle barrel band. The side plate opposite the lockplate is unmarked. The butt plate has the US markings on the tang. The button head ramrod is still present and has the threaded portion still intact. The medium walnut stock is in good condition. There are the usual bumps and dings from normal handling, and shows no stress cracks or major areas of wood loss. The barrel and ramrod channels still shows very crisp edges. There is one faint oval cartouche on the left stock flat, but it is well worn and I cannot make out any initials. This is a very fine example of a rare early contract musket that could have seen service in the Mexican American war and then been converted for use in the American Civil War. It would make a fine addition to any US military long arms collection.
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