Original Item: Only One Available. The Springfield Model 1812 Musket was a .69 caliber, flintlock musket designed and manufactured by the Springfield Armory. In the years after the War of 1812, due to deficiencies perceived in the model 1795, the U.S. wanted them quickly replaced, and so also contracted out various orders to gun manufacturers of the time.

On July 18th 1812 ELI WHITNEY received a U.S. Government Order for 15,000 Flintlock Muskets, to be delivered at a rate of 1,500 units per year for the next 10 years. To avoid confusion with his existing Contracts with the State of New York and others, he marked these muskets, at least initially with just N.HAVEN in a Scroll on the Lock Plates. Please see Page 96 of UNITED STATES MARTIAL FLINTLOCKS by ROBERT M. REILLY, published in 1986, a truly marvelous work, for full description and details.

In the 1850s, many of the Flintlock Muskets in Arsenal were converted to Percussion, which was a much more reliable and water-resistant ignition system. This involved all variants of the Model of the 1816. This helped to standardize the types of ammunition carried by the soldiers in the field. The easiest conversion type, often referred to as the “Belgian” style conversion, was to simply tap a threaded hole in the top of the breach of the barrel to permit the fitting of a percussion cone (aka “nipple”).

The outbreak of the Civil War in the United States created a large need for percussion muskets, as the number of modern firearms currently on hand was far short of what was needed. To fill this need, many muskets converted to percussion in the 1840s-1850s were pressed back into service.

This is almost certainly what happened with this musket, which was converted to percussion at arsenal some time before the Civil War. The mounting points for the frizzen and frizzen spring can still be seen, though they are plugged, and the remains of the brass powder pan are still visible on the lock plate. The hammer is a 1842 type, machine made and slightly adjusted for the different cap location.

An extremely rare Musket from this 1812 Contract in fine condition, iron mounts and a very nice wood stock. It comes complete with the original ramrod, which is in very good condition. The barrel breech area shows rather extensive powder burn around the "cone in barrel" cap nipple cone, indicating that it saw quite a bit of use after conversion, very possibly during the Civil War. This has unfortunately removed any proofs that were present on the breech of the barrel. There is however a fairly clear oval LS cartouche on the left side of the stock below the lock screws, for inspector Luther Sage. He is specifically noted for inspecting "R. Johnson, Waters, Whitney, Pomeroy and Starr Muskets 1813-1836".

Condition overall is very nice, with a lovely matured patina on the metalwork, and the stock in lovely original condition, showing years of storage and cleaning. There are some gouges and dents, but nothing out of line with use in service. The upper sling swivel is still present, while the lower swivel is missing, along with the bolster, which was a separate piece inserted into the trigger guard on this model. We checked the lock action, and it is still fully functional, holding at half cock and firing at full. Really a lovely musket.

A very nice example of an early American Musket, most likely reissued for use in the Civil War. It has plenty of research potential and is ready to display!

Specifications-

Year of Manufacture: c. 1812-1816
Caliber: .69"
Cartridge Type: Ball and Powder
Barrel Length: 42 Inches
Overall Length: 57 Inches
Action type: Side Action Flintlock
Feed System: Muzzle Loading

History of the Model 1812 Musket:

The War of 1812 revealed many weaknesses in the earlier Model 1795 Musket. The Model 1812 was an attempt to improve both the design and manufacturing process of the musket. The design borrowed heavily from the French Charleville model 1777 musket. The Springfield Model 1812 musket arrived too late to be of use in the War of 1812 but would later become standard issue to regular infantry and militia units.

The Model 1812 was a .69 caliber smoothbore musket, with a 42-inch (107 cm) barrel and a 54-inch (137 cm) stock, and a total length of 57-inch (145 cm). The Model 1812 was produced only at Springfield: the M1795 would continue in production at Harpers Ferry into 1818.

The Model 1812 was produced in a quantity of almost 30,000 between the years 1814 and 1816. It was replaced by the Model 1816 Musket. However, the Model 1812 remained in service for many years, and was even used in the American Civil War, mostly by the Confederate forces. By the start of the Civil war, the weapon was considered to be old and obsolete but was needed to fill arms shortages.

Some Model 1812 muskets were later converted to percussion lock firing mechanisms. The percussion cap system was much more reliable and weatherproof than the flintlock system used on the Model 1812 in its original configuration.

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