George Young Rifle

 This George Young Rifle recently came out of a collection in West Virginia.  Thanks to the owner for allowing us to handle this rifle and post a few photos.  We depend on owners of these old rifles to have material to post here.  

                                                                       

Flintlock 40 Inch 40 Caliber Rifled Barrel

                                                                     Stocked In Maple

                                                    Nicely Engraved Pierced Brass Patchbox

                                                                                 

                                                               Signed G Young in Script

This rifle was built by George Young in Romney WV circa 1830s.   George Youngs shop was on lot 17.  This location is on Bolton & Main Street, where Voit's Garage is currently located.  For more information on George Young and his rifles see George Young

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Joshua Good Gunsmith, Singer Sewing Machine Agent & Inventer

 Joshua Johnson Good was born in Albemarle Virginia in 1834.  He was the son of Jacob Good (1799-1881) and Lucy Wiggington (1799-1880).  His grandfather was Felix Good SR of Hampshire County. 

                                                                                   

                                                                     Joshua Johnson Good

In the 1850 census the Goods are living in Hampshire County,  Joshua is 16 years old and his father Jacob's occupation is listed as a miller.  In the 1860 census, Joshua is in Atchison, Kansas listed as a Gunsmith.  He is listed as a gunsmith in the 1860 Atchison City Directory.  In June 1863 there was a Joshua G Good listed on the registration for the draft in Butler Ohio.  His occupation is gunsmith, so I presume the G is a misprint.  In 1867 Joshua married Mary E Renaker in Harrison Kentucky.  In the 1870 we find him & Mary, with two children in Cynthiana Kentucky.   In this census he is listed as a Singer Sewing Machine Agent and Gunsmith.  In the 1880 census,  Joshua is listed as a Sewing Machine Agent.

Joshua was also an inventor and held several patents, including one for,  safety fenders for locomotives, autographic register improvement, improvement for plows & a machine for folding strips of paper. 

Joshua's wife Mary died in 1886, he died in 1900, both of them are  interred at Battle Grove Cemetery in Cynthiana Kentucky. 

 So now the question, whom did he apprentice to and how many guns did he make here in Hampshire County, or in Kentucky?  

The rifle pictured has a commode lid cap box on the cheek side, similar to a couple of  Benjamin F Shane's rifles.  Another candidate, is Evan P Ward.  The Good family lived close to the Wards.  J J Good had a son named Evans P Good, possibly named after Evan P Ward?  How many guns did he make while living in Hampshire county?  Finding a Hampshire county rifle made by Good would be difficult,  he wasn't here more than eight years after he completed his training.  There should be more guns existing while he lived in Kentucky, but we have not seen any.   

 We hope that more rifles  by J J Good will surface and please send us photos if you have one , we would love to see it.  Thanks to James Whisker for the use of his photo & all the help he has been to us.  BMS

Update 7/20/2024 Recently discovered.

Joshua Good percussion rifle and signed J G. The lock is a repurposed flintlock lock. The rifle was always percussion. 

                              

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Thanks to a descendant of Joshua for the use their portrait. 

  

Patchbox Sunday #3

           The following patchbox rubbings were taken from rifles made by  Benjamin Franklin Shane.

                                                                        

Benjamin Franklin Shane was a Hampshire County gunmaker on Cold Stream Road near Capon Bridge circa 1850.  For more info BFS.     

                                                    Hope You Found These of Interest.

                                                           Thanks, JDM & BMS...

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Patchbox Sunday # 2

The following group of rubbings  were taken  from rifles made by the  Lauck Gunsmiths of Winchester Virginia.  The Lauck family  were active in the gunmaking trade in Winchester from 1788-1875.  Simon Lauck was born  1760 in Pennsylvania and became a gunsmith while living there.  He opened his shop in Winchester in 1788 and died in 1815.  Several of his sons were trained gunsmiths and worked in the Lauck shop until about 1875.  Simon trained many apprentices and employeed journeymen gunsmiths that carried his style throughout the valley and westward.  Hampshire County gunsmiths, Frederick Sheetz and George W Glaze worked in Lauck's shop.  (1) Nicholas Chisler from Morgantown, Monongalia County also worked in Laucks shop. (1) Other Virginia makers who were at  Lauck's shop before going to other areas of Virginia to practice the art of gunsmithing, were John Sheets, Augusta County,  Jacob Funk and Henry Stair. 

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Hope you enjoy these images, Thanks JDM

(1) Van Pitman Research 

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A Scottish Traveler Visit With Zebulon Sheetz

 Zebulon Sheetz was one of Hampshire County's finest gunsmiths.   We have seen his rifles and we know them well,  we hope the following  will shed some light on Zebulon the man.  The following pages came from "Pedestrain Tour of A Scottish Emigrant" , describing his visit to Hampshire County in 1826. 

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This is a little hard to see, you may need your spectacles. 

In the mid-1830s Zebulon Sheetz family moved West.   Zebulon and his family were given a letter of dismissal from their church at Cold Stream to move "to any Presbyterian church in the West, whose neighborhood God might cast his lot.  “He was given a testimonial of appreciation of the high community regard for his church service.

BMS

For more information on Zebulon Sheetz O&Z Sheetz

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Our First Patchbox Sunday

 One of the best gifts I have been blessed with is a collection of patchbox rubbings from an old friend.  Fortunately for us our friend pursued this interest with vigor and we have several Virginia related images from these efforts.  The Opportunity to view and study these rubbings are a blessing to those who want to get a better understanding of rifles built in the Shenandoah Valley and surrounding areas.  The percussion era pieces by gunsmiths who apprenticed to and influenced by these same people that came before them can be seen in their work.  These rubbings gathered from the 1950's through the early 2000's are an affectionate study of valley pieces,  painstakingly made using  onion skin paper to garner these renderings.  We will try to post at least one or more each Sunday for a few weeks. 

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Simon Lauck Winchester Virginia

Circa 1800 

                                                               Rococo Relief Carving 

Simon Lauck Winchester Virginia

Godfrey Wilkin Shenandoah County

Cabinet Maker & Gunsmith

Circa 1800

Hope you find these of interest, Thank You, JDM 

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Wetzel County West Virginia Joe Young

 A man named Joe Young, a gunsmith by trade, and lately living near East Liberty, recently constructed a boat for the purpose of transporting his family and effects to some point on the Ohio River.  The boat was built at the mouth of Dickerson Run, and on Friday last was successfully launched. Mr Young and his family and all their goods moved in, and with the help of the good people of the vicinity of East Liberty and Dawson, the boat was pushed off and committed to the turbulent waters of the "Dare Devil Yough" and was soon gliding smoothly and swiftly down the river out of sight with it's precious freight...

                                       (Uniontown Genius of Liberty, 8 March 1877)

                                                                           

Joe Young was born in Connellsville, Pennsylvania 1842.  He moved to Wetzel County in the1870s.  Joe lived in Hanes Run.  He advertised as a gunsmith in the 1884 Polks West Virginia directory.  While many of Joe's rifles are utilitarian, he made some real fine looking rifles.  A few years back a very elegant heavily silver inlaid signed rifle showed up, unfortunately we do not have any photos of that rifle.  There is more than ample evidence that Joe worked for gunsmith J W Stackhouse, a gunsmith who worked both sides of the river, Ohio & West Virginia in the mid 1800s and by the 1870s was working in the Hanes Runs area. 

Joe Young died in 1918 of influenza and is buried in New Martinsville. 

Thanks to  Aspenshadeltd  for the use of their excellent Joe Young rifle photos & a special thanks to James W Whisker for the use of the photo of Joe Young and all of this research that he shared.

JDM & BMS

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