There is a lot of good information presented here. However, I would strongly recommend that you check out Chris Hirsch's websites. Chris is a gunsmith (and banjo player, but we won't hold that against him...) in Sugar Land, Texas. The website,
Texas Sporting Rifles, has an eye-popping display of muzzle-loading firearms with solid Texas provenance. Most of them are in fact half stocked "plains rifles," from about .44 caliber to .56 caliber. His companion website,
The Texas Gun Trade, has some more information but is mostly to promote his book,
The Texas Gun Trade, 1780-1899. The book will cost you $50, but if you are a Texan and interested in early Texas guns, I would recommend it to you. I'm not even a Texan, but I have a copy and enjoy reading through it and especially looking at the pictures.
However, if you are a reenactor, you will probably need to be part of an established "unit" or reenactment group in order to participate in any events, and they may have some guidelines or even requirements with regard to your choice of gun. You may want to check with groups in your area before buying the wrong kind of weapon.
Someone above recommended a southern mountain rifle. I would not argue with this, and might suggest, more specifically, a Tennessee rifle. A lot of immigrants coming to Texas just prior to its independence were from Tennessee. In fact, Elmer Kelton based his wonderful
Sons of Texas trilogy on this phenomenon. These are the very books that got me back into muzzleloading some years ago, after a long hiatus.
Noah Smithwick, an early Texas pioneer who was also a blacksmith, gunsmith, and author of
The Evolution of a State, wrote that the early Texans carried "...
long single-barreled muzzle loading flintlock rifles, the same that our fathers won their independence with, and that the famous Kentucky brigade used with such telling effect in the battle of New Orleans..." (p.72). As a gunsmith, he said "
I fixed up many an old gun that I wouldn't have picked up in the road, knowing that it was all that stood between a family and the gaunt wolf at the door, as well as the Indians." (p.8). Smithwick's recollections spanned the period from the Texas revolution to the opening days of the War Between the States, and I think that last quote may well apply to firearms of the period that interests you. The point being that many of the guns on the Texas frontier were probably not in very good shape, many of them probably served more than one generation of pioneers, and if you want to present an authentic impression, you might consider getting a shootable "beater." It would not be inconceivable for you to carry a flintlock.
Someone suggested a Lyman Great Plains Rifle. I would respectfully disagree. These are great rifles, and a real bargain whether new or used. However, they are not really very authentic, under close scrutiny. If you are hanging around with Civil War reenactors and you carry one of these, you'll probably never hear the end of it. Those guys can be very picky.
You might consider a military rifle. I doubt an Enfield would have made it to Texas during the period that interests you, but lots of the M1841 "Mississippi Rifles" found their way into civilian hands after the end of the Mexican War. Good quality reproductions are abundant, especially on the used gun market. These rifles are sturdy, easy to maintain, and eminently shootable. I believe the Mississippi rifle was the last rifle issued by the US government that was intended to be used with a patched round ball. When you are not reenacting, it would be more than "enough gun" for deer or even a jumbo "barr hog," like Howie reported shooting recently (his threads on that topic, on this board, are well worth reading). The M1841 was originally issued in .54 caliber, with a fixed "Kentucky style" rear sight. As the War of '61 really got going, many of them were fitted with long-range rear sights and bored out and re-rifled in .58 caliber by the US government arsenals to take the standard issue ammunition of the time. Reproductions are available in .54 and .58, but in portraying a Southerner before the war, the .54 with the early rear sight would be the obvious choice.
The M1842 .69 caliber smoothbore would also be a possible choice, if you are not determined to get a rifle. As with the Mississippi rifle, many of these ended up in civilian hands, and a lot of them were used by both sides in the early days of the War Between the States. You could even go back earlier... Many old and/or foreign muskets were converted to percussion and used in the war. We have a relic 1763 Brown Bess in the family, converted to percussion and bearing Confederate markings.
I don't know what your budget is, but you have a lot to consider. Whether you pick a small-bore squirrel rifle, a plains rifle, a Tennessee longrifle, or some sort of military firearm, it sounds to me as if a used gun might serve you well, and would likely be considerably cheaper than a new one.
The Gun Works, out in Oregon, always has a good selection of used guns and they have an excellent reputation as a dealer.
Track of the Wolf also maintains a good inventory of used guns worth browsing. I would also recommend
Lodgewood Manufacturing, especially if you might consider a military type rifle or musket of the Civil War era. The proprietor is himself a gunsmith. I have dealt with Lodgewood and can recommend them. They have a lot of interesting used guns for sale right now, some with a lot of character.
Good luck in your quest! I'm sure we would all be interested in whatever you decide to get, so by all means keep us posted.
Notchy Bob
