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What became of the millions of civil war rifle-muskets?

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Many were sold off as surplus to be sold very cheaply, much as Mausers, Springfields, etc. were....the diff. is that at the end of the war they were rapidly becoming obsolete. They were frequently bought as a very inexpensive all purpose gun, going duty as a shotgun, varmint gun, barn gun etc. and were very hard used. Many scrapped, etc. There were alot of them out there, but were considered of little worth and as all tools, once worn out, discarded. Luckily my granfather found a nice example of an 1863 springfield in the local hardware store for about ten bucks, and I own it now.
 
Thank you for your replies gentlemen.

Nowadays the word “million” doesn’t make the emotional and mental impression that it used to. However it is a spectacular amount when made tangible. Considering the million Springfields made domestically and 900,000 Enfields and 300,000 Lorenz imported, that’s a hell of a lot of rifles!
 
My wife's aunt has a Liege musket. Many have been discarded by uncaring people.
Long ago, when I was in grade school, we had "show and tell" in class. I remember one of my classmates bringing a long rifle that his father found in a local dump. Tossed there by one of those uncaring people. If it happens to one, it happened to many. Shame.
 
Many a rifle ended its life as a crowbar, etc. For generations, the family "meat gun" was a tool. When worn out, it was discarded. Back in the fifties, my dad would frequently be given old firearm relics, which (sadly now to think) he mostly scavenged the parts from and discarded the barrel and stocks. Only in relative modern times have we had the luxury and the wealth to "collect" things...be it cars, firearms, knives, etc. When I was a kid, you commonly saw " car graveyards". Rarely now. what wasnt salveageable was scrapped, the valued /intact are restored.
 
I have an 1862 Springfield I had a new barrel made I used for turkey hunting. Haven’t used it for 3 years don’t know what they are worth.
 

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Like already mentioned the military had a large number converted into cartridge guns such as the trapdoors for example. Some were converted into a cartridge rifle for a Canadian revolutionary group as well (Fenian Raids Canada). But many were sold off as surplus. Others were sold off as scrap to be recycled too. The soldiers mustering out could buy their guns for little to nothing too. Plus a bunch were sold or given to foreign governments too.
 
I think many that were in bad shape were parted/scrapped out. Stocks to firewood. Barrels to rebar. Bannermans castle reportedly held together with thousands of musket barrels as rebar. Still falling apart due to bad concrete. There's stories about folks being killed when heating up still loaded barrels to forge them into fence posts and other reuses Then theres all the arsenal crates of barrels, locks and other parts I saw at the MGM prop sales.
 
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