Had Rennie’s men maintained their position on that redoubt next to the river, they would certainly have commandeered the cannons and decimated Jackson’s line along the breastwork, probably changing the outcome of the battle. After a clash that lasted less than an hour, the British army suffered one of the most humiliating defeats in its military history, losing more than 2,000 men of its fighting force, including Maj. Gen. Samuel Gibbs and Maj. Gen. Sir Edward Pakenham. The American army suffered 13 dead, 39 wounded and some missing. Many of the British army’s casualties had multiple gunshot wounds.

Ross would earn $23.48 for his tenure of service in Jackson’s army serving from Dec. 16, 1814 to March 14, 1815. He died on June 19, 1835, and was buried in Girod Cemetery in New Orleans. The Superdome was later built on the graveyard site. His son James inherited the gun, and in 1837 had the commemorative engraving etched on the patchbox lid. In 1982, Robert and Linda Melancon acquired the rifle from the Royal Street shop of James H. Cohen and Sons, Inc., in New Orleans.

The victory that Jackson’s forces won the morning of Jan. 8, 1815, was more than a tactical one. It helped reunite our nation, restored a sense of national pride and served notice to the world that the United States would staunchly defend its sovereignty. It was an improbable, but smashing victory won with the Sheetz rifle and other American long guns, in the hands of patriots like William Ross, who stood shoulder-to-shoulder in the battle line of New Orleans.