Rifleman Q&A: A Curious Concoction

Q. My husband owns an antique fowling piece, and we wish to establish a possible date range during which it could have been made. It is interesting to note that the barrel is from a Springfield Model 1816 smoothbore musket mated to a custom Atkinson lock and beautiful half stock. It seems doubtful that Atkinson is the maker of this piece, although it may be possible. We hope that you will be able to shed a little bit more light and knowledge about this gun.

A. Your husband’s interesting shotgun appears to have been fabricated by some circa-1840-’50s gunmaker using the barrel (and possibly the stock) from a U.S. Model 1816 flintlock musket. The sporting-style percussion lockplate bears the name “Atkinson,” who could have been the fabricator of the piece or perhaps just the maker of the lock. It was not uncommon during this period for smiths to specialize in various components (locks, barrels, furniture, etc.), which were sold piecemeal to craftsmen who used them to build entire firearms.

I checked several sources and was unable to turn up who Atkinson was from the period this gun was likely constructed.