GDG- 1841 Springfield rifle????

[cameron2 at optimum.net]

<<  I've had adult friends do the same. But I've never had anyone tell me the 
exact story of the gun.. Nor did they ever say that ancester carried it at 
Gettysburg, for example.  >>

I've got a couple of Gettysburg guns.  Not carried by an ancester, however.

<<  Further, I am of the understanding that at the end of the war the Yanks 
turned in their rifles when leaving the army. The Confs were required, as 
losers, to turn in their weapons as part of getting paroled.

I am sure that some soldiers were able to get their rifle home with them 
but I can't see it being that common.  >>

Union soldiers could purchase their musket and accouterments when mustering out.  Some did, some didn't.  My GGGrandfather's service records show that he paid for two muskets when he went home.  Wish I knew what became of them.

<<  The Army being the Army whenever possible they kept pretty careful 
records. If you get the serial numbers and can locate the records you ought to be 
able to trace the disposition trail of the weapon all the way down to 
regimental level when the individual soldier received his weapon. After that 
anything could have happened?  >>

CW muskets didn't have serial numbers.  About the only shoulder arms that did were cavalry carbines, or rifles based on carbine actions, such as the Spencer or the Sharps.  But even there, the surviving records are extremely limited.  I only know who carried my Gettysburg guns because the soldiers were kind enough to carve their names into the stocks.

Jim Cameron