The Pennsylvania Rifle
The US’s first iconic weapon and its legacy.
America’s fixation with firearms may have easily begun with its first mass-produced firearm — the Pennsylvania Rifle (1).
So-named for its origins in Pennsylvania, the rifle was initially used as a hunting rifle in the North American wilderness.
As war came to the colonies, foot soldiers found a particularly deadly tool compared to that of their better-armed British counterparts.
Unlike the smoothbore muskets used by ranks of Redcoats, the grooves within the rifle’s barrel allowed for better accuracy. British officers found themselves walking into the sights of sharpshooters hidden from view hundreds of yards away. Hence, the Pennsylvania Rifle was one of the first sniper’s rifles.
The Pennsylvania Rifle’s design and results, when fired, made it the preferred weapon of soldiers and frontiersmen for nearly a century.
Origins
The term “rifle” originated with the German word riffein, meaning ‘to groove’ (2).
The typical smoothbore musket was deadly in its own right but suffered from inaccuracy when fired at long distances. While the smoothness of the barrel could send a bullet downrange at high velocity, the lack of spin allowed it to go astray beyond…
