Post by USS Constitution Museum

This Model 1803 Harpers Ferry rifle carries a remarkable story of battle, capture, and survival. Made at the United States Armory and Arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia, this rifle may have begun as a standard U.S. Navy weapon. But its later history is inscribed directly on the stock: it was “Taken from the Maintop of the USS PRESIDENT after her capture by HMS ENDYMION, 15th January 1815.” USS PRESIDENT, one of the six original U.S. Navy frigates, was captured after a fierce chase and battle with a British squadron during the War of 1812. British Midshipman William Nelson Griffiths of HMS TENEDOS took the badly damaged rifle as a personal souvenir. It was later repaired in England, given a new stock, and converted from flintlock to percussion cap. More than a weapon, this rifle is a witness to one of the final naval actions of the War of 1812 and to the long afterlife of objects carried from ship to shore, from battle to memory. ⚓ Credit: Federal Arsenal, Harpers Ferry, Virginia, 1804. USS Constitution Museum Collection. Mr. Sherman Morss Bequest.[1078.1a,b]