“This Is My Rifle:” M1816 musket
Unlike its predecessors, production of the M1816 was subcontracted to many private manufacturers. The markings on this example’s lock plate show it was produced by an “M.T. WICKHAM” of Philadelphia.
Author’s Note: This blog post is adapted from a short piece I wrote for the January 2025 issue of Leatherneck, Magazine of the Marines. It is part of a series of briefs on historic long arms, commemorating the Marine Corps’ 250th anniversary year.
Technical Data
Weight: 10 lb. 4 oz. (approx.)
Overall Length: 57 ½”
Barrel Length: 42”
Chambering: .69-caliber
Feed System: muzzleloader
Operating System: flintlock
Rate of Fire: 3 rounds per minute effective
Range: 100 m effective (point target),
300 m effective (area target)
Description
Identical in caliber and similar in configuration to its predecessors, the Model 1816 incorporated one major change to better suit it to American combat doctrine. Because older European-style muskets were intended to be volley-fired at area targets from a squared shooting stance, they came with relatively short shoulder stocks. The M1816’s stock is 5/8” longer and straighter to accommodate for a bladed shooting stance; the shooter would angle his body with one shoulder forward, making him a smaller target and facilitating more careful aiming despite the lack of a rear sight. Note also that the French-style flat trigger is gone, replaced with a more conventional curved unit.
Development and Service History
Leading up to and during the War of 1812, the nascent U.S. military and militias found themselves saddled with an increasing diversity of different patterns of long arms, between which parts could not be interchanged. To simplify the obvious logistical and training issues, the War Department adopted the Model 1812, soon refined into the much more prevalent Model 1816.
The M1816 was the first standard U.S. military long arm to have its production subcontracted to manufacturers outside the government armory system. Of the more than 118,000 made, many were converted from flintlock to percussion by Remington and others after the latter system’s formal adoption by the U.S. military in 1842.