Emmitsburg Longrifles

The longrifle was a distinctly American weapon developed on the frontier for accuracy and distance. Produced mainly in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia, it became known as the “Kentucky” rifle after a popular song commemorated its use by a regiment of Kentucky marksmen in the 1814 Battle of New Orleans. Emmitsburg gunsmiths crafted some of the finest longrifles of the 18th and 19th centuries. The work of master gunsmith John Armstrong (1772–c.1842) is especially noted for superior mechanical quality and decorative artistry.