The Maynard breechloading percussion carbine was the invention of dental surgeon and firearms innovator Dr. Edward Maynard. Dr. Maynard is probably best known for his invention of the Maynard Tape Priming System, an automated priming system that utilized a small amount of fulminate of mercury, sandwiched between a pair of varnished paper strips, rolled up just like a modernday child’s cap gun. The system advanced the primers each time the hammer was cocked, and upon firing, the hammer cut off the spent paper. This system showed so much promise, and was so well thought of by the U.S. Ordnance Department, that the U.S. Government paid Maynard $75,000 for the use of his priming system on the Model 1855 series of arms. In addition to his tapepriming patent (#4,208, issued in 1845), Maynard received a total of 23 U.S. patents related to innovations or improvements to firearms designs.
The Maynard carbine best known to Civil War enthusiasts is the second production variant, referred to as the Model 1863 by the makers, but known to collectors as the 2nd Model Maynard. These .50 caliber percussion breechloading carbines were produced by the Massachusetts Arms Company of Chicopee Falls, Mass., circa 1863-1865. Slightly more than 20,000 guns were produced during that time, with the majority being acquired by the U.S. government. These guns are fairly common today and, since many were delivered during the latter part of the American Civil War, it is still possible to find extremely high condition examples that saw little or no combat service. However, it was Maynard’s first variation of his carbine design, known to collectors as the 1st Model Maynard, that is much more interesting and which has a .35 caliber 1st Model Maynard Sporting Carbine #2884. Well within the range of Confederate purchases, and more than likely a Florida purchased gun, as they acquired most of the .35 carbines sold by the Massachusetts Arms Company. Note the lack of sling ring and barrel sight, making this a “sporting” carbine.(
.50 caliber 1st Model Maynard Military Carbine #2323. Another likely Confederate purchased gun, possibly by Georgia or Mississippi. Note the sling ring at the rear of the triggerguard and the sight on the barrel forward of the breech, making this a “military” carbine. strong Confederate association.
Maynard’s carbine design was an innovative breech-loading firearm, that used a proprietary brass cartridge loaded with powder and a lubricated bullet that relied upon Maynard’s tape priming system for ignition. Maynard paid the Springfield Armory $116.37 in 1853 to produce a full-scale model of his carbine, and this model was subsequently tested by the Ordnance Department in 1856 with very positive results. The successful trials resulted in the 1857 formation of the Massachusetts Arms Company, established for the purpose of producing Dr. Maynard’s breech loading long arm.
The guns were produced in both carbine and rifle lengths, with 20-inch and 26-inch barrels respectively, offered in both .35 (often misidentified as .36 or .37 caliber) and .50 caliber. They were also produced in both “military” and “sporting” configurations. Massachusetts Arms classified a “sporting” barrel as one that did not have a fixed sight on the breech, while a “military” barrel did. The military referred to this as the “quick acquisition” sight. Although an adjustable tang sight was standard on the 1st Model Maynard carbines and rifles, some customers, like the U.S. military, preferred to utilize only the fixed “military” barrel sight. The primary difference between a “military frame” and a “sporting frame” on Maynards was the presence or absence of a sling ring on the rear of the triggerguard tang. “Military” frames had this feature, while those with “sporting frames” did not. In general, a “military” 1st Model Maynard has a sling ring on the rear of the triggerguard tang and a fixed sight on the barrel. These guns might or might not have the adjustable tang sight, and can be found in either carbine (20-inch barrel) or rifle (26-inch barrel) lengths and in either .35 or .50 caliber. The “sporting” variant usually did not have the fixed sight on the barrel. The sporting models could also be had in either carbine or rifle lengths and in either caliber.
The guns were finished with color case hardened frames and blued barrels. The butt was walnut with a case hardened iron buttplate and patchbox; no forend was used. The standard markings on the lower right side of the frame were MAYNARD ARMS CO. / WASHINGTON in two lines. Additional markings on the lower left side of the frame read MANUFACTURED BY / MASS. ARMS CO. / CHICOPEE FALLS in three lines. The patchbox door was also marked in three lines: MAYNARD PATENTEE / MAY 27 1851 / JUNE 17 1856. Early production guns are sometimes found with a paper label inside the patch box with the Maynard patent information, but it appears most later production guns did not have this label, or it was destroyed over time, as surviving examples of guns with the label are somewhat rare.
The U.S. Army held additional trials of breech loading long arms in 1858. The ease of operating Maynard’s design, along with its ability to function quickly and reliably, helped to win the Massachusetts Arms Company a contract for four hundred of their .50 “military” pattern carbines. These guns were ordered with fixed sights only (no tang sight), and specified the use of a sling ring on the trigger plate tang, rather than on a traditional sling bar on the side of the carbine.
All photos by Tim Prince)
These carbines were delivered in March and April 1859. In late 1859, the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service also ordered two hundred Maynard carbines. While the first one hundred arms ordered were referred to as “rifles” in period documents, it is believed that all two hundred guns were in fact carbine length (20-inch barrels) and chambered for the .50 Maynard cartridge. In February 1860, the U.S. Navy ordered fifty 1st Model Maynard carbines .50 caliber.
While the Massachusetts Arms Company pursued what they perceived to be lucrative U.S. government military contracts, they also produced rifle and carbine sporting versions, offering them for sale to the general public. The guns were available in both barrel lengths and calibers as well as in cased sets that could be customized, often with a second (or even third) barrel, loading tools and a variety of optional accessories. In addition to the usual .35 or .50 caliber barrels in either 20-inch or 26-inch lengths, shotgun barrels were available as well, allowing a single cased gun to serve multiple sporting purposes by simply swapping the barrel. This was achieved by opening the action and removing the hinge pin so the barrel could be unhooked from the frame. The replacement barrel could then be swapped onto the frame. This process was so simple that with practice a barrel change could be accomplished in less than sixty seconds. According to arms researcher, author, and historian James D. McAulay, a number of famous (and soon to be famous) Southerners purchased Maynard sporting arms. These men included South Carolina’s Wade Hampton, Georgia senator Robert Toombs, and Vice Close-up of #2323 showing the primer door open and the internal mechanism for advancing the primers. The ram’s horn shaped pin in front of the primer door is the only part that must be removed to unlock the barrel and disengage it from the frame. President John Breckenridge of Kentucky; all of whom became Confederate Generals.
The initial production goal of the Massachusetts Arms Company had been 5,000 guns. According to McAulay’s research, as of Oct. 1, 1860, the company had sold approximately 1,400 guns and had a total of 3,527 in inventory. The inventory on hand was distributed as follows: (326) “2nd Quality” arms of unspecified barrel lengths and calibers, (459) .50 caliber Sporting Carbines, (676) .50 caliber Military Carbines, (142) .50 caliber Sporting Rifles, (160) .50 caliber Military Rifles, (1,326) .35 caliber Sporting Carbines, (425) .35 caliber Military Carbines, and (13) .35 caliber Military Rifles.
McAulay further notes that approximately 90% of this remaining inventory of 1st Model Maynard rifles and carbines were purchased by southern states and militia companies between Oct. 1, 1860 and April 1861. McAulay’s research indicates that most guns went to Mississippi, Florida, and Georgia. According to his figures, Florida acquired a total of 1,030 guns in December 1860, all of which were carbine length (20-inch) and chambered in .35 caliber. Mississippi acquired 800 guns in December 1860 as well. Their purchase included both carbines (625 total) and rifles (175); the guns were a mixture of .50 and .35, with all 175 rifles and 300 carbines being .50 and the remaining 325 carbines being .35 caliber. All 650 Georgia purchased guns were .50 caliber carbines. While Florida and Mississippi acquired their guns directly from the Massachusetts Arms Company, Georgia purchased their guns in January and March 1861 from the firm of W.J. Syms & Brothers of New York City. Syms sold an additional 1,700 Maynards between October 1860 and May 1861. It is estimated that all but about 100 of these guns went to southern purchasers. McAulay notes that approximately 800 went to South Carolina and Louisiana. The balance of the estimated 800 “Confederate” sales by Syms was apparently made to Kentucky and Tennessee in April and May 1861.
A substantial number of Confederate regiments were at least partially armed with 1st Model Maynard rifles and carbines during the Civil War, resulting in the guns (in both barrel lengths and calibers) being listed in the Confederate Ordnance 1863 Manual as a standard issue Confederate carbine. Some Confederate units armed with the guns included the 1st and 6th Fla. Special Battalion of Inf., 2nd Fla. Cav., 5th & 9th Georgia Cav., Cobb’s Georgia Legion Cav., 1st La.Cav., 11th La/ Inf., 1st & 4th Miss. Cav., 9th, 14th & 15th Miss. Inf., 18th N.C. Inf., 3rd Tenn. Cav., 35th Va. Cav. B., and the Waccamaw S.C. Lt. Arty. Some 1st Model Maynards were also issued to the Confederate ironclad CSS Atlanta.
The production of the 1st Model Maynard was brought to an end by a fire at the Massachusetts Arms Company factory in January 1861. While the fire prevented production of arms for nearly two years, all completed arms on hand were saved, and, as noted, most made their way to southern states during the next ninety days. Dr. Maynard proceeded to buy out all the various partners and owners of the company in 1862, and by 1863 the factory was back in business, producing the 2nd Model Maynard Carbine for the U.S. Ordnance Department.
Today, the 1st Model Maynard is a highly desirable collectors’ item, as some two-thirds of the total production were eventually sold to southern buyers, and even earlier production guns could well have seen Confederate service. U.S. Martial examples are extremely rare, due to both the small numbers acquired, and to the hard service that many of them saw in the field both prior to and during the war.
Prior to the Civil War, most of the U.S. Army’s order of four hundred guns was in use on the western frontier in the hands of Cos. I and H of the 1st U.S. Cav. (circa 100 guns each) and also with the U.S. Mounted Rifles on station at Fort Union in N.M. During the war, elements of the 1st U.S. Cav., the 9th Penn. Vol. Cav. and the 1st Wisc. Cav. were armed with 1st Model Maynards. At least some of the U.S. Navy purchased guns also saw service with Marines on board the USS Saratoga.
Today these guns are also
Fully cased .35 caliber 1st Model Maynard Sporting Rifle #780, including an extra shotgun barrel, a bowie knife, loading accessories, and removable telescopic sight as well as multiple front and rear sight inserts. While the gun is certainly “pre-war” and too low to be officially part of the Confederate purchase range, it may well have seen Confederate service. The telescope is marked F WASSMANN / WASHINGTON D.C. Wassmann was a German immigrant gunsmith who was working in Georgetown, District of Washington City, circa 1860.
Fully cased .35 caliber 1st Model Maynard Military Rifle #3657 with a second .50 caliber sporting barrel. The serial number is well within the range of potential Confederate purchases, but this French fitted casing was likely sold by a high-end retailer, possibly in New Orleans where the French style casing would be popular. This extraordinary condition set is likely typical of the highgrade casings acquired by Vice President Breckenridge and Senator Toombs. very popular with North-South Skirmish Association shooters,
who find that adjustable peep sight mounted on the tang a
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real asset for aging eyes during carbine competition. Today a
1st Model Maynard is often
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one of the most cost effective ways for a collector to acquire a “Confederate” carbine without having to shell out the five-figure price tag on most Confederate made cavalry arms. Their overall scarcity when compared to the 2nd Model (1863) Maynard, and the hard use that most saw during the war, makes it a real coup to find a fine condition gun that saw Civil War service.
Tim Prince is a full-time dealer in fine & collectible military arms from the Colonial Period through WWII. He operates College Hill Arsenal, a web-based antique arms retail site.
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