Kentucky Long Rifle was the weapon of choice for wilderness hunters and during the American Revolutionary War forming rifle corps and ranger outfits. In 18th century warfare, there were two types of weapons carried into battle: the smooth-bore musket and the grove-bore rifle. Both had their strengths and weaknesses. The smooth bore musket could be loaded quicker. It fired a larger caliber bullet or shot. Cartridges were often prepared ahead of time (powder and shot wrapped together) to aid in the speed of loading and consistent charge.
Muskets however, were notoriously inaccurate with an effective range limited to around eighty yards. To counter this, men were massed in ranks and ordered to fire low in volley and not worry about aiming. The result was a wall of shot that would hopefully do enough damage to the opposing force to halt their attack or force enemy officers to reconsider and withdraw. It was the ideal weapon on the open field of battle. The musket could also accommodate a seventeen-inch blade or bayonet. The groove-bore rifle on the other hand, could not be loaded as quickly. The caliber bullet was smaller. Power was poured down the muzzle followed by the ball wrapped in cloth. However, because of the grove-bore, the shot spun when fired. Like the arrow, whose feathers spin the shaft and the javelin thrower who twists the wrist upon release, the spin made the rifle incredibly accurate. Also, because the shot snugly fit the grooves, its velocity was much higher than the musket, doing great damage no matter the smaller size and allowing the effective range to be greater – so much so that a rifle in the hands of a marksman could hit his target at two hundred yards with some reportedly up to three hundred yards.
The rifle had drawbacks. They took longer to reload and, in that time, an enemy force could effectively charge with the bayonet. Also, rifles did not have bayonets and therefore could not thwart such an attack nor charge like musketeers. Therefore, the rifle was used mainly to probe enemy lines, act as skirmishers (advanced patrols before the main body of troops), marksmen to pick off the enemy from afar, and to damage an advancing force from a distance before the enemy fell in range of the more numerous muskets – such as at the Battle of Cowpens when General Daniel Morgan lined his Georgia and Carolina riflemen up front of his militia and regular troops.
Rifles had been used in Europe decades before their development in the Americas; mainly of German design used by the famed German huntsmen or Jaeger. Unique to the American design, labeled Kentucky Long Rifles, were changes implemented by these German immigrants who settled in the Lancaster, Pennsylvania area. The German rifles were shorter, thereby their velocity was less with a lower range of effectiveness. The American gunsmiths added the longer barrel and modified the breech, making the weapon more powerful and less problematic with limited maintenance. The perfect weapon for the wilderness and in the American Revolution – proven to be the most advanced hand held weapon in the world for the next several generations. Weapons proudly carried by Rogers’ Rangers and Danile Morgan’s backwoodsmen which he entitled ‘Morgan’s Raiders.’
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CLICK HERE FOR Firearms in Colonial America: The Impact on History and Technology 1492-1792
CLICK HERE FOR Firearms: An Illustrated History
CLICK HERE FOR Rifles & Muskets: From 1450 to the Present Day (Collector’s Guides)
Also on Revolutionary War Journal:
Forgotten Warriors of the American Revolution: Major Benjamin Whitcomb of ‘Whitcomb’s Rangers’
Matchlocks & Flintlocks: Weapons That Tamed a New World & Claimed an American Revolution
Rifles and Groove-bored Muskets in the American Revolutionary War
Mass Musketry in the American Revolutionary War
Loading and Firing a Brown Bess Musket in the Eighteenth Century