The Albany News (Albany, Tex.), Vol. 122, No. 1, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 5, 1997 Page: 32 of 66
sixty six pages : ill. ; page 20 x 13 in. Digitized from 35 mm. microfilm.View a full description of this newspaper.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
Page 22 "Back to Rath's Trail" Souvenir Section 1997
Sharps Rifle was Weapon
Used by Most Hunters
The quick-loading accurate Sharps
rifle was used by most buffalo hunters
on the Great Plains. ChristiaTi Sharps
developed Ihe fir^t successful breech-
loader. Sharps moved to Cincinnati
where in 1848 he patented a system thai
became famous throughout the West
when incorporated in the Sharps
Breechloading Percussion Single-shot
Carbine.
This revolutionary weapon-—short-
barreled and ideal for western use—
employed a linen-or paper-wrapped car-
tridge with ball attached, though it would
take loose ball and powder also. In load-
ing with a cartridge, the trigger guard
acted as a lever which lowered Ihe breech
block and exposed the chamber. The
cartridge was then inserted. Returning
the breech block to closed position
•-feared oil the end til the cartridge anil
exposed the powder, so that when the
• -trigger was pulled and the percussion
Cap exploded, ignition of the powder
i - k place and the gun fired. A skilled
»h.V>ier could deliver four or five shots
a minute in this fashion.
In a variety of calibers from .36 lo
Sharps breech-loading carbines and
rifles were reasonably accurate at long
ranges—enthusiasts even claimed up to
l ,000 yards but most Easterners had
trouble judging distances in the clear
atmosphere of the West. However that
may be, it is certain that during the
1850's the Sharps became the most popu-
lar shoulder arm in the West. It proved
superior for hunting buffalo or humans.
It was carried in covered wagons on
the Oregon and California trails, and it
played a leading role in the bloody pro-
and anti-slavery fighting in Kansas that
preceded the Civil War. John Brown
and his fellow abolitionists carried
Sharps rifles. They were called
"Beecher's Bibles" because Henry Ward
Beecher. the renowned .antislavery
preacher of Boston, was said to have
sent a shipment of them to Brown in
Kansas in crates labeled "Bibles."
Beechersupposedlysaid that one Sharps
would be more persuasive in the slavery
conflict than one hundred Bibles. At any
rate, John Brown's men were armed
with these famous breech loaders when
iliey attacked the U.S. Armory at Harp-
ers Ferry, Virginia, in 1859, an incident
that got Brown hanged.
welcome to
BACK TO RATH S TRAIL'
enjoy the day's activities
Baler Wire *38.50
Baler Twine $23.75
Maytag Appliances
Johnson Butane
50 East Lake Drive
Richard and Almeta Young
sssssssssssssss:
576-3585
7.y»
welcome
Hamlin
o
enjoy
i'S
area's heritag
Sellers
Wyman Meinser shoots a Sharps rifle as it was done near Rath City.
Welcome to
Hamlin
Enjoy "Back to Rath's Trail'1
Terrell Oil & Gas
Production Co.
50 Southeast Second 576,-2751
1
r" Join the citizens V
J of Hamlin as we
/commemerate our past and y
/ remember those pioneers \
who helped establish this area j
for future generations.
Welcome to Hamlin and
"Back to Rath's Trail"
\Cooper Oil Co./
Y 12 South Central X
N 576-3101 /
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
Lucas, Donnie A. The Albany News (Albany, Tex.), Vol. 122, No. 1, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 5, 1997, newspaper, June 5, 1997; Albany, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth414301/m1/32/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting The Old Jail Art Center.