Kentucky Rifle Association Bulletins
The Kentucky Rifle Association Bulletins present original research, artifact documentation, and historical analysis produced by KRA members and contributors. These publications preserve scholarship on American longrifles, regional gunmaking traditions, and material culture from the 18th and 19th centuries.
Usage Note: This Bulletin is provided for the private research and educational use of Kentucky Rifle Association members. Redistribution or reproduction without written permission is prohibited.
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 44 NUMBER 3 | SPRING 2018
This Spring 2018 Bulletin continues the Kentucky Rifle Association’s commitment to documenting and preserving original research related to American longrifles and early firearms. Articles in this issue address gunsmith attribution, material culture, and historical context through close analysis of original artifacts. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 44 NUMBER 2 | WINTER 2018
This 2018 Kentucky Rifle Association Bulletin continues the Association’s mission of preserving and advancing original scholarship on American longrifles and related material culture. The issue includes research articles, artifact studies, and documentation contributed by KRA members and affiliated scholars. Together, the contents reflect ongoing investigative work into gunsmith attribution, regional traditions, decorative elements, and historical context, reinforcing the Bulletin’s role as a permanent research record for the collecting and scholarly community. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 44 NUMBER 1 | FALL 2017
This Fall 2017 issue of the Kentucky Rifle Association Bulletin presents original research, artifact documentation, and historical analysis contributed by members and scholars of the Association. Featured content emphasizes evidence based study, careful examination of surviving objects, and informed interpretation grounded in primary sources.. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 43 NUMBER 1 | SPRING 2017
This Spring 2018 Bulletin continues the Kentucky Rifle Association’s commitment to documenting and preserving original research related to American longrifles and early firearms. Articles in this issue address gunsmith attribution, material culture, and historical context through close analysis of original artifacts. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 43 | NUMBER 2 | WINTER 2016
This Winter 2016 issue of the Kentucky Rifle Association Bulletin presents original research reassessing frontier rifle history and long‑standing misconceptions rooted in colonial records. Featured articles apply careful analysis of primary sources to distinguish documented evidence from popular mythology, reinforcing disciplined historical methodology in the study of early American firearms. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 43 | NUMBER 1 | FALL 2016
This Fall 2016 Bulletin presents an in‑depth historical study of Pennsylvania gunsmith Conrad Horn, examining his work within the social and political unrest of the Civil War–era anthracite coal region. Drawing on primary records and surviving firearms, the issue provides a documented account of Horn’s life, gunmaking career, and historical significance within American longrifle scholarship. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 42 NUMBER 3 | SPRING 2016
This Spring 2016 Bulletin presents a detailed photographic study of John Bonewitz, Leonard Reedy, and Andreas Fichthorn Jr., examining their master–apprentice relationships and shared workshop traditions in Womelsdorf, Pennsylvania. Through comparative analysis of carving, brass furniture, and patchbox designs, the issue documents how stylistic influence and regional identity developed within this important school of American longrifle making. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 42 | NUMBER 2 | WINTER 2016
This Winter 2016 Bulletin features an in depth attribution study of rifles marked “J.D.,” examining evidence for their association with Jacob Deemer of Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley. Through analysis of construction details, engraving styles, and historical documentation, the article explores how Deemer’s work relates to contemporaries and contributes to broader understanding of regional American longrifle traditions. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 42 | NUMBER 1 | FALL 2015
This Fall 2015 Bulletin features Part I of a comprehensive study of Pennsylvania gunsmith Leonard Reedy, examining his family origins, apprenticeship under John Bonewitz, and early career in Germansville, Womelsdorf, and Pine Grove. Using primary records and firearm analysis, the article addresses attribution questions and establishes a documented foundation for understanding Reedy’s work within the Womelsdorf school of American longrifle making. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 41 | NUMBER 3 | SPRING 2015
This Spring 2015 Bulletin presents an in‑depth historical study of Colonel William Fleming, exploring his roles as physician, frontier officer, and statesman in early America. Through detailed narrative and analysis of Fleming’s engraved powder horn, the issue examines military service, cultural symbolism, and the broader context of 18th‑century frontier life, supported by original firearms and accoutrement research. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 41 | NUMBER 2 | WINTER 2015
This Winter 2015 Bulletin features a detailed symbolic analysis of a Jacob Kuntz pistol bearing five intentional signatures across wood, steel, and brass. Interpreting Masonic, religious, and political imagery, the article examines how Kuntz used firearms as vehicles for identity, belief, and artistic expression within early American gunmaking traditions. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 41 | NUMBER 1 | FALL 2014
This Fall 2014 Bulletin documents the defense of the Miller Block House in western Pennsylvania during a 1782 frontier attack, focusing on Ann Hupp’s role and a Lancaster made longrifle attributed to Joel Ferree. Using primary records and firearm analysis, the issue separates documented history from frontier folklore and examines transitional American rifles associated with Revolutionary era service. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 40 | NUMBER 3 | SPRING 2014
This Spring 2014 Bulletin presents a detailed examination of Kentucky rifles made in the Cumberland region, focusing on the work of gunsmith Jacob Young and rifles built for frontier leaders such as William Whitley and Gasper Mansker. Through analysis of architecture, engraving, and historical records, the issue explores the Cumberland as a distinct frontier culture central to the development of the American longrifle tradition. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 40 | NUMBER 2 | WINTER 2013
This Winter 2013 Bulletin examines the longrifle makers of Guilford County, North Carolina, documenting the evolution of the Early Deep River School into the Jamestown School. Through analysis of signed rifles, apprenticeships, and regional architecture, the issue highlights Guilford County as the most prolific center of longrifle production in the South and a critical contributor to American gunmaking history. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 40 | NUMBER 1 | FALL 2013
This Fall 2013 Bulletin examines the long standing attribution issues surrounding gunsmith Christian Beck of Jonestown, Pennsylvania. Drawing on church records, tax rolls, estate documents, and signed rifles, the article clarifies Beck family relationships and corrects prior misidentifications of Christian Beck “the Earlier” and “the Later.” The study establishes a documented framework for accurately identifying rifles produced by Christian Beck during the early nineteenth century. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 39 | NUMBER 3 | SPRING 2013
This Spring 2013 Bulletin explores the Clark family of Lebanon, Ohio, documenting their emergence as the state’s most prolific early gunsmiths. Using surviving rifles, census records, and workshop histories, the issue traces James Clark and his sons through apprenticeship, production, and market adaptation as American gunmaking shifted with westward expansion. [read more]
KRA Bulletin | VOLUME 39 | NUMBER 2 | WINTER 2012
This Winter 2012 Bulletin analyzes early U.S. rifle procurement through the work of Dickert, DeHuff & Co., a Lancaster based consortium that supplied arms for both the Army and the Indian Department between 1792 and 1811. Using contracts, production records, and surviving rifles, the article traces how federal purchasing shaped the Lancaster pattern and influenced the transition from custom civilian longrifles to standardized government arms. [read more]