Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Pond Boss Old musket found in the hollow of a tree

15 DAYS AGO A LOCAL FOUND THIS ANCIENT MUZZLELOADER STUFFED IN A HOLLOW TREE ALONG THE YELLOWSTONE RIVER NEAR GLENDIVE, MONTANA. IT IS APPROX. 160 YEARS OLD. IN FANTASTIC CONDITION, PROBABLY DUE TO BEING COVERED WITH BEAR OR BUFFALO GREASE AND STUFFED IN A HOLLOW LOG! WOW! WHAT A FIND! SURE WOULD BE FUN TO KNOW ABOUT THE OWNER AND THE STORY OF THE GUN AND HOW IT CAME TO BE STASHED THERE AND NEVER RETRIEVED.

Holy macaroni - that's an unbelievable find!

I haven't met any of you...so I can't make a reference to this being anyone's brother, cousin, uncle, etc....YET.

Dude looks like he's seen a few highway miles though - kinda like Alice Cooper with welding goggles?

Holy Smokes! I'll bet that it was from one of the "Mountain Men"

If that musket could talk........

Bet it's taken down a Griz and Wolf or two in it's day. I've floated the Yellowstone lots fly fishing - would have been crazy to stopped by that Cottonwood for some shade and made that discovery. Makes you wonder what might be under you own feet while out on the ponds. I guess a section of Blue River Trail or Mormom Trail goes through a section of my land. I'll bet there are some amazing artifacts buried that had to be sacrificed from the ox and wagon on the way out west.

Who else would be looking inside trees?

Perfect CB1!

Nice rifle. All they need now is a coon skin hat

Doesn't everybody have one of those?

Here's ours:








It is an 1864 Springfield that was owned by my wife's great grandfather, who used it in the Civil War.

that's super cool.

I second that...Catmandoo - judging from his uniform, he was a SGT for the Confederacy?

What an interesting find... Even more interesting is the location, had it been in an area where a Civil War battle was fought, it might not be so crazy, but along the Yellow Stone! Wow!!! I love muzzleloaders. Something fun about shooting them, especially the flintlocks! I think a brown bess is probably one of the funnest guns I have ever shot. Isn't accurate at all, but sure flings a lot of lead!

Way cool story.Glad you posted that.

I just finished reading a book about the Mountain Men and early trappers. Due to the uncertainty of conditions, they often cached their pelts and other important gear for later retrieval. Since it was covered with "preservatives", I expect it was cached and couldn't be retrieved. Since it was a valuable item, there was probably a good reason why it was left there.

A bullet the back of the head of the owner may be a good reason it was never retrieved... Perhaps a grizzly attack?

"It is a good rifle, and killt the bear that killt me."

Spelling and grammar weren't Hatchet Jack's strong suits.

Thanks for posting, Cecil. Very cool, as is the family heirloom from catmandoo. Both of those "stories" sure make you stop and think back to how different things were at that point in time.

Thats a Britsh 1853 musket

Which one?

The one thats a british 1853 musket,of coarse.

I'm betting on the one found in Yellowstone.

This for the panty hose remark?

No, he was actually a French Canadian who moved to Mt. Kisco, NY. I suspect that the reason it looks like a Confederate uniform is because of the original photo. I believe it to be a calotype which has become relatively faded. When I scanned it, I tried to enhance the contrast, and this is the result. My father-in-law still has journals and letters written by him.

Yep, I've got 2 69cal rifled muskets that look just like that,shape of the stock,hammer,sideplate,triggerguard,etc.Makes a nice hole in a deer at 50yds. One of them is stamped 1844 on the stock.

You didn't specify which one was British. That's all I asked. I'm ignorant when it comes to guns although I own a few.