A Family Treasure

posted on October 25, 2016
9_aff-legends-familytreasure-oct25.jpg
Michael Ives

This feature appears in the November ‘16 issue of NRA America’s 1st Freedom, one of the official journals of the National Rifle Association.  

The original layout as it appeared in print. Photo by Michael Ives.

America’s history may be traced through its firearms, but sometimes determining the past of a historic gun is made easier when it remains within the same family for nearly 180 years. 

Pennsylvanian Michael Ruble ordered a fine .41-caliber percussion rifle prior to his death in 1838. Ruble’s pride in his ownership was well-documented, with an inlaid silver plate bearing his name fitted neatly into the forearm of his rifle. It is believed the rifle was completed for Ruble, who then lived in Mifflin County, by Lewis Lepper of Lancaster County. A German silver inlay on the offside of the stock features an eagle grasping arrows, possibly an acknowledgement of the Ruble family’s involvement in the state militia. 

This rifle traveled down through the generations, preserved by Ruble sons and daughters, until 2016, when it was donated to the collection of the NRA National Firearms Museum. Resting now inside a re-creation of a period gunsmith’s workshop, this American treasure can be seen daily in the National Firearms Museum galleries. 

The NRA National Firearms Museum at NRA Headquarters in Fairfax, Va.; the NRA National Sporting Arms Museum at Bass Pro Shops in Springfield, Mo.; and the Frank Brownell Museum of the Southwest at the NRA Whittington Center in Raton, N.M.; each have fine selections of historic arms on display. Admission to each is free, and donations are gratefully accepted. For more information, visit nramuseum.com, phone (703) 267-1600 or email [email protected].

Latest

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey

Anti-Gun Extremists Never Rest

Court activity seems to never rest and neither do anti-gun extremists who want to deprive citizens of the right to bear arms.

Gun Skills | Reloading 2: Basic Equipment

A simple array of tools is all that is needed to start handloading.

Gun Review | Beretta 30X Tomcat

Beretta did an excellent job of updating this classic. It has tweaks, but retains the features that made it so popular in the first place.

Voters Are Fighting Back

Anti-gun jurisdictions display indifference to crime, but voters are fighting back.

President Trump Signs Huge Executive Order on Guns

President Trump is moving fast to find and root out any remaining anti-Second Amendment rules, actions and legal positions still in place.



Get the best of America's 1st Freedom delivered to your inbox.