Kentucky Gunsmith William Kelsay and the “William Kelsay” Rifle ©

Foreword: William Kelsay worked in Wayne County, Kentucky, from about 1816 until 1851. He was born in Greene County, Tennessee, in 1792 and apprenticed to local gunsmith George Harmon. Harmon died in 1810 when Kelsay was only eighteen. Kelsay may have started working independently that year, or he could have continued his training for a few years under Harmon’s older son, gunsmith Nathan Harmon, who took over the gun shop after Harmon’s death. No William Kelsay rifle was known to collectors until 2019 when a signed rifle appeared at auction. The rifle, shown in Figure No.1, was exceptional for a southern Kentucky “hill country” gun since most were utilitarian pieces lacking decoration. The gun had a full patchbox, two-bolt side plate, forestock molding, and incise carving at the wrist, cheekpiece, tang, and rear ramrod pipe. But it raised an intriguing question… was it too early to be the work of Kentucky’s William Kelsay?         

Figure No.1: The "William Kelsay" signed rifle is stocked in fine curly maple with great stock architecture and several unexpected decorative elements for a southern Kentucky gun. The attractive patchbox with four-petal flower finial is perhaps unique, and incise carving decorates the wrist, tang, and rear pipe. Double-line forestock molding extends out from an incised volute at the rear ramrod pipe. The gun's single pinned trigger, flat butt plate, and guard with high finger rail are details often associated with earlier rifles. Barrel: 45-1/2 inches long with .50 caliber bore and 7-groove rifling. Author's collection, photo by J. Jaeger.   

Kelsay’s Early Years: Kelsay’s whereabouts between 1810 and 1820 are not well documented, except for his marriage to Barthena Harmon [George Harmon’s daughter] in Wayne County, Kentucky, on April 15, 1818. Census records indicate all his children were born in Kentucky starting in May of 1817. Kelsay’s parents and siblings left Greene County, Tennessee, and moved to Wayne County in 1816, and William and his betrothed [common-law] wife Barthena probably moved with them. A “William Kelsay” gunsmith appeared in the Blount County, Tennessee, Manufacturing Census of 1820, but no age was given to help identify him. Kelsay may have worked briefly in Tennessee in 1820 since he is not listed in the Wayne County Census Index of 1820, but he had children born in Kentucky in 1819 [John] and 1822 [Cornelias]. No other “William Kelsay” gunsmith of appropriate age appeared in later Tennessee records. What is known is that by/before May of 1817, Kelsay was in Wayne County, Kentucky, working as a gunsmith.

Figure No.2: The Kelsay rifle is signed in script with the gunsmith’s full name, “William Kelsay.” The “Kelsay” name with an “a” rather than “Kelsey” with an “e” helps identifies the gunsmith’s lineage in Tennessee and Kentucky.

The “William Kelsay” Rifle: The rifle is signed “William Kelsay” as seen in Figure No.2. The spelling of the surname is significant; other family lines spelled the name with a second “e” as “Kelsey.” The “Kelsay” spelling puts the gunmaker into a specific branch of the Kelsay/Kelsey family in Kentucky and Tennessee that descended from two brothers, John and Robert Kelsay of Ireland, who arrived in America in 1729 and 1734, respectively. The gun’s unique patchbox, shown in Figure No.3, was previously unknown in Kentucky. Its large, four-petal flower finial with rounded tips relates it to the Cumberland School of gunmaking in northern Tennessee along the Cumberland River watershed. The Cumberland River runs up into Wayne County, Kentucky, making it a candidate for related Cumberland School rifles, and the Kelsay rifle is the first such rifle found. The back of the gun shown in Figure No.4 has a long two-bolt side plate with incise carving at the wrist, cheekpiece, and side-facing where it forms a small “tear drop” at the rear. Features suggesting an early rifle include the flat butt plate, limited “drop” in the butt, single pinned trigger, and guard with finger rail well off the stock wood. The attractive tang carving in Figure No.5 and rear pipe carving in Figure No.6 also hint at an earlier gun. Overall, the Kelsay rifle is a long-barreled gun with triangular butt and simple cheekpiece stocked in southern red maple, the choice of Kentucky gunmakers.

Figure No.3: The front of the Kelsay rifle exhibits unexpected embellishments that include its large patchbox with four-petal flower finial and simple engraving, incise carving, and a "tear drop" tail on the side-facing. The flat butt plate, single trigger, and simple guard with a high grip rail are often associated with earlier rifles. Author's collection, photo by J. Jaeger.

Figure No.4: The reverse of the Kelsay rifle has incise carving in the wrist area and cheekpiece and a large lock-bolt plate with two bolts indicative of a flintlock rifle. Stock wood is highly figured southern red maple and the simple cheekpiece has a single molding line, all common to rifles made in Kentucky. Author's collection, photo by J. Jaeger.  

Identifying the Maker: Was William Kelsay of Wayne County, Kentucky, the maker of the fine “William Kelsay” rifle? Several collectors have suggested the rifle could date as early as 1790-1795, while others were unsure of its date. No earlier documented gunsmith with the “Kelsay” surname has been found in either Tennessee or Kentucky. There were two earlier and one slightly later “William Kelsay” ancestors, but neither of the older Williams were known to work as a gunsmith, blacksmith, or mechanic. The first was the gunsmith’s uncle, William Kelsay (1739-1805), who moved from Virginia to Tennessee in 1787. He was a farmer with no record of working in the mechanical trades who served in the Revolutionary War where, if a gunsmith, he probably would have been assigned to critically needed gunsmithing duties, but he was not. The second William Kelsay (1744-1792) was the son of Robert Kelsay, brother of the gunsmith’s grandfather, who lived and died in Cumberland County, New Jersey. The third “William Kelsay” (1796-1863) was a cousin and four years younger than the gunsmith. He was a blacksmith by trade who moved with his father, James Kelsay (1770-1849), to Barren County, Kentucky, as a youth. There were no other age-appropriate Kelsay candidates for making the rifle, leaving William Kelsay, the gunsmith of Wayne County, Kentucky, as the most likely maker. A prominent Kelsay family historian clarified the restrictive nature of the “Kelsay” name in America and the necessity of the “Kelsay” gunsmith having to descend from either John or Robert Kelsay of Ireland. According to Kelsay family historian Fred D. Kelsay, other family members may have come over with John and Robert Kelsay. However, all of the "-say" spellings of the Kelsay name in America today trace back to either John Kelsay in Pennsylvania, or Robert Kelsay in New Jersey. If any other Kelsay men came over with John and Robert in 1729 and 1734, respectively, their lines must have died out, because no descendants have been found. [1]

Figure No.5: The Kelsay rifle's tang is surrounded with attractive incise carving, an unexpected detail on a Kentucky gun. The short tang suggests an earlier gun, while the tang's finial is common to better Kentucky guns. 

Figure No.6: Entry pipe carving and forestock molding lines were used by most of Kentucky's major schools of gunmaking such as the Lexington, Ohio River, and Bardstown Schools.  Note the two-piece ramrod pipe.

Several lesser factors support Kentucky’s William Kelsay as the rifle’s probable maker. A Kelsay descendant once stated that William’s rifles “… were very well made, accurate, but muzzle loaded by hand." [2] The reference to “very well made” supports the quality of the known rifle. A second factor was the frontier location where the rifle was made. Change came slowly on the sparsely settled frontier, and rifles often retained older styling until population and commerce growth began to introduce newer styles. Examination of the gun’s major brass pieces suggests a more rural origin. The butt plate and guard castings have slight imperfections, and the edges of the patchbox finial and side plate have small areas of unevenness. The gun’s simple two-piece patchbox and lack of silver work also suggest a rural origin. A final factor is the use of pins instead of wedges for barrel attachment, often considered a later detail. Recently a second signed “William Kelsay” rifle has been reported, stocked in walnut without embellishments in a more traditional frontier style. The gun has the same script signature and earlier style stock architecture as the finer Kelsay rifle. No other signed William Kelsay rifle is known, nor has another William Kelsay gunsmith been discovered in the same or earlier time period and regional area, leaving only gunsmith William Kelsay of Wayne County, Kentucky, as the rifle’s probable maker. A conjecture regarding the rifle is the possibility that, since Kelsay’s mentor died prematurely, Kelsay may have finished a partially assembled shop rifle of slightly earlier style. An image of William Kelsay, taken later in life after he moved to Kelseyville in Lake County, California, is shown in Figure No.7. He continued working as a gunsmith after his arrival in California, so perhaps he was still tinkering with guns when the image was made.

Figure No.7: This is gunmaker William Kelsay of Wayne County, Kentucky, and later Ray County, Missouri, and Lake County, California. Kelsay was born, raised, and trained as a gunsmith in Greene County, Tennessee. He then moved to Wayne County, Kentucky, where he worked from about 1816 until 1851. In 1851, accompanied by other family members, he moved to Ray County, Missouri, where he worked for about ten years. In 1861 with other Kelsay family members, he moved west to his final destination of Kelseyville in Lake County, California, where many relatives were already living. He worked as a gunsmith there, despite his age, and died in 1878. This image dates to his California days.

Summary: A fine rifle signed “William Kelsay” sold at auction several years ago that was attributed to gunsmith William Kelsay of Wayne County, Kentucky. Several collectors thought the gun might date a few years too early to be the work of the Kentucky gunsmith. Extensive research into the Kelsay family’s roots in America found that the “Kelsay” spelling [as opposed to Kelsey, Kelso, etc.] had a specific lineage in America, leaving a limited number of possibilities for the gunsmith. No earlier “William Kelsay” was known to work as a gunsmith, blacksmith, or mechanic. An older uncle, “William Kelsay” (1739-1805), was the only other “Kelsay” possibility. He was in the right area at the right time, but he was a farmer with no record of mechanical-related skills, and his Revolutionary War record suggests he was not a gunsmith. The Kelsay family history, along with lesser supporting evidence, leave William Kelsay, documented gunsmith of Wayne County, Kentucky, as the probable maker of the fine “William Kelsay” rifle.   

Footnote [1]: “Origin of the Kelsay Family” By Fred D. Kelsay, Hot Springs, Arkansas, August 16, 1999, myfriendsthelambs@gmail.com, Part V, 10/5/2022.
Footnote [2]: Cotrell, Brad, “Notes for William Kelsay” response to “William and Jane (Baily) Kelsay” thread, www.Genealogy.com, 15 Feb. 2007.