Can Kentucky’s Asbill/Asbell Guns be Dated by Their Appearance? ©
Foreword: Three generations of Asbill/Asbell gunsmiths worked in Madison and Estell Counties, Kentucky, between 1806 and 1900. Their guns are not attached to a specific gunmaking school in Kentucky, but they followed the pattern of most Kentucky guns with tall, triangular butts, slender maple stocks, long barrels, and nose caps set several inches past the rear ramrod pipe on half-stocked guns. Asbill guns were well-made but lacked decorative elements; they relied on good stock architecture and superior accuracy for their popularity over several counties. Asbill stock patterns remained consistent for three generations, making later rifles appear similar to earlier rifles and raising the question, can their guns be accurately dated based on appearance?
Figure No.1: This rifle by William H. Asbill has typical Asbill family stock architecture with its tall, triangular butt, graceful wrist, and slim forestock with long barrel. The guard style was widely used from the 1840s until after the Civil War. A Kentucky-style forestock has its nose cap placed several inches past the rear ramrod pipe. The rear sight sits well behind the rear ramrod pipe, hinting at a shortened barrel on the breech end, but here the spacing between ramrod pipes is about the same and indicates the barrel is full original length. Better guns from Kentucky’s wealthier areas usually had their rear sights set above the rear pipe, but Kentucky’s more rural guns often had the rear sight moved farther back as on this rifle. Double keys [pins] were used on the forestock with their elongated inlays attached with small wood screws. Author’s collection, photo by J. Jaeger.
Asbill/Asbell Gunmakers: Gunsmith William Asbill Sr. (1763-1835) was born in North Carolina in 1763. He spent time in South Carolina and Georgia before settling in Madison County, Kentucky, in 1806. William Sr. had four sons who worked as gunsmiths in Kentucky: William “Billy” (1787-1873), Joseph (1790-1872, Ross (1792-1864), and James (1811-1879). His sons also had sons who were Kentucky gunsmiths, and Joseph had several such sons. Joseph’s son John Asbill worked at Irvine in Estill County, Kentucky, in the 1840s until the 1870s as a gunsmith and plow maker. John had two sons who became gunsmiths, with son William H. Asbill working as a gunsmith at Irvine and later Winston in Estill County.
Asbill Rifle: Most Asbill/Asbell rifles look similar in silhouette, or stock shape, but later guns had thinner butts with slightly shorter barrels and smaller bores. The rifle shown in Figure No.1 was made by William H. Asbill and has typical Kentucky architecture with a slim forestock, long barrel, and tall, triangular butt. A Kentucky style nose cap sits several inches past the rear ramrod pipe, and the guard has the double-tipped rear spur of a later percussion rifle. The rifle is decorated better than the average Asbill/Asbell rifle with forestock inlays at the barrel pins and inlays on the butt’s front and back sides as seen below.
Figure No.2: The front of the William H. Asbill rifle highlights its tall, triangular butt and tight side facings around the lock, both Kentucky details. A long, two-screw tang common to most Kentucky guns is barely visible on the top of the wrist. Author’s collection, photo by J. Jaeger.
Figure No.3: The back of the Asbill rifle shows hints of its fine curly maple wood in worn areas at the wrist and forestock, while the rest of the gun retains its darker original finish. A German silver butt inlay provides information on the gunmaker. Author’s collection, photo by J. Jaeger.
The front butt of the William H. Asbill rifle in Figure No.2 has an inlay in the form of a small, stylized bird, a rare detail on an Asbill rifle and marked with the same small “star” punch marks as the larger oval inlay on the butt’s back side. Also visible are Kentucky-style tight side facing around the lock. The gun’s back side in Figure No.3 shows bits of strongly curled maple in worn areas on the wrist and forestock. A brass lock bolt washer has a “tail” to keep it from turning in the wood when the lock bolt was removed/replaced. Most noticeable is the large, oval German silver inlay in the butt that replaces a cheekpiece and provides information about the gunmaker.
Dating the Asbill Rifle: An intriguing aspect of the William H. Asbill rifle is its date. Readers should review Figures No.1, 2 and 3 above and decide on an approximate date for the rifle. The gun’s clean lines, early style architecture, tight side facings, good butt height and barrel length, and a mid-percussion era guard tend to suggest a date in the 1850s… and perhaps the lack of a cheekpiece pushes the date out a few more years to about 1860. So, what do you think is the actual date of this rifle? That question and its unexpected answer is the reason for this article on Asbill rifles… and what sets them apart from many other Kentucky guns.
A better view of the German silver inlay on the back side of the Asbill rifle is shown in Figure No.4. With its “rural” spelling, the inlay inscription reads: Maid By W. H. Asill (sic) * Winston, Estill * Co. * KY * 1882* stamped in small, individual block letters. Despite the gun’s earlier style architecture, it was made in 1882, well after the Civil War when cartridge guns were becoming popular with most hunters and shooters. Probably no one [including the Author] thought the gun was made at such a late date when first seen. The Asbill rifle, while not typical of all later Kentucky guns, shows that looks can be a little deceiving at times with some Kentucky guns, and particularly when they were made by the Asbill/Asbell family.
Figure No.4: The Asbill rifle has an oval inlay on the butt’s back side inscribed: “Maid By W. H. Asill (sic) * Winston, Estill * Co. * KY * 1882 * in small hand-stamped capital letters. The gun was made by William H. Asbill at Winston in Estill County, Kentucky, in 1882. While stock architecture and the general appearance of the rifle suggest an earlier date, the screws used to attach the butt inlay hint at its later date. Author’s collection, photo by J. Jaeger.
Summary: For many Kentucky guns the stock architecture, butt curvature, and guard style can establish a relatively accurate date. But for a few gunmakers who were reluctant to change styles over many years despite new trends appearing elsewhere, dating by appearance alone can be deceiving. The Asbill/Asbell family provides a good example of Kentucky gunmakers who passed their designs down from generation to generation with very little change taking place. Later Asbill rifles can often be mistaken for their earlier work. The lesson here is, where Kentucky guns are concerned, make sure all the details on a gun, both big and small, are closely examined before assigning a date, because some makers’ work can fool you.