Henry commemorative rifle to help save battleship USS Texas (PHOTOS)

By Chris Eger

The rifle has silver and gold engraved etchings of the USS Texas as she appeared in 1914 with her lattice mast profile, and of the upgraded USS Texas as she appeared in 1927 with tripod mast, above, along with The State of Texas seal. (Photos: Battleship Texas)
Fighting against the combined forces of time and Mother Nature, the oldest U.S. battleship still afloat is in need of desperate repair, and sales of a limited edition rifle could help.
Dubbed “The Last Dreadnought,” Texas was commissioned in 1914 as the world was on the verge of the Great War and went on to serve for over 30 years, during both World Wars — one of only a handful of ships still in existence with such a lineage. Since 1948, she has continued to serve in her namesake state as a museum ship at the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site in Texas.
However, time has not been kind to the century-old relic and, as reported by the Houston Chronicle, continuous repairs are needed just to keep her afloat and funds are scarce.
“We pump about 300,000 gallons of water a day out of the Battleship Texas,”  Bruce Bramlett, executive director of the non-profit Battleship Texas

Source: Guns.com