All Hail The Single Shot Rifle or Shotgun

By David LaPell

USA –

The mighty bison of the plains were almost wiped out by hunters using powerful Sharps and Remington Rolling Block rifles, even though there were lever action rifles like the Winchester 1876 and 1886 that were capable of taking down big game. For the average homestead, a single barrel shotgun was quite commonly seen over the fireplace as they were cheap and could take everything from small game to deer. Despite the losses at the Little Bighorn, the U.S. Military wouldn’t finally retire the Trapdoor Springfield .45-70 rifle until after the Spanish American War, long after General Custer and his men had been buried.

When the century finally turned and industry roared, single shot firearms were still very popular, Remington still made their Rolling Block although the smaller calibers were more popular, Stevens had their Ideal and Favorite, and single barrel shotguns still sold like pancakes at the local diner during the breakfast rush despite the fact that now there were pump and semi auto shotguns available to the masses.

Even during the Great Depression with the country in the …Read the Rest

Source:: AmmoLand