Designed by brothers Charles and Sebre Howard and first patented in 1862, this is a single shot lever action produced by the Whitneyville Armory between 1866 and 1870. It is a really neat compact design that is all contained within a tube. The system was made in rifle, sporting rifle, and shotgun configurations, with a total production of not more than about 1700. The rifle pattern guns, like this one, were chambered for .44 Rimfire. A prototype military configuration example was tested unsuccessfully by the US military in 1867.
Related Articles

Accessories
Audley Safety Holster and an OSS Colt 1903
F.H. Audley was a saddler who ran a business in New York City starting in the 1870s. As his business in horse tackle declined with the spread of automobiles, he found himself looking for other […]

Lever Action Rifles
Winchester Lever Action Development: Model 1876
Rifle NWMP Carbine While the Model 1873 was a very popular rifle, its pistol caliber cartridge did leave a segment of the market unaddressed. Winchester wanted a rifle that could chamber the larger and more […]

Book review
Book Review: Great Britain – The Tommy Gun Story
I recently got a copy of Tom Davis Jr’s brand new book on the history of British use of the Thompson SMG. This is very much a history book rather than a technical book, and […]
Everybody was looking to create the next great rifle sensation and hopefully obtain large lucrative military contracts. One of the more unusual designs I have ever seen. Someone ought to bring that back as a real production rifle for reenactors. They sould try the same reproduction of the Evans rifles.