From Raimey's post...
Field and stream, Volume 14 1909
D. Kirkwood, of Boston, Mass., could justly be ranked as an old-timer. He turned out good work, and the fact that his order-book was always full is the best evidence that his patrons were satisfied. He was conscientious in' mind and work, and had a high regard for those qualities which go to make up true manhood. He passed away several years ago.
William R. Schaeffer, another Boston gun-builder, enjoyed an enviable reputation for excellent workmanship. I knew him first in the early '70s. He was then employing two or three men, and they were always kept busy filling orders. Mr. Schaeffer once made an eight and a quarter-pound, 12-gauge duck gun for the writer, which was beautifully fitted and a fine shooter. It has for years lain at the
bottom of the Savannah River—"lost overboard," I am compelled to regretfully chronicle. That was a time to be long remembered. A day and night of mishaps, and they all come vividly before me now. My companion and friend—dear Sam !— dead these many years. I could drift into reminiscences of the days we have spent together.
Away down in South Philadelphia, on Passyunk avenue, there is—or was up to four years ago-—as neat a gun shop as could be imagined. A half-glass door; white curtains at the windows; a white, well-scrubbed floor, with rugs spread over a part of it; a small counter; a small glassdoored gun-case; a small stock of gun supplies, and at one time a small stock of guns — first, muzzle-loaders and then breech-loaders, and now neither. Everything was always spick-and-span clean— a place for everything and everything in its place. This was Joseph Jacob's shop, upstairs was his home, and the prevailing air of neatness may be placed to the credit of his daughter. I liked to visit Mr. Jacob and enjoy the atmosphere of the shop while we talked. Up to twenty years ago he had a good business, building guns to order. Then changes came. Gradually at first he came to realize that he could not compete with machine-made, or partly machine-made, guns, and get the pricethat he must have for good handwork. From employing two or three men, it came in time that he was alone in the shop. His old customers brought him enough orders to keep him fairly busy. Then orders grew more scarce, and eventually the shop was given over to repair work, with an occasional gun to build. Such is the history of many other skilful gunmakers. The factory-made gun has ruined their business—the immutable law of the survival of the fittest again exemplified.
John Krider—of "Krider's," Second and Walnut streets, Philadelphia—I have already mentioned in this series. He built fine guns and many of them in the old muzzle-loading days, and upon the introduction of the breech-loader he accepted the change and turned out some very neat and serviceable guns of the new type. In his later years he did very little bench work, the gun-building being done by John Siner, then a young journeyman. Siner was noted for conscientious work, his guns being beautifully fitted and finished to please the eye. Examples of his work, both muzzle-loading and breechloading guns, are still in the possession of the families of Pennsylvanians who in their day loved fine guns and could afford to buy them.
Another notable maker was Sneider, of Baltimore, who worked alone for many years, being freely patronized by appreciative sportsmen. In the course of time he entered into partnership with a man named Clark, under the firm name of Clark & Sneider. Their place of business at 214 West Pratt street, Baltimore, was a meeting-place for shooters at that time —along in the '70s. Their guns were well made and well liked. The Sneider breech-action was strong and easily operated by a top-lever. Mr. Sneider invented the check-slide whereby the lug was caught on opening the gun—taking all strain from the hinge-pin and thereby preventing the joint from wearing loose.
http://books.google.com/books?id=THeWYkw...hia&f=falseSellers list him from 1861 to 1899 as a maker of percussion arms.
Pete
