Riflemakers List

Baker, Robert

School: Lancaster (Pennsylvania/PA)

Researcher Sam Dyke traced the evolution of the Baker family of gunsmiths within the county. While no guns made by these men are known to exist, these men are important for they are, very likely, the first gunsmiths to settle within the Lancaster region. In 1717, Robert Baker (d. 1728) and his brother Samuel purchased land near the confluence of the Pequea Creek and Susquehanna River. Soon thereafter, Robert bought out his brother’s share. In 1719, Robert and his son Caleb petitioned Jacob Taylor, the Penns’ Provincial Secretary, to build a shop and mill for “boaring” gun barrels. Permission was granted and work began soon thereafter. Caleb took over the shop when his father died and ran it until 1741.

Derr, Christian

School: Berks (Pennsylvania/PA)

Christian Derr was taxed as a gunsmith in 1805 in the Oley Valley. His rifles signed with a C.D. are usually found as unadorned rifles with simple patchbox designs and some utilize painted stocks to imitate tiger striping. This gunmaker is most likely the same gunmaker who later worked in Union County.