POTD: Brown Manufacturing Ballard – Scarce Newburyport Single Shot

Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have a Brown Manufacturing Company Ballard Patent single shot sporting rifle manufactured 1869 to 1873 out of Newburyport, Massachusetts, with at least 500 produced according to Flayderman’s Guide.

Brown Manufacturing was one of several small shops that tried to carve out a piece of the post-Civil War sporting rifle market. The Ballard falling block was a solid, well-regarded design, simple and strong, popular with hunters and target shooters. Brown didn’t invent it, they just built their version of it for a few years before closing up.

.46 caliber, 30-inch round barrel. The production window of 1869 to 1873 tells you pretty much the whole story of what happened. Sharps and Remington were already established, the market contracted faster than expected, and smaller outfits like Brown didn’t survive the competition.

The frame shows repairs and the barrel has filled dovetails, which means this one actually got used. Survivors in any condition are scarce enough that collectors chasing Ballard variants pay attention when one surfaces.

Most of our POTDs utilize images from our friends at Rock Island Auction Company, the premier firearms auction in the United States. Take some time to browse their current auctions – who knows, maybe you’ll find a piece of history to take home!

“Scarce Brown Manufacturing Co. Ballard Patent Single Shot Sporting Rifle.” Rock Island Auction, www.rockislandauction.com/detail/5032/21/scarce-brown-mfg-co-ballard-patent-single-shot-sporting-rifle. Accessed 28 May 2026.

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