One of the most
intriguing objects
in the Longmeadow
Historical Society
collection is an
ancient pistol.
Measuring almost two
feet long, with a
flintlock mechanism,
it is a formidable
weapon.
The story attached
to the gun was that
it was passed down
through the
generations from
John Williams
(1664-1729). John
Williams, father to
Longmeadow's first
pastor Stephen
Williams, was the
minister in the town
of Deerfield, some
40 miles north of
Longmeadow. Some of
you may be familiar
with the story of
the famous raid on
Deerfield on
February 29, 1704,
when some French and
their native allies
attacked the outpost
town of Deerfield in
the middle of a
wintry night. (For
more about this
event, see Captors
and Captives: The
1704 French and
Indian Raid on
Deerfield by Kevin
Sweeney and Evan
Haefeli).
Reverend John
Williams
During that fight,
the Deerfield
citizens fought back
fiercely. John
Williams purportedly
attempted to fire
his pistol at the
attackers in defense
of his household,
but the gun
misfired. The
legend goes on that
had he been
successful at
killing or wounding
any of the
attackers, that
retaliation would
have been severe.
Because his attempt
had failed, he was
captured and
force-marched to
Canada, along with
111 other
townsfolk. Later
released or
"redeemed," John
Williams eventually
returned to
Deerfield with most
of the surviving
members of his
family.
(See John Demos'
book
The Unredeemed
Captive: A Family
Story from Early
America).
John Demos book,
cover art by Walter
Ford
The theory is that
the gun, now a
treasured family
heirloom, was passed
down through
Williams
descendants, finally
ending up in the
possession of Sarah
Storrs, the last
Storrs/Williams
family member to
live in the Storrs
House. Tucked away
in a soft padded
sock for
safekeeping, the gun
slipped out of
memory--of most.
John Williams'
probate inventory "A
Gun one of the
Queen's Arms"
Curious about the
legend--was the gun
really that old?
Could it really have
belonged to John
Williams? Would the
enemy really have
returned this
valuable firearm to
a captive upon his
release? We turned
to the experts for
answers. We are
lucky to have the
Springfield Armory
National Historic
Site in our
backyards. Park
Ranger Alex
MacKenzie was
consulted, and he
visited the Storrs
House Museum to
examine the gun.
Observing all
appropriate safety
and curatorial
protocols, and
wearing cotton
gloves, he removed
the flintlock to
examine and
photograph the
interior. He
concluded that the
gun could truly be a
17th century weapon,
but he wanted to get
an even more expert
opinion. He sent
detailed photographs
and the description
to colleagues in
England. Their
conclusions? The
gun was likely made
in England circa
1640, and was
re-stocked with
American wood
sometime later in
the 17th century,
but before the 1704
raid.
Wow!
While we can't
validate the story
of the miss-firing
incident during the
1704 raid, we do
feel fairly
confident that the
gun could truly have
belonged to John
Williams. With the
manufacture date of
1640, it certainly
had an owner before
John Williams! Come
and see this
wonderful object,
along with other
17th, 18th, 19th,
20th and 21st
century objects at
the Storrs House
Museum.
