This rifle is listed by its serial number, 55942, as a known surviving Sharps Berdan rifle on page 98 of the included book "Sharpshooter: Hiram Berdan and His famous Sharpshooters and their Sharps Rifles" by Wiley Sword. This New Model 1859 Sharps rifle falls within the correct 54000-57000 serial number range of the 2,000 special ordered rifles produced in 1862 for the 1st and 2nd U.S. Sharpshooter regiments (U.S.S.) organized and recruited by Colonel Hiram Berdan (Berdan's Sharpshooters), and the left wrist of the stock is stamped with the bordered script "JT" inspection cartouche of John Taylor. John Taylor inspected all 2,000 of the Berdan special contract rifles between April 11 and May 24, 1862, per Wiley Sword's book. Berdan's two U.S. Sharpshooter regiments (U.S.S.) were composed of experienced marksman from Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont and Wisconsin. The regiments were intended to serve as skirmishers and light infantry modeled on the famous British Rifle Brigade. Like their British counterparts, the U.S.S. were issued dark green uniforms with non-reflective black buttons. Berdan selected the New Model 1859 Sharps rifle to arm the Sharpshooters, replacing the originally issued Colt Model 1855 rifles. The Ordnance Department's initial order was for standard New Model 1859 rifles, but Colonel Hiram Berdan contacted the factory and requested a dull barrel finish and double set triggers. The factory assumed Berdan had permission for the changes and began producing rifles for the unit to his specifications, but once the Ordnance Department got word, they insisted that they would not pay for additional rifles in the altered configuration. However, given that the specifications Berdan requested did not actually cost more due to the use of a socket bayonet rather than a sword bayonet, Sharps may have just continued making the rifles as Berdan requested. Many of the rifles were used by the Sharpshooters, but others were diverted and used by other units including the Bucktails (13th Pennsylvania). Page 82 of Wiley Sword's book states, "...a detail of sharpshooters cut small sticks to fit to the sight in order to increase the elevation while at the Po River in 1864. Their shots at an estimated 1,500 yards distance caused a Confederate signal station to be abandoned, reported an observer." This rifle has a blade front sight that doubles as a socket bayonet lug, standard Lawrence patent notch and ladder rear sight with readings graduated to 800 yards with a 900 yard center notch at the top, standard markings including the Sharps Hartford address on top of the barrel ahead of the rear sight and "NEW MODEL 1859" at the breech, illegible inspection initials on the left breech of the barrel, adjustable double set triggers, long military forearm, sling swivels on the middle barrel band and buttstock, an iron patch box, and is correctly not fit with a lever latch. The matching serial number "55942" is marked on top of the receiver tang and on the underside of the barrel. Most of these rifles saw hard use in some of the most significant major battles of the Civil War in a specialized role similar to a modern day sniper rifle, with many dropped in battle; surviving examples are highly sought after today!