Also known as the 'Forager', Springfield Armory manufactured 1,376 between 1881 and 1885 of these trapdoor, 20 gauge shotguns for issue to government hunters and scouts on frontier military posts. The shotguns have their own serial number range from 1-1376; this shotgun is numbered "538" behind the breechblock. The shotguns have a distinctive 26 inch round barrel with a brass bead at the muzzle. The barrel is not marked. The shotgun has an armory modified Model 1863 Rifle/Musket stock with a screw on the bottom of the forearm that holds the stock to the barrel in lieu of the band. The original ramrod channel is filled with a wooden dowel. The receiver has a 'low arch' breechblock with the distinctive mark "1881" in slanted letters that was used only on Model 1881 Shotgun breechblocks. The lock has the correct two-click tumbler and hammer with early coarse, knurling on the spur. The lock plate is stamped with the eagle and shield motif ahead of the hammer and the early, dated, "U.S./SPRINGFIELD/1873" three-line marking. The left stock wrist is stamped with a final inspection mark that consists of the script initials "SWP" over "1882" in a rectangle. The Springfield Model 1881 Shotgun is a scarce and important Trapdoor Springfield variation that typically saw hard use and has a low survival rate.