This Brown Bess musket is marked "TOWER/1741" on the tail of the lock plate and has the "crown/GR" for "Georgius Rex" which is Latin for King George marking ahead of the cock along with a "crown/broad arrow" government ownership mark below the pan. This early date almost assures this musket to have seen use in King George's War, the French and Indian War (Seven Years War) and the American Revolution along with smaller local conflicts between the English colonists and Native Americans such as Pontiac's Rebellion. The right side of the comb has a carved "US", and the top of the barrel has a series of British proofmarks. "ST" appears to be hand marked on the left side of the butt. It has the standard features of the Long Land Pattern including a bayonet stud/front sight, brass furniture including the distinctive side plate and thumb piece, and the nearly full length straight wrist walnut stock with attractively shaped comb. The overall length of the musket is 61 3/8 inches. In the included letter of provenance, Eric Vaule notes that the comb marking is likely a "US" surcharge marking and that he had never seen another Long Land Pattern (what he terms "First Model") Brown Bess with this marking. The letter also details that Vaule purchased the musket and the Jonathan Conant diary from Wm. Dykes Antiques of Wiscasset, Maine, while setting up at the Hartford Gun Show in October of 2002. Dykes had acquired it from a New Hampshire "picker" who had found it and the diary together but refused to identify where. The two were evidently found in the same place and given their untouched condition had remained in some secluded place for more than two centuries. Vaule notes that he referenced examples from the famous Flixton Hall hoard in restoring those components. It was very common for Long Land Pattern muskets to be cut down to the more manageable 42 inch barrel length of the Short Land Pattern or to have been simply used until they were rendered inoperable and then discarded. This musket appears to have remained in use well into the Revolutionary War period and was either captured during the war by the American rebels or already in their hands before the war started. That the musket was found with the following diary also suggests it remained in use well into the revolutionary war period. Weapons in colonial America were relatively scarce and most families would have used the same smooth bore muskets or occasionally a rifle for both hunting and defense. They were often passed down through multiple generations, and thus, rifles or muskets used by colonists in the French and Indian War and other earlier conflicts in service to the crown were passed down to sons and grandsons and used by the men of the Continental Army and militia units during the Revolution. Early colonial or English made weapons remained the primary weapons used by the Americans even after large numbers of French Charleville muskets were imported to help equip the Continental Army and local militias. Jonathan Conant's diary pages hint at how under supplied the Americans were. The loose diary pages are protected in plastic sleeves and contained in a binder titled "The Revolutionary War Diary of Jonathan Conant, 1st New Hampshire Regiment". The binder was assembled by an adept historical researcher and includes transcriptions of each page of the diary in both the original format and more modern style text along with information about the various engagements, towns, and important leaders involved along with copies of documents concerning Conant from the National Archives such as his entries on the pay and muster rolls. Also included are modern copies of the two volume set "A History and Genealogy of the Conant Family in England and America. . ." privately printed in 1837. The diary details Conant's account of his personal experience during the American Revolution and appears to have been written after the war. He served in the Continental Army beginning in March 6, 1777, at the age of 16 and served until April 20, 1780. His account ends after he arrived at Brunswick, New Jersey, on July 4th, 1778. The first entry discusses the arrival of Horatio Gates as commander after General Schuyler was replaced by Congress (referred by Conant as the Grand Council of the United States) due to his failure to hold Fort Ticonderoga. Conant notes the elation of the men upon learning of Gates arrival. He goes on to detail his experience of the battles at and around Saratoga with details of the number killed and wounded in the engagements and the artillery captured. Conant did not know this at the time, but while Gates was credited with the victory at Saratoga, Daniel Morgan (mentioned in the entries), Benedict Arnold, and other unit leaders were actually responsible for the victory largely because they disobeyed Gates' orders. While Gate's received the glory, Arnold was left seething and eventually joined the British as he continued to feel underappreciated and disrespected by his fellow American officers. One passage of importance is a discussion of the men refusing to fight until they received the clothing and wages they were due. Conant notes that the men banded together to march to headquarters and demand an explanation as to why they had not received what they were due. If they did not find the reason sufficient, they resolved to march home. Captain Beal apparently threatened to kill the first man who attempted to cross a brook on their march, but the body of men banded together and defiantly passed him. The captain retreated and then returned to talk. He took a man aside to talk at which time "he ran him through the body and turned to escape but the same man who he ran through on falling backward cocked his gun and shot the Capt. Through the body at the same instant. The next soldier died about sunrise the next morning and the Capt. Died about sunset." This entry highlights multiple important realities of the Continental Army's citizen soldiers. The men were fighting against English tyranny by their own free will and were more than willing to defy their orders if they felt unjustly treated by their officers. It also demonstrates that the army was often poorly organized and supplied which further complicated relations between the leadership and the men. The next section details his experience at Valley Forge during the winter of 1777-1778 including how the men "suffered almost incredibly for want of provisions and clothing." Over 2,500 men died from exposure and lack of adequate housing and supplies by February 1778. After surviving the winter, Conant explains they pursued the British forces as they left from Philadelphia and chased them to Monmouth (June 28, 1778) where the Americans forced the British give up the field and flee to their ships; Conant and the men then marched to Brunswick to celebrate the Fourth of July. The letter also notes that the ramrod, cock, and top jaw are more recent but accurate replacements. The ramrod was in Dykes possession at the time Vaule purchased it, and the latter components were acquired through antique firearm restorer Karl Krueger.