Per Smith & Wesson historian Roy Jinks, this rifle will factory letter as shipped on April 20, 1841, to a J.S. Hill in Boston, Mass. at a price of $25.00. While Hill's specific identity is not clear, there was a John S. Hill active as a merchant in Boston in the 1840s, who was involved in international trade including the importation of sugar and molasses. At that time, Edwin Wesson's (1811-1849) shop in Northboro, Massachusetts, produced some of the world’s finest target rifles and pistols. His younger brothers Daniel Baird Wesson (1825-1906) of Smith & Wesson fame and Franklin Wesson (1828-1899) were trained in the shop and may have worked on this rifle. D.B. Wesson briefly continued to produce these rifles after his elder brother's untimely death from a heart attack. Some of their rifles are known to have been used by sharpshooters during the Civil War, with several known to have been engraved by Gustave Young. The top barrel flat is marked "WESSON./HARTFORD CT/CAST STEEL". An eagle flanks both ends of the barrel marking. The barrel has a dovetailed globe front sight and dovetailed low notch rear sight. The muzzle is turned down and drilled for use with the included false muzzle, and the breech plug has scroll, crosshatch, and border engraving and is marked "93" on the bottom. The same number is marked on the top of the frame at the breech. The takedown screw has the assembly number "743." The hammer and action components along with the bright German silver furniture are engraved with very nicely executed floral scroll patterns. The engraving has similarities with the Wesson rifle in the Smithsonian's collection (accession number: 164794) that was used by Edwin J. Stanclift of the 8th Company, 1st Battalion, New York Sharpshooters, during the Civil War. The upper tang has an adjustable peep sight, and the rifle is equipped with adjustable double set triggers. The stock has nice figure, a high gloss finish, and a crescent buttplate with a small compartment in the heel. The individually fitted takedown case contains the rifle and a full set of loading and maintenance accessories, most also marked with the "743" assembly number. They include: a picket bullet mold, Boche Parisian powder flask with a scene of a hunter and two hunting dogs and built in adjustable measure, extra blade front sight and peep sight, spare insert and nipples, adjustment key for the peep sight, the noted false muzzle, a brass starter, turn screws and more.

Very fine with 85% plus original blue finish along the barrel fading to a plum brown patina on balance, scratches, and a mostly smooth silver gray patina on the action, 20% original niter blue on the trigger plate, and bright German silver furniture. The engraving and markings are crisp. The stock is also very fine and retains the vast majority of the original varnish and has some nice figure and minor wear such as light scratches and dings. Mechanically excellent. The case and accessories are generally fine or better and exhibit mostly minor wear from age and storage including some crack in the left side of lid. This is a very attractive and rare Edwin Wesson target rifle. No advanced Smith & Wesson collection is complete without one of the rifles from Edwin Wesson's shop considering they were the earliest arms produced by D. B. Wesson, and they are significant antique American firearms in their own right as among the best mid-19th century target rifles used by sportsmen and Civil War sharpshooters.