Rifle by Charles Russell Bean Jr.

Charles Russell Bean Jr., son of Charles Robertson Bean,  was born in 1835, in Washington County. Charles Jr. is first listed as a gunsmith in 1860, in the 18th civil dist. of Washington County, on South Indian Creek. This is now in Unicoi County. He was also there in 1870 and died there in 1919. AHe is the last of the Bean gunsmiths. His shop, still standing in 1989, is to be town down or moved to make way for a new highway.

His rifles are both half and fullstocked, mostly of walnut, a few of maple. Most mountings of iron, sometimes including a banana shaped patchbox. The side plates were usually diamond shaped and the tang usually came over the comb of the stock. He seldom signed his rifles but stamped several stars on the rear sight and a ring of stars around the muzzle.

Photographed at the 2012 Lake Cumberland Show by Jan Riser. The copy is from a sheet that was with the rifle.