Trapdoor Rifles

Looking for any info on 1888 ramrod rifle. Serial number 508636.

I missed a nice looking Ramrod Bayonet rifle at the Show of Shows in Louisville a couple weeks ago. Got lucky today and picked one up locally. 1890 cartouche, bright bore and some case hardening left on it. On the top of the butt plate 5H/13 is stamped. It had been in the same family for 70+ years. Much better priced than the one I missed.

That sounds like a great rifle! I’ve been looking for an ‘84 or later model in excellent shape for mid-range shooting out to 800 yards. The ones I run into here are usually well used and typically earlier models.

508636 is NOT listed in the SRS database.

Did you find out where the family was from?

The markings indicate use by the 5th Regiment, Company H, soldier number 13.

Some militia units had one regimental designation in peacetime, but were reorganized and redesignated for service in the Spanish American War, so it is not certain if this was a peacetime unit or one put together for wartime service only.

The wonderful https://www.spanamwar.com site lists the order of battle with units in combined numerical order, not separately for each state.
They list:
5th Maryland Volunteer Infantry- served only in CONUS.
5th Missouri Volunteer Infantry- served only in CONUS
5th Ohio Volunteer Infantry- served only in CONUS, Company H was raised in Youngstown
5th U.S. Volunteer Infantry- served as occupation troops in Cuba after the armistice. Company H roster is posted
5th U.S. Infantry [not volunteer] Company M roster listed. Served as occupation troops in Cuba for a year (Volunteer units only stayed a few months) then transferred to the Philippines for service in the insurrection.

No SRS history on that number one in the 508 range went to the 12th New York and the 13 may well be the 13th New York as regular units were not allowed to mark unit information on their arms. Google the 13th New York in the Spanish war and find the history of the regiment sad as it is for the war. The men that did volunteer were sent to other units and some I have seen also had 8 added alongside the 13. Hope this helps.

The former owner ( he is 75) said the rifle was purchased by his father at an auction barn in Monroeville PA around 1954. He said there were a couple crates of them, he thought covered in cosmoline. Price was 2.75.
Maybe they were from Ohio?

So is it believed that most or all unit marked trapdoors are militia or national guard guns if it was against federal regs to mark them or is it within a timeframe?