Richard A. Hosmer

Richard A. (Dick) Hosmer has collected Springfield rifles since 1970. He began by specializing in the Allin “trapdoor” series, but gradually expanded into an attempt to acquire a specimen of every different long-arm produced at SA during the 1865-1895 time period. This greatly increased the interest of the collection, though a few items remain out of reach. He is a Life Member of the California Rifle and Pistol Association, and a Benefactor Life Member of the National Rifle Association. He began this project in 1992, by accepting a challenge from Joseph Poyer of North Cape Publications, to write a book which would cover the scarce and rare models omitted from their basic work on the subject. Over 25 years, the manuscript grew to a size which would require splitting it into two volumes, covering over fifty related arms. The ‘first half’ of the project, entitled "The .58 and .50 Caliber Rifles and Carbines of Springfield Armory, 1865-1872” was published by North Cape in 2006. "More .45-70 Springfields, 1873-1893" completes the work. The author’s ancestors arrived in America in 1635, while his collateral lines extend to the “Mayflower”. Several members have served in the military over the years. In addition to that, his family also had a very long association with the Springfield Armory. At least eight cousins were employed there - with, at one point, three generations working side-by-side. There was at least one Hosmer on the Armory payroll from 1809 to 1915, the record for one family at Springfield.