Ten companies of riflemen were raised by order of the Congress of Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania in 1777.  The long Kentucky or Pennsylvania rifle in the hands of frontiersmen was a deadly weapon accurate up to 200 yards and treated with the greatest respect by British soldiers.  Fast moving, firing from behind cover, picking off officers and sentries, they were the forerunner of the present day sniper.  However, the rifle was slow to load and could not facilitate the fitting of a bayonet and was at a distinct disadvantage when faced by a soldier with a musket and bayonet.

Rifleman were clothed in hunting shirts of linen or buckskin, often dyed in various colors appropriate to their home state.  Our subject is based upon a primitive drawing made by a German auxilliary.

[SOURCE:  R. J. Marrion.  Fellow of The Company of Military Historians of America.  Uniforms of the American War of Independence.  A series of 24 collector cards.  Victoria Gallery, London, England. 1992.]

[SOURCE: Uniforms of the American War of Independence. A series of 24 collector cards.  Illustration by R. J. Marrion.  Fellow of The Company of Military Historians of America.  Victoria Gallery, London, England.  1992.]

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