Federal govt requires purchase of weapons by citizens - 1792

[surprise_i'm_armed]

There has been much discussion recently about the
constitutionality of the US government requiring the purchase
of health insurance by the populace.

Can the US government force the citizenry to buy ANYTHING?

One of the earliest requirements by the federal gummint for
citizens to purchase something was the 2nd Militia Act of 1792.

Although I did not have time to research the litigation that ensued,
US citizens were not 100% behind the Act, which required that citizens,
AT THEIR OWN EXPENSE, purchase a musket, bayonet and belt, two spare flints,
a cartridge box with 24 bullets, and a knapsack. Men owning rifles were required
to provide a powder horn, 1/4 pound of gun powder, 20 rifle balls, a shooting pouch, and a knapsack.

More detail about this can be found at the following link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Militia_Acts_of_1792

SIA

[A-R]

Interesting, SIA. Thanks for the post. I find most enlightening that they were only required to have 24 bullets on hand. Many of us carry more than that on our person on a daily basis and some feel anything less leaves you "vulnerable".

Of course, they probably figured if you were still alive after firing 24 rounds from a cap-n-ball musket, you'd either already won the battle or it had devolved into a Mel Gibson/Russell Crowe epic movie fight scene

[surprise_i'm_armed]

Did you notice that muskets required 24 rounds,
but riflemen only needed to provide 20 rounds?

SIA

[Purplehood]

Did you notice that muskets required 24 rounds,
but riflemen only needed to provide 20 rounds?

SIA

Accuracy being the primary reason I would guess (smack me if I am stating the obvious).

[Liberty]

Did you notice that muskets required 24 rounds,
but riflemen only needed to provide 20 rounds?

SIA

Accuracy being the primary reason I would guess (smack me if I am stating the obvious).

Rifle was considerably slower to load

[ELB]

In colonial times, there were also laws REQUIRING men to bring their muskets or rifles to church (since the men, of course, were in the militia). Inspections were held and those without weapons or with non-working weapons could be fined. Religious sensibilities were a bit more muscular in those days...

[tboesche]

Wasn't there a town or county in Georgia a while back passed a law that every houshold should have a gun?

[jimlongley]

Wasn't there a town or county in Georgia a while back passed a law that every houshold should have a gun?

Kennesaw, GA.

[Bvhawk]

Find the Best Places to Live in the USA
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Kennesaw Crime Statistics Report
Kennesaw Crime Report

General Information: Violent vs. Property Crime Rate:
State: Georgia (GA) Violent Crime Property Crime
City Population: 25,183
Murder: 1
Forcible Rape: 0
Robbery: 7
Aggravated Assault: 15
Burglary: 89
Larceny or Theft: 455
Car Theft: 47
Arson: 0
Data Source:
2003 FBI Report of Offenses Known to Law Enforcement
Zero values may indicate the data was not available. 23 591tom Search

[joe817]

Hi Bvhawk, welcome to the forum! Glad to have you with us!

Thanks for the interesting stats! For a town that requires its citizens to own a gun, it looks like it's a pretty safe place to live! 1 murder, 0 rapes. Hmmmm...wonder if that gets publicized if another other municipalities might get the message? 'Specially maybe on our border towns?

I believe in the Penal Code there is a statute giving the governor(or a municipal government) authority to require citizens to arm themselves. Just to have that statute in there is comforting to me.

God Bless Texas!