Sparking the Revolution: Flintlocks, Gunpowder, and Policy in America's War for Independence

Join us in Springfield November 20 and 21st, 2025! The University of Wyoming College of Law’s Firearms Research Center, in partnership with Springfield Armory National Historic Site, invites you to an academic conference exploring the complex role of firearms in Revolutionary America.

Through thought-provoking panels, lectures, and discussions, the program will delve into topics such as colonial disarmament and regulation, the function of militias, the material culture of arms, and archaeological insights into the earliest days of the Revolution.

Bringing together historians, curators, and scholars, this event offers a balanced and dynamic look at how firearms, policy, and community shaped the struggle for independence - and how these legacies continue to inform our understanding of early America and resonate in conversations today.

Free to the Public

Schedule:
November 20th (Springfield Armory National Historic Site)
5-7:30pm Welcome Reception and Fireside Chat on Founding Era History and the U.S. Supreme Court's Bruen decision.

November 21st (Springfield Technical Community College)
8:30-8:45am Opening Remarks
8:45-10:00am Panel 1: Disarmament and the Revolution (CLE)
Panelists:
Bob Cottrol, George Washington University
E. Gregory Wallace, Campbell University
James Slaughter, Marshall University
10:15-11:00am: Guns of the American Revolution
Speaker: Erik Goldstein, Colonial Williamsburg
11:00-11:30am: The Earliest Days of Springfield Armory
Speaker: Alex Mackenzie, Springfield Armory
11:30am-12:30pm Lunch
12:30-1:45pm: Panel 2: The Colonial Militia (CLE)
Panelists:
Jody Madeira, Indiana University
Joyce Malcolm, George Mason University
Alexander Cain, Author
1:55-2:40pm: Creating an Arsenal of Liberty
Speaker: Andrew Fagal, Historian
2:40-3:25pm: Early Ballistics of the American Revolution
Speaker: Joel Bohy, Antiques Roadshow