demands. William Henry was the first son of John and Elizabeth Henry, born May 19, 1729, at the old homestead in Chester County. The early death of his father caused him to forego a formal education, but Henry, possessed of a mind being strong in its powers, was evi- dently bent on the acquisition of

mechanical genius in Lancaster County was William Henry. Henry's abilities in gunsmithing and his outstanding contributions to winning the American Revolution have been described well by Samuel Dyke and others of the gunsmithing fraternity. The manufacture of guns obviously presented numerous challenges to