A. Connecticut
Among the Colonial militia statutes, Connecticut's 1650 code contains one of the clearest expressions of the duty to own a gun: “That all persons that are above the age of sixteene yeares, except magistrates and church officers, shall beare arms...; and every male person with this jurisdiction, above the said age, shall have in continuall readines, a good muskitt or other gunn, fitt for service, and allowed by the clark of the band.…” iv A less elaborate form of the law appeared in 1636, with reiterations in 1637, 1665, 1673, 1696, and 1741.v Fines varied between two and ten shillings for lacking firearms or for failure to appear with firearms “compleat and well fixt upon the days of training….”vi
B. Virgina
Virginia provides another example of a militia statute obligating all free men to own a gun. A 1684 statute required free Virginians to “provide and furnish themselves with a sword, musquet and other furniture fitt for a soldier… two pounds of powder, and eight pounds of shott….”vii A similar 1705 statute required every foot soldier to arm himself “with a firelock, muskett, or fusee well fixed” and gave him eighteen months to comply with the law before he would subject to fine.viii There are minor modifications to the statute in 1738 that still required all members of the militia to appear at musters with the same list of gun choices, but reduced the ammunition requirement to one pound of powder and four pounds of lead balls.ix A 1748 revision is also clear that militiamen were obligated to provide themselves with “arms and ammunition.”x The 1748 statute, however, did acknowledge that all freemen might not be wealthy enough to arm themselves, and provided for issuance of arms “out of his majesty‟s magazine.”xi By 1755, all cavalry officers were obligated to provide themselves with “holsters and pistols well fixed….
L. North Carolina
North Carolina passed militia laws in or before 1715 and in 1746 that were similar in form. The earlier statute required every member of the militia (every freeman between 16 and 60) to show up for muster “with a good Gun well-fixed Sword & at least Six Charges of Powder & Ball” or pay a fine.xxxv The 1746 statute obligated “all the Freemen and Servants... between the Age of Sixteen Years, and Sixty” to enlist in the militia, and further, required all such persons “be well provided with a Gun, fit for Service,… and at least Twelve Charges of Powder and Ball, or Swan Shot, and Six spare Flints.....” Failure to have those when called to militia muster would subject one to a fine of two shillings, eight pence, “for Want of any of the Arms, Accoutrements, or Ammunition....” Interestingly enough, unlike other colonies, the definition of militia member under both statutes did not exclude free blacks.xxxvi According to John Hope Franklin, “free Negroes served in the militia of North Carolina with no apparent discrimination against them.