Henry "Harry" G. Stephens donated the shotgun to Witmer Stone on June 25, 1920, according to a copy of his letter dated June 11, 1940, to C. M. B. Cadwalader:

"About 1873 my father sent me to see DeLancey Cleveland, who, as I remember, was a newphew or cousin of George Ord, to get the double-barreled gun which was carried by Alexander Wilson from Maine to the Gulf of Mexico. This gun I left with Mr. Stone on June 25, 1920, and is now in your posession."

H.G. Stephens' brother, W. G. Stephens wrote to Harry on May 23, 1940 (extracted):

"All that I can tell you about the Wilson gun is that I found the locksmith who had changed it from flintlock to cap, but he had not kept the old hammers. There is no reason to suppose that the stock is other than the original ... all that would be done would be to unscrew the powder pan from the barrel, put in a new one with a nipple, and to change the hammers."

Typed extracts of both letters are the source for this information, rediscovered in June 2012, and housed in the 2011-034 Control File in the Academy Archives.