Okay, it has been awhile. I found that Joseph Allport, gunmaker moved twice during the war. He likely operated his shop on the same premises as his home. Perhaps he expanded for the first move and then downsized during the second move when sales dropped. He did indeed declare bankruptcy in 1868 and I found the newspaper announcement on ancestry.com. The worst news is the grave markers for Joseph and Catherine (Kate) are gone. A friend of mine in Liverpool found the location of the graves a few years ago and sent me a photo of the unmarked graves. This cemetery was damaged during WWII from the indiscriminant bombing, but I did not see any other missing or damaged headstones in the vicinity. it is a mystery for now.
Anyway, the matter of the bankruptcy is settled and the explanation that he suffered a devastating financial loss related to arms sales to the Confederacy is plausible. I just wish I could get my hands on the chest full of Confederate paper money.