April 2006 Page 4

Black Powder Revolver

The Online Magazine and Resource for Black Powder Revolvers

ILLION, N.Y., U.S.A. /, NEW MODEL, matches that of the New Model Army. Production was estimated at 122,000 with a starting serial number in the area of 15000. Records for Remington production are not as complete as those for Colt firearms. Given the serial number of 41524, we can guess that this was produced early in the timeframe being in the first 30,000 of the 122,000. The records in McAulay show that 31,802 were produced in 1863 with 58,003 produced in 1864. So we should be close with a late 1863 early 1864 production date for this gun. So many units were equipped with the Remington, that I had no luck in trying to tie this serial number to any particular unit. As to how it became inscribed “State Prison”, your guess is as good as mine. Many revolvers of all makes were sold to discharged soldiers or refurbished and sold or transferred to States or gun dealers. Either of these routes seems plausible as to how a Civil War revolver made its way to a state prison. It is very likely that this revolver was used in the Civil War.

Now for the story on the Colt Pocket. Going back to R.L. Wilson book, the Holy Grail of serial numbers, I found that this revolver was made in 1860. There were over 200 variants of the Model 1849 and over 326,000 were produced from 1850 to 1873. It was not only popular in the civilian market, but was also a staple of both sides during the Civil War. Many found their way into military service by private purchase, so there are few records of military purchase and issue. The serial

number and barrel markings match with those listed in Flayderman’s Guide to Antique American Firearms, by Norm Flayderman. This book is another excellent source for serial numbers, inscriptions and markings.

So our last piece of archeology was the Colt Dragoon. The term "Dragoon" comes from the name of a heavily armed mounted soldier. These revolvers were large and heavy and were unsuited to be worn as a sidearm. They were also referred to as a "Horse Pistol" since they were usually carried on a horse rather than as a sidearm. My initial guess based on the serial number and trigger guard was correct. Checking the serial number data in Wilson confirmed that this was a First Model Dragoon, produced in 1848. In that year, production started at serial number 1341 and ended before 4000. So this was the oldest of the 4 revolvers. In checking the purchase records in McAulay, there we few details other than to note the purchase of “Patented Repeating Pistols” through 1849. Flayderman had a bit more information which positively identified this as a First Model Dragoon by the serial number. The early issue of Dragoons were to mounted units in the western territories. Again, due to a lack of easily accessible records, I was unable to find a unit of issue. Based on the small number produced and few surviving examples, this was also the most valuable of the four. If you are interested in the values, get the current edition of Flayderman’s. Let’s just say I probably won’t be buying one and will be sticking to replicas.

The Real Thing (continued)

April 2006 Edition

Page 4

Three variants of the Colt 1949 Pocket

Photo Texas Ranger Museum

Barrel Stamp of the Colt 1949 Pocket

Photo Texas Ranger Museum