The Man Who Didn't Invent the Revolver: The Odyssey of Samuel Colt
The inventor's iconic portrait, engraved on a steel plate, from a daguerreotype by Philip Graff. Colt holds a Model 1851 revolver.
Samuel Colt may be a real person, but in the United States, he enjoys a semi-mythical status. His life and work are surrounded by so many myths and legends that it's often difficult to discern what's fiction and what's fact. On February 25, 1836, 190 years ago, Samuel Colt received the first patent for an automatic revolver. What was the inventor's path and what actions led him to the status of inventor of one of the most legendary weapons systems in history? stories humanity.
A classic pepperpot pistol from the collection of the Tula Arms Museum
As a child, Colt was a rather inquisitive boy. At age 11, he began working as a farm laborer. No, little Samuel wasn't a laborer or a farmhand; he came from a fairly well-off family, so he worked around the house of a wealthy farmer while still attending school. But the lack of parental supervision gave him a certain freedom, which he took advantage of, perhaps a little atypically for a boy. Colt began to devour encyclopedias and scientific articles. This even led to him being reprimanded at school for not studying the Bible diligently enough. Colt himself later admitted that articles about gunpowder, firearms, and other subjects weapon and the inventor Robert Fulton made the strongest impression on him.
An early Collier revolver, circa 1818.
When he started working at his father's textile factory at 15, he gained access to tools and materials and gave free rein to his ideas. Around the same time, he overheard a conversation between two army officers, one of whom admired double-barreled hunting shotguns and lamented the impossibility of making a decent weapon that would fire reliably more than four or six times in a row. Young Colt then decided he would create the "impossible" weapon. Where there's a gun, there's gunpowder, and where there's gunpowder, there's pyrotechnics, which Colt also began to dabble in. While at boarding school, he decided to set off fireworks on the Fourth of July... but instead, he started a fire. To be on the safe side and cover up the matter, Colt Sr. sent his son to Europe to study the maritime trade. This is how Colt ended up on the ship "Corvo," sailing from London to Calcutta.
Early prototypes created by Colt. It's clear why the help of a professional gunsmith was needed and why one of the earliest prototypes simply exploded. The technological level of the products is extremely low, which is not surprising; there simply wasn't enough money for proper tooling and equipment, and the experience was lacking. But the family traits of future models are quite recognizable.
Incidentally, repeating weapons existed before Colt decided to embark on the path of invention. But these were all multi-barrel systems. Various "harmonicas," "pepper shakers," and so on. The general principle of such weapons was the same: multiple barrels, each loaded with its own propellant, from which several shots could be fired in succession (and sometimes simultaneously). The main drawback of such designs was almost always bulkiness, low accuracy, and the inconvenience of preparing the weapon for a new shot.
Even when the pepperboxes reached a more or less usable form—namely, designers settled on five or six barrels—firing them was extremely awkward. Yes, essentially, it was almost like a revolver's cylinder, but before each shot, the cylinder had to be manually rotated, aligning the next loaded barrel under the hammer. This meant you could fire the pepperbox with one hand, but to fire a second (third, fourth, etc.) shot, you had to hold the pistol with one hand and rotate the barrel block with the other, aligning it correctly with the hammer. Needless to say, this was even more difficult in a stressful situation; it was easy to rotate the block until the next empty barrel, with all the ensuing consequences.
The same patent of February 25, 1836
The second major drawback of such systems is the need to load each barrel separately. So, you fire six shots with one pistol... But then, to repeat those six shots, you have to use practically the same manipulations as loading six pistols. You fire for a minute, then reload for five... And finally, to ensure such a weapon had any reasonable weight and balance, the barrel length had to be limited.
Even before the legendary Walker model appeared, Texas was one of the primary consumers of Colt's design systems. The Colt-Paterson No. 5, or simply the "Texas Paterson," is clearly visible. The revolver originally lacked a cylinder loading lever. The lever was manufactured as a separate combination tool and became part of the revolver itself on later models of the 1840s, and became a permanent fixture on revolvers with the introduction of the Walker and Dragoon.
British inventor Elisha Collier decided to address these last two drawbacks. He created the so-called "transitional pepperbox." Essentially, it wasn't yet a revolver, but it wasn't a pepperbox either, but a full-size flintlock pistol with a full-size cylinder. Similar designs existed before Collier, but his was officially patented and quite commercially successful. However, in other respects, it was essentially the same old pepperbox; cocking the hammer and rotating the cylinder were separate processes, completely unrelated. Manipulating the weapon required two hands.
John "Too Brave" Hayes. Photograph from 1857.
On board a merchant ship, Colt saw Collier's revolver and a capstan—an anchor-hoisting winch with a braking mechanism that prevented the winch drum from spinning backwards. Apparently, listening to the clicking of the braking mechanism's gear, something clicked in Colt's head. Hundreds of people had seen this pistol and winch on the ship, but only in the mind of the inventor, constantly searching for creativity, did two and two add up to four.
Samuel Walker, photographed in 1846. That same year, he collaborated with Colt to create the legendary revolver model. This is the last photo of the former Texas Ranger captain in his lifetime; in 1847, Walker would die in battle with the Mexicans. Walker owned two revolvers bearing his name.
The first prototype was crafted from wood on board the ship, demonstrating that the idea of a hammer connected to a cylinder was entirely feasible. Returning to the United States in 1832, Colt crafted the first prototype of a fully functional gun at home, and the pistol successfully… exploded in his hands. Apparently unwilling to be complicit in his son's suicide through his inventions, Colt Sr. refused to finance his son's development of the idea and the establishment of a gunmaking business.
Then begins Colt's saga as a traveling "doctor" performing laughing gas shows. This continues for several years, until interest in his performances wanes. Then comes a loan from a friend of his father's (yes, "knowing people" is useful even for a genius inventor) and the creation of the first full-fledged model with gunsmith John Pearson. Colt and Pearson later had a lengthy dispute over money, which gave rise to much speculation that Colt, in fact, didn't invent anything. Incidentally, Colt himself never claimed to have invented the first revolver. He created a convenient design with a rotating cylinder that could be operated with one hand.
Comanche warriors in an 1834 painting. It's easy to see where the demand for the ability to kill a horse with a single shot came from; for the Comanche, a horse also served as a mobile shelter.
The first patent in February 1836 was followed by another, the filing of an international patent, and a trip to London, where, although not immediately, the inventor succeeded in proving that Colt was not Collier. Then came money borrowed from a cousin (keeping in mind the "know the man" principle), another loan, the raising of venture capital, and the establishment of a full-fledged gun manufacturing company.
Colt didn't just create what we now consider a revolver; he was one of the first to create a weapon with fully interchangeable parts within a single model. A solid foundation and manufacturing experience paid off. Collier, for example, hand-finished each pistol; parts from one pistol couldn't be used to repair another of the same model. Plus, Colt designed the cylinder from the start to accept caps.
By 1837, production was established and small-scale production of revolvers in two calibers, revolver rifles, and shotguns was underway. More than 1000 units had been produced... and nothing. Sales were essentially nonexistent, meager. Individual units or small batches were sold. In 1837, the US financial crisis known as the "Panic of 1837" erupted, and sales of these cutting-edge, revolutionary, but rather expensive weapons simply ceased. The patent obtained in the US gave Colt a monopoly on revolver production until 1857, but this gave him absolutely nothing. Most of the weapons produced simply lay idle. He essentially abandoned gun production and focused on anything but revolvers.
Walker was a big revolver... A really big one. Well, what do you expect if your specifications clearly state—one-shot a horse?
Things might have continued this way, and Colt might have remained an unrecognized genius, but in the 1840s, a series of events occurred that changed the course of history for Samuel Colt. Several Colt-Paterson revolvers were acquired for himself and his men by Texas Ranger Captain John Hays. A measure of his manhood can be judged by the fact that even in those wild, desperate times, he earned the nickname "Too Brave."
Texas and the surrounding area were in a frenzy back then (as they are now, for that matter), and there was a lot of shooting going on, pretty much nonstop. The Texas Revolution, the war with the Comanche Empire, the Mexican-American War—all these events often didn't even follow one another, but ran concurrently, plus there were constant raids by motley gangs from Mexico, Comanche territory, or just shootouts with local bandits.
Somewhere in the midst of all this mayhem, a rather mundane event occurs: a detachment of Texas Rangers, including Hays and Samuel Walker (not the one with the beard, this one is 1. The real one, 2. Way cooler), raids a detachment of Comanches. There are 70 Indians, 15 Texans… The Comanches have already mentally counted the scalps and divided the spoils, but then something incredible happens, by the standards of the time. The Texans not only manage to fight back, they annihilate the Comanche detachment, and this despite being outnumbered almost five to one. Hays is delighted; for the first time, he was able to fully experience and understand the advantages of the Colt design. Not only can you fire repeatedly, you can do it with one hand while still controlling your horse with the other.
The Colt Model 1851 became the first true commercial success not only in the United States but also abroad. For example, it became the first revolver officially adopted by the British Army. Pictured is the revolver of a British officer who served in the Crimean War.
Then the Mexican War broke out, and former Texas Rangers, now U.S. Army Cavalrymen, decided they needed a specialized weapon for their missions. Hays sent Walker to meet with Colt to discuss the production of a special model revolver. Thus, in 1847, the Colt-Walker was born. A thousand revolvers were produced, with another 100 made for the civilian market. It was this model, coupled with the publicity the Texans provided, that marked the beginning of Colt.
It must be said that the Colt-Walker was a unique design, driven by the specifications from Walker and Hays. For example, it was specifically stated that the revolver should be capable of killing a horse with a single shot. The result was a sort of hand cannon that looked monstrous even in those days of large calibers and enormous charges of black powder. But the design itself proved extremely successful. The meeting of a theoretical inventor and a hard-nosed practitioner yielded truly impressive results. The incredibly successful Model 1851, produced for over 20 years, is essentially just a Walker scaled down to a manageable size and weight.
And then came the Civil War. Although Colt no longer had a monopoly under the terms of his patent, his factory was simply drowning in orders. And it wasn't just about supplying the army; soldiers were scrambling to get their hands on a revolver at every opportunity. The photo shows a black Union corporal with a Colt Model 1849 pocket pistol. Yes, smiling in photos was unacceptable back then. It was a serious and expensive matter, and you're just showing your teeth.
And then, finally, came commercial success, military and foreign orders, expansion of production and recognition.
Colt died unexpectedly and suddenly in 1862 at the age of 47, leaving behind a great legacy and countless stories that later became shrouded in legend and myth. Perhaps only true geniuses bring to the world inventions that generate rumors and controversy even hundreds of years after their creation.
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