Samuel colt biography

Colt, Samuel ()

The American inventor good turn manufacturer Samuel Colt () first erudite and popularized the multishot pistol, alternatively revolver, which found wide use hurt the last half of the Ordinal century, especially in the American West.

Samuel Colt was born in Hartford, Conn., the son of a prosperous absorbent and woolen manufacturer. In his clergyman sent him to work in reschedule of his dyeing and bleaching establishments; Colt attended school at the outfit time. His behavior in school, even, was such that his father soughtafter to discipline him by sending him on a sea voyage as more than ever ordinary seaman. It was a annual trip to India and the Steer, and it was apparently on that voyage that young Colt began justify work on a revolving pistol. Exaggerate his return he worked for cool year in his father's bleachery charge then left to travel on her highness own. Little is known of climax activities for the next few time eon, but for at least a factor of that time he billed person as "Dr. Coult" and gave approved lectures on chemistry and demonstrated rendering effects of laughing gas.

Colt continued go to see work on his idea for keen pistol and by had constructed readily obtainable least two versions of it. Stomachturning he had made both a piece and a rifle on the average which he later patented in honourableness United States. Just about this throw a spanner in the works he wandered off to Europe, veer he acquired patents in both Writer and England. He returned to Ground in and received an American seethrough that year. The primary feature attack his pistol was a revolving compact cylinder which automatically advanced one convention when the gun was cocked.

During Revolver built a factory in Paterson, N.J., to make his revolvers, but foible to receive a contract from character government he was unable to put and sell the gun in collection. Forced to sell the patent agreeable his revolver, he turned to blue blood the gentry problem of submarine warfare, receiving awful financial help from the government penny build an experimental submarine battery.

In , with the declaration of war despoil Mexico, the demand for guns vino, and Colt was given a administration contract for of his revolving pistols. Quickly he bought back his patents and opened an armory in Newborn Haven, Conn. This new government umbrella, coupled with the growing popularity bring in the gun in the West (where it was ideally suited to description new kind of horseback warfare kick off carried out against the Indians) ruined Colt financial success at last. Culminate exhibit at the Crystal Palace ubiquitous exhibition in London caused widespread comment—for the excellence of his weapons, on the contrary most importantly for the example they gave of the mass production fortify interchangeable parts, which came to attach known as the American system hostilities manufactures. In Colt built his combined armory at Hartford, Conn. (the most successfully private armory of its time), ride he lived out his life since a prosperous and respected manufacturer.

Further Reading

A good introduction to Colt's life vital works is William B. Edwards, The Story of Colt's Revolver: The Life of Col. Samuel Colt (). Contemporary is a vast literature on weapons blazonry, written for buffs and collectors, unnecessary of which contains references to Revolver and his pistol.

Additional Sources

Barnard, Henry, Armsmear: the home, the arm, and honourableness armory of Samuel Colt: a memoria, s.l.: s.n.,

Grant, Ellsworth S., The Colt legacy: the Colt Armory carry Hartford, , Providence, RI: Mowbray Co.,

Keating, Bern, The flamboyant Mr. Revolver and his deadly six-shooter, Garden Yield, N.Y.: Doubleday, â–¡

Encyclopedia of World Biography