Lot 3013 : Historical Commander 1st U.S. Colored Cavalry Presentation Set of Colt Model 1851 Navy and Model 1849 Pocket Revolvers -A) Colt 1849 Pocket RevolverB) Colt Model 1851 Navy Revolver

Show more images

Title:

Historical Commander 1st U.S. Colored Cavalry Presentation Set of Colt Model 1851 Navy and Model 1849 Pocket Revolvers -A) Colt 1849 Pocket RevolverB) Colt Model 1851 Navy Revolver

Description:

Rare Combination Cased 1849/1851 Civil War Presentation Colt Revolvers to the Commander of the 1st U.S. Colored Cavalry. Among the rarities in the collecting world are a group of newly developed percussion Colt revolvers (Models 1860 Army,1861 Navy,1862 Police) presented in pairs and unique combinations to high ranking generals in November, 1861. However, before these presentations, there were a few known instances where mixed pairs of revolvers were found in original Colt factory casings. Among the first defenders of the Union who answered President Abraham Lincoln's call for 75,000 volunteers on April 5th 1861 were the organized militia from Massachusetts. Charles M. Whelden of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, was a member of the Ancient & Honorable Artillery Company Boston, the first organized military company in the state and the third oldest charter organization in the world. As a captain in the Massachusetts Militia, Whelden volunteered as an officer on the staff of General Benjamin F. Butler, and a little more than a week later he was given a Lt. Colonel's commission and the authority to raise a regiment for service. To commemorate this event, Brigadier General John H. Reed, the Quartermaster General of the State of Massachusetts and fellow Artillery Co. member, presented to Lt. Col. Whelden this pair of Colt's revolvers. Engraved on the backstraps and butts of both revolvers was the inscription "Quartermaster Genl J. Reed to Adj. C.M. Whelden, April 25 , 1861". This rare combination casing consists of a Model 1851 Navy Revolver and a Model 1849 Pocket Revolver, which were ordered from Colt and presented to Colonel Whelden during a rally at Faneuil Hall in Boston. Lieutenant Colonel Whelden's Model 1849 Colt, serial #182485, bears the Hartford, Connecticut, two-line barrel address and has a five-shot cylinder and 6-inch barrel. Only 3600 manufactured specimens of Model 1849 Pocket Revolvers were made in this barrel length. The Third Pattern Model 1851 Navy revolver, serial #22082, was manufactured in 1853 and has the standard and 7-1/2-inch barrel. What is significant to this pair of revolvers is that, in addition to the identical inscription on each backstrap, both specimens have small trigger guards, and silver-plated brass backstraps and trigger guards finished in silver. In addition, the grips are identical (in appearance) select walnut, almost assuredly suggesting that these two revolvers were especially finished and presented as a pair to Lt. Col. Whelden. The original factory mahogany casing is deluxe, brass bound and lined in red velvet. The lining in the upper portion has been partially restored. Referencing his Texas Gun Collector article entitled "REUNITED AFTER 125 YEARS -AN UNUSUAL "PAIR" OF PRESENTION COLTS" , the author reunited the pair in this rare casing (at the time only four similar sets of cased Colt revolvers were known to exist in the collecting fraternity). Lieutenant Colonel Whelden's command was the first Federal regiment to enter New Orleans after its capture on May 1, 1862. Whelden subsequently took command of Fort Pike and became the Provost Marshall of the Department. In December,1862, he recruited the 1st U.S. Colored Cavalry for service, combining new recruits for the 1st with companies of the 2nd Louisiana Native Guards. These new recruits were an unusual innovation; they were all black, including their officers-a change in United States policy that was to have a considerable influence on the war. Their first assignments were garrison duty at installations such as at Fort Pike. However, during the long and bloody siege of Port Hudson, thousands of black troops were thrown into battle and proved once and for all their value as fighting men. The 1st U.S. Colored Cavalry later took part in operations around Richmond, Virginia, and captured Bermuda Hundred and City Point on May 5, 1864. It subsequently saw action at the assault on Petersburg, Virginia on June 16-19,1864, and at Deep Bottom Run July 27-28, 1864. Whelden remained a member of the Ancient & Honorable Artillery Company until his death in 1910. Whelden's widow donated many of his personal effects to the Ancient & Honorable Artillery Company museum and they are now displayed at Faneuil Hall.B) Described in A.

Send This Lot to a Friend