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LOT 3112
Exceptionally Rare 2-Barrel Gardner Gun with Original Tripod - Serial no. 20, 45-70 Government , 26 1/2 inch part round bbl., bright finish. The Gardner guns were early crank type rapid fire arms which were originally invented in 1874 by William Gardner, of Toledo, Ohio, formerly a Civil War Union Army captain. After producing a handmade prototype, Gardner sold American manufacturing rights to Pratt & Whitney of Hartford, Connecticut, who made improvements to Gardner’s original design such as adding a safety mode that allowed an operator to run ammunition through without firing the weapon. Versions of Gardner guns were designed with one, two and five barrels. This example has two barrels which are encased in Edward G. Parkhust’s patent improved outer cylindrical jacket that could be filled with water to prevent overheating. These guns were fed with gravity driven magazines and operated by hand turning a crank which moves bolts back and forth for firing and extraction. This reciprocating motion system is used in many of today’s machine guns. In the two gun model cycling the action alternated firing from both barrels in an effort to reduce overheating. From the mid-1870s to early 1880s Pratt & Whitney manufactured an estimated 21 guns for U.S. War Department trials. Although the U.S. Navy purchased a limited number, the Army was not interested and never officially adapted the Gardner gun. However, the U.S. Army later procured ten improved 2-barrel Gardner
guns with carriages, which were delivered September 30, 1898 right after the Spanish-American
War. Although limited numbers of Gardner guns were purchased, the Gatling gun fulfilled the U.S. Army’s main needs of the time. William Gardner decided to set up his own company and continued
to manufacture his guns separately as the Gardner Gun Company starting in 1879. Eventually the Gardner gun gained the attention of the British government who ordered it for all branches of their military as manufactured by the Gardner Gun Company located out of England.