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The factory letter lists this historic carbine in .44-40 with a 20 inch barrel, blue finish, and wood stock when shipped to Hartley & Graham in New York City on May 18, 1883, and states it was the sole gun of this type in the shipment. The factory letter remarks also note another serial number 1 listing for a rifle with a 25 1/2 inch round barrel shipped to Hartley & Graham two weeks
prior to this carbine on May 4. Maxwell clarifies this on
page 37: “Production began with serial number 1 with
the highest recorded as 6403 of which 3810 were rifles. A Standard Carbine was among the early shipments and was
also serial numbered 1. This is the only known intentional duplication of serial numbers.” It is possible Colt had
originally intended to number the carbines and rifles in
separate serial number sequences. Hartley & Graham
were the most influential arms dealers in the country at the time and sold a significant number of Colt’s firearms, so they were a natural first destination for both serial number 1s of Colt’s “New Magazine Rifle.” Colt’s new rifles and carbines had to compete with the already established Winchester Model 1873 in the repeating rifle market
as well as the larger lever action rifles based on Andrew Burgess’s designs such as the Marlin Model 1881. Burgess held many firearms patents by the end of his career and was formerly a photographer for the Matthew Brady’s studio alongside his brother William and traveled widely as a photographer and has been credited with taking many of the studio’s famous photographs in
the 1860s, including the famous portrait of Abraham
Lincoln used for the $5 bill. Though a very sleek looking
design, the Colt Burgess was not popular and was only produced by Colt for a short period. The halt of Colt
Burgess production led to a long told story suggesting
Colt and Winchester had come to an agreement not to meddle in each other’s markets given Winchester also abandoned development of a revolver around this time. However, Colt had also introduced the much more popular and more affordable Lightning Magazine Rifle in 1884, and the company likely simply abandoned the Burgess which had not became popular and was prone to jamming and damage. Production halted with 6,403, and they were shipped until late 1887.
CONDITION: Fine with 60% original blue finish, smooth gray and brown patina, minor pitting mainly on the frame, and general mild wear. The wood is very good and has some dings and scratches, a few minor cracks, and general mild wear. Mechanically fine. How many chances do you get at a historic serial number 1 Colt? Not many! Don’t miss you opportunity to acquire this rare piece of Colt firearms history.
Estimate: 50,000 - 75,000
135
Serial Number 1