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LOT 1140
Exceptional Special Order Black Powder Colt Acid Etched Panel Frontier Six Shooter Single Action Army Revolver Inscribed to a Prominent Civil War Veteran with Factory Letter - Serial no. 110274, 44-40 WCF cal., 4 3/4 inch round bbl., nickel finish, antique ivory grips. The accompanying factory letter states the revolver was shipped on May 11, 1886 to Kennedy Brothers of Minneapolis, Minnesota and confirms the 4 3⁄4 inch barrel in .44- 40 caliber, nickel finish, and grip material. This was a two gun shipment. The back strap is inscribed with the name “C.E. HAMBLEN.” Consignor research identified C.E. Hamblen as Charles E. Hamblen a Massachusetts native and a Civil War veteran. Period records show that Hamblen was in New Orleans in 1870, in Minneapolis working as a dry goods wholesaler in 1880, and in 1887 he was living in Spokane, Washington working in real estate, so he would have been living in Minneapolis when Colt shipped this SAA. The consignor’s genealogy research is included. During the Civil War Hamblen served with Company H, 38th Massachusetts Infantry, a regiment that took heavy casualties at the Battle of Cedar Creek on October 19, 1864. This battle was a Union victory and laid waste to the Confederate army in the Shenandoah Valley which never again threatened Washington, D.C.
When introduced in 1877, the .44-40 W.C.F. Single Action Army, or Frontier Six Shooter, was intended to be used
in conjunction with another legendary western icon, the Winchester Model 1873 rifle, which came standard in the same chambering. “The .44-40 W.C.F. was added to the list of Colt calibers for use with the popular Winchester rifle
of the same caliber,” wrote Colt author David Brown. “This combination
of a rifle and a six shooter using the same cartridge made it possible for
their user to buy only one kind of ammunition, and he could carry ‘fodder’
for both guns in the same cartridge belt.” This example has the standard
two-line address on top of the barrel and the highly sought after “COLT
FRONTIER SIX SHOOTER” in an acid etched panel on the left. The barrel is
also marked “44” on the bottom for the caliber. The left side of the frame
is marked with the three-line patent dates. The left side of the trigger
guard is marked “44 CAL.” As stated the back strap is inscribed “C.E. HAMBLEN.” Matching serial numbers are visible on the frame, trigger guard, back strap, and both grip panels. The revolver has the desirable nickel plating. CONDITION: Exceptionally fine, retaining 85% original nickel plating with a smooth gray patina on the balance. Nearly all of the acid etched panel remains. The slightly age shrunken original grips are excellent with a few age lines and highly attractive color and grain. Mechanically excellent. A very desirable documented nickel plated acid etched panel black powder Colt Frontier Six Shooter SAA revolver once owned by a Civil War veteran. Provenance: The TTT Collection.
Estimate: 30,000 - 45,000