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LOT 3301
Remarkable Cased
Pair of Finely
Engraved John
William Edge
Double Barrel
Percussion Pistols
with Snap Bayonets
Owned by Mayor
William Bayley of
Stalybridge
-A) J. W. Edge
Double Barrel
Pistol - NSN, 51 cal.,
6 inch solid rib bbl.,
casehardened/blue
finish, walnut grips.
John William Edge
was a gunmaker in
Manchester from
1827 until 1864.
These pistols likely
date towards the
middle of this range.
Their smoothbore
barrels have recessed
crowns, and the
bores measure
approximately 34
bore (.515 caliber).
The barrels are
marked “J. W. EDGE”
on the top right
and “MANCHESTER”
on the top left and
have Birmingham
proofmarks on the
bottom flats. They
are equipped with
folding sprung
“snap bayonets” with sliding releases on the top of the scroll engraved boxlock actions,
and stirrup mounted ramrods are fitted beneath. The pistols also have sliding half-cock
safeties and double triggers, and the finely checkered stocks have blank silver oval
escutcheons and casehardened pommel caps with scroll engraving and hinged compartments.
They come in a fitted mahogany case with green baize lining and a variety of accessories, including
a three-way combination flask. The case for this pair of extraordinary pistols has “W. BAYLEY
ESQRE” inscribed on the handle and “STALY-BRIDGE” below. William Bayley of Stalybridge, Greater
Manchester, England, ran the Bayley Street Mills with his brothers and were cotton
spinners and manufacturers. These pistols may have served as personal security for
him during unrest during the economic depression in the early 1840s. In 1842, he cut
wages for the mill workers contributing to the Chartist movement and the outbreak of the Plug
Riots. The latter took its name from the strikers removing the plugs from the boilers in the factories to
stop production. The local papers wrote of the “Alarming Riots in Manchester and the Neighborhood” and
noted that “the hands of Messrs. Bayley and Brothers of Stalybridge struck” after their wages were reduced ultimately expanding to 8,000 to 10,000 spinners and weavers petitioning Parliament and contributing to the general
strike throughout the country which included property damage and violence. Several people were killed before the general strike ended. Bayley was later elected the mayor of Stalybridge after it was incorporated in 1857. Shortly
thereafter, the American Civil War heavily affected the production of England’s factories, and his family suffered heavy financial losses, particularly because William Bayley & Brothers had built the new Clarence Mill which was
ultimately sold off. Nonetheless, he was able to comfortably retire in 1863 and lived at his Stamford Lodge mansion. He still retained business ties and was among the investors in
The Manchester & Liverpool District Banking Company in 1867.
CONDITION: Excellent plus with 97% plus original vibrant casehardened finish, 95% plus original blue finish, bright polished bayonet blade, crisp engraving and markings, sharp checkering, and only minimal light age and storage
related wear including some very faint spots of oxidation. Mechanically excellent. The case is fine and has mild age and storage related wear, including some separation of the dividers and the lower right compartment lid cracked
and with a loose pull. The accessories are generally very fine with minor storage wear. B) J. W. Edge Double Barrel Pistol - NSN, 51 cal., 6 inch solid rib bbl., casehardened/blue finish, walnut grips. As described in “A.”
CONDITION: Excellent plus with 97% plus original vibrant casehardened finish, 95% plus original blue finish, bright polished bayonet blade, crisp engraving and markings, sharp checkering, and only minimal light age and storage
related wear including some very faint spots of oxidation mainly near the breech. Mechanically excellent.
Provenance: Mayor William Bayley of Stalybridge; The Cam & Deb Cooper Collection.
Estimate: 14,000 - 22,500 199