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2-Barrel
Gardner Gun
LOT 1163
Exceptionally Rare 2-Barrel Gardner Gun with Original Tripod - Serial no.
20, 45-70 Government cal., 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 barrel 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.