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[3], In 1836, Colt received his first U.S. patent for his revolver mechanism design, which allowed a gun to be fired multiple times without reloading. No longer a mere novelty weapon, the revolver became an industrial and cultural legacy, as well as a contribution to the development of war technology, represented ironically by the name of one of his company's later innovations, the "Peacemaker". He founded Colt's Patent Fire-Arms Manufacturing Company (today, Colt's Manufacturing Company), and made the mass production of the revolver commercially viable. Hartford, Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, Hartford, Hartford County, CT, United States, at home-Armsmear, Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut, United States, Cedar Hill Cemetery, 453 Fairfield Ave, Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut, United States, We're Related to Royalty and Famous People, Elizabeth Jarvis Colt ("The First Lady of Hartford"), Samuel, Colonel, Inventor - Colt Revolver - Firearms Colt, Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers, 1791-1963, Charles City Republican Intelligencer - Jan 16 1862, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Colt, Death of Col. Samuel Colt at at home-Armsmear, Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut, United States, Sailor /Inventor-Colt Brand Firearms, arms mfg., Inventor, industrialist, businessman & founded Colt's Patent Fire-Arms Manufacturing Company. After the testimony by Houston and Rusk, the next issue became how quickly Colt could supply the military. Research genealogy for Samuel Colt of Canada, as well as other members of the Colt family, on Ancestry. Three family members, Roderick, Martha and Derek Colt, had filed notices of intention to appeal in 2020, all of which have since expired. [42] One of Colt's biggest acts of self-promotion was the payment to the publishers of United States Magazine $1,120 ($61,439 by 1999 standards) to publish a 29-page fully illustrated story showing the inner workings of his factory. Colt would later say that the concept of the revolver was inspired by his observations of the ship's wheel during his first voyage. At the time of his death, Samuel Colt was one of the wealthiest men in America. [71], Colt felt that bad press was just as important as good press, provided that his name and his revolvers received mention. [1] [6], The Colt Single Action Army Model Revolver is most recognized as "The Handgun That Won The West". Only one gun fitting White's design was ever made, and it was not considered practical for the ammunition of the time. [26], After this setback, Colt turned his attention to perfecting tinfoil cartridges he had originally designed for use in his revolvers. He lived in 1860, at address, Pennsylvania. In 1845, the Texas Rangers hired Colt to produce 1,000 pistols, of "The Walker" model. Skip Ancestry navigation Main Menu. During 1869, gun makers James Warner and Massachusetts Arms infringed on the patent. He went so far as to hire agents in other states and territories to find such samples, to buy hundreds of copies for himself and to give the editor a free revolver for writing them, particularly if such a story disparaged his competition. Soon after the failure of the Patent Arms Manufacturing Company, he teamed with Samuel Morse to lobby the US government for funds. The factory's machines mass-produced parts that were completely interchangeable and could be put together on assembly lines using standardized patterns and gauges by unskilled labor, as opposed to England's principal gun makers who made each part by hand. We collect and match historical records that Ancestry users have contributed to their family trees to create each person's profile. He abandoned the idea of a multiple-barreled revolver and opted for a single fixed-barrel design with a rotating cylinder. Samuel Colt was born in Hartford, Connecticut, to Christopher Colt, a farmer who had moved his family to Hartford after he became a businessman, and Sarah Colt ne Caldwell. We collect and match historical records that Ancestry users have contributed to their family trees to create each person's profile. This left Colt time to improve his earlier revolver design and have a prototype built by a gunsmith in New York for his "New and improved revolver". Upon his return, however, he learned that England had mediated the conflict and that there would be no fighting, so he set up a factory for the manufacture of his firearms in Paterson, New Jersey. Sarah Colt died from tuberculosis before Samuel was seven years old. This is shown clearly in a letter that Samuel Colt wrote to his father in which he said, "The first workman would receive two or three of the most important partsand would affix these and pass them on to the next who add a part and pass the growing article on to another who would do the same, and so on until the complete arm is put together". He subsequently built a factory to manufacture wicker furniture made from these trees. During 1843 the army gave Colt an order for 200,000 of the tinfoil cartridges packed 10 to a box for use in muskets. [24] Morse used the battery from one of Colt's mines to transmit a telegraph message from Manhattan to Governors Island when his own battery was too weak to send the signal. | Innovators | Samuel Colt", "Church of the Good Shepherd and Parish House", "Guns Gun Culture and the Peddling of Dreams", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Samuel_Colt&oldid=1142271166, Burials at Cedar Hill Cemetery (Hartford, Connecticut), Businesspeople from Hartford, Connecticut, People of Connecticut in the American Civil War, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2016, Articles with unsourced statements from April 2018, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Inventor, industrialist, businessman, hunter, This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 13:31. [29] The Whitneyville-Hartford Dragoons, largely built from leftover Walker parts, are known as the first model in the transition from the Walker to the Dragoon series. Samuel Colt died in Hartford in 1862 and was buried in Cedar Hill Cemetery. See photo in media section. [42] Colt historian Herbert Houze wrote that Colt championed the concept of modernism before the word was invented, he pioneered the use of celebrity endorsements to promote his products, he introduced the phrase "new and improved" to advertising and demonstrated the commercial value of trade-name recognition as a word for "revolver" in French is le colt. [73], Colt established libraries and educational programs within his armories for his employees which provided training for several generations of toolmakers and other machinists, who had great influence in other manufacturing efforts of the next half century. His firearms were also popular with many famous outlaws, such as Jesse James, who used the 1851 Navy Colt revolver, then later the Peacemaker. His revolving-breech pistol became so popular that the word "Colt" was sometimes used as a generic term for the revolver. When Martin Van Buren assumed the Presidency in 1837, the ensuing economic crash almost ruined Colt's company. Fountain and Sculpture was dedicated in 1905. We encourage you to research and examine these records to . [48] At one exhibit Colt disassembled ten guns and reassembled ten guns using different parts from different guns. [11] This instrument and patent number 1304, dated August 29, 1836, protected the basic principles of his revolving-breech loading, folding trigger firearm named the Colt Paterson. [68] After Colt's death, he left the boy $2 million by 2010 standards. [70] Colt's firearms did not always fare well in standardized military tests; he preferred written testimonials from individual soldiers who used his weapons and these were what he most relied on to secure government contracts. Home; Trees; . With the help of the political acquaintances of these venture capitalists, the Patent Arms Manufacturing Company of Paterson, New Jersey, was chartered by the New Jersey legislature on March 5, 1836. [31] The first revolving-breech pistols made at the factory were named "Whitneyville-Hartford-Dragoons" and became so popular that the word "Colt" was often used as a generic term for the revolvers. Referencing the encyclopedia, Samuel built a homemade galvanic cell and advertised as a Fourth of July event during that year that he would explode a raft on Ware Pond using underwater explosives; although the raft was missed, the explosion was still impressive. Research genealogy for Samuel Colt of Lyme, Connecticut, USA, as well as other members of the Colt family, on Ancestry. The map below shows the places where the ancestors of the famous person lived. Historians such as Edwards and Harold Schechter have said this was the elder Colt's way of letting the world know that the boy was his own son without saying so directly. Upon his return to America, he applied for his U.S. patent for a "revolving gun"; he was granted the patent on February 25, 1836 (later numbered 9430X). Later years Colt later purchased a large tract of land beside the Connecticut River, where he built a larger factory called the Colt Armory, a manor that he called Armsmear, and employee housing. However, opposition from John Quincy Adams, who was serving as a US Representative from Massachusetts's 8th congressional district, scuttled the project as "not fair and honest warfare" and termed the Colt mine an "unchristian contraption". At the same time, Colt's policies forced some competing inventors to greater innovation by denying them major features of his mechanism; as a result they created their own. Among the pistols, we saw Colt's revolver; and we compared it with the best English revolver. Unavailable. [61] Although trade with the South had not been restricted at that time, newspapers such as the New York Daily Tribune, The New York Times and the Hartford Daily Courant termed him a Southern sympathizer and traitor to the Union. in Hartford, Connecticut, USA, This form allows you to report an error or to submit additional information about this family tree: Samuel COLT (1814), Copyright Wikipdia authors - This article is under licence CC BY-SA 3.0. In 1832, at the age of 18, Colt applied for a patent on his revolver and declared that he would "be back soon with a model". Despite the reluctance of English officials to issue the patent, no fault could be found with the gun and he was issued his first patent (Number 6909). Records of Samuel Colt on Ancestry. In 1832, Colt's father sent him to sea to learn the seaman's trade. He was interred on the property of his private residence Armsmear and reinterred to Cedar Hill Cemetery in 1894. It was this first "practical revolver and the first practical repeating firearm," made possible by converging percussion technology, that would be the genesis of what would later germinate into an industrial and cultural legacy and a priceless contribution to the development of war technology, ironically personified in the name of one of his later revolving innovations, the Peacemaker. During late 1843, after the loss of payment for the Florida pistols, the Paterson plant closed and a public auction was held in New York City to sell the company's most liquid assets. Colt's manufacturing methods were sophisticated. During 1841 he made samples of these cartridges for the army. By telling each nation that the others were buying Colt's pistols, Colt was able to get large orders from many countries who feared falling behind in the arms race. On June 5, 1856, Colt married Elizabeth Jarvis, the daughter of the Reverend William Jarvis, who lived just downriver from Hartford. Surname Index for the family tree of Samuel Colt along with family connections to other famous kin. [2] [3] Born in 1814, he had six siblings. As the world's major proponent of mass production techniques, Colt delivered a lecture concerning the subject to the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) in London. These models were based on the Walker Colts, and during three generations slight changes to each model showed the evolution of the design. He started his lectures on street corners and soon began doing the same in lecture halls and museums. [63] Colt envisioned this unit as being staffed by men more than six feet tall and armed with his weapons. [21] Colt soon reworked his design to leave the firing hammer exposed, but problems continued. One recurring problem Colt had in selling his revolvers was that "it was not possible to change the provisions of the Militia Act of 1808. Production of Allen pepperboxes continued until the expiration of Colt's patent during 1857. Please enable JavaScript in your browser's settings to use this part of Geni. Research genealogy for Samuel Colt of Pennsylvania, as well as other members of the Colt family, on Ancestry. Wrong username or password. Showing results for Brick / Block Paving in Bruton page 2 (10-20) < https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Colt >. Colt's revolvers were a major tool used during the westward expansion. The return of the revolver In 1847, Captain Samuel Walker and the Texas Rangers, who had acquired some of the first Colt revolvers produced during the Seminole War, ordered an additional 1,000 revolvers to use in the Mexican-American War. [65][66] The only other person mentioned in Colt's will was Samuel Caldwell Colt, the son of his brother, John C. Samuel married Lizzie M Colt (born Finch) circa 1880, at age 24. He began promoting the telegraph companies so he could create a greater market for his cable, for which he was to be paid $50 per mile. Samuel Colt (1814-1862) 2nd Generation. During tests of the foil cartridges, 25 rounds were shot from a musket without cleaning. Using the ideas and technical knowledge he had acquired earlier from the encyclopedia, Samuel built a homemade galvanic cell and used it to explode a gunpowder charge in the waters of Ware Lake. [33] Colt used this general design for the Colt 1851 Navy Revolver which was larger than the Baby Dragoon, but not quite as large as the full-sized version. A British patent for Colt's prototype was attained in 1835, and in February 1836 he attained a U.S. patent for his revolving cylinder pistol design. From his experience in haggling with government officials, he knew what numbers he would have to generate to make enough profit to invest money in improving his machinery, thereby limiting imitators' ability to produce a comparable weapon at a lesser price. Colt's mother died from tuberculosis when Colt was six years old, and his father married Olivia Sargeant two years later. The family moved often, possibly to keep their disturbing family activities hidden from society. Benjamin Colt, Sr. brother Sarah Ayer (Colt) sister Esther Sterling sister view all Samuel Colt's Timeline Colt quickly formed a corporation of New York and New Jersey venture capitalists in April 1836. Colt. A promising order from the state of South Carolina for fifty to seventy-five pistols was canceled when the company did not produce them quickly enough. In correspondence to and about his namesake, Samuel Colt referred to him as his "nephew" in quotes. [16], Colt's U.S. revolver patent gave him a monopoly of revolver manufacture until 1857. One of the guns burst upon firing, and the other would not fire at all. 4.24 Walt and Roy. Colt hired artisan gun makers from Bavaria and developed a commercial use for Waterman Ormsby's grammagraph to produce "roll-die" engraving on steel, particularly on the cylinders. Its articles concerning Robert Fulton and gunpowder motivated Colt throughout his life. Research genealogy for Samuel Colt of Lyme, New London Co., CT, as well as other members of the Colt family, on Ancestry. His "Walker" pistols carried 6 bullets, and didn't require constant reloading. Lizzie was born on August 12 1861, in Laporte, Sullivan, Pennsylvania, United States. Colt soon reworked his design to leave the firing hammer exposed, but problems continued and in late 1843, after numerous setbacks including loss of payment for the Florida pistols, the Paterson, New Jersey plant closed. This new revolver had a stationary trigger and had a larger caliber. Samuel Pomeroy Colt (January 10, 1852 - August 13, 1921) was an industrialist and politician from Rhode Island. Benjamin Colt Jr. 5. [64] At the time of his death, Colt's estate, which he willed to his wife and three-year-old son Caldwell Hart Colt, was estimated to be valued at about $15,000,000 (equivalent to US$407,000,000 in 2021). However, Samuel Colt's legacy extends beyond his contributions to the firearms industry. [38][39] However, Colt's zealous protection of his patents greatly impeded firearms development as a whole in the United States. Rusk testified: "Colt's Repeating Arms are the most efficient weapons in the world and the only weapon which has enabled the frontiersman to defeat the mounted Indian in his own peculiar mode of warfare". Son of Christopher Colt, Sr. and Sarah Colt Colt never claimed to have invented the revolver, as his design was merely a more practical adaption of Collier's revolving flintlock, which was patented in England and achieved great popularity there. Colt, never one to stand on principal if a dollar was to be made, contacted Walker. [40], Colt knew he had to make his revolvers affordable, as the doom of many great inventions was a high retail price. The Colt family included eight siblings: five boys and three girls. Through the political connections of the subscribers, the Patent Arms Manufacturing Company of Paterson, New Jersey, was chartered by the New Jersey legislature on March 5, 1837. His brother, John, became a lecturer who killed a creditor in 1841 in New York City, was found guilty of the murder, and committed suicide on the day of execution. Christopher Colt, a brother of the celebrated Colonel Samuel Colt, of revolver fame, died at Hartford, Ct., on Tuesday last. [42], Colt hired Elisha K. Root as his chief mechanic in arranging the plant's machinery. . We encourage you to research and examine these records . Although successful at this, for the most part, his preoccupation with marketing strategies and patent protection caused him to miss a great opportunity in firearms development when he dismissed an idea from one of his gunsmiths, Rollin White. [27] Colt tried to use this revenue to resurrect the Patent Arms Manufacturing Company, but could not secure funds from other investors or even his own family. [57] He used the newspress to his own advantage by giving revolvers to editors, prompting them to report "all the accidents that occur to the Sharps & other humbug arms", and listing incidents for which Colt weapons had been "well used against bears, Indians, Mexicans, etc". They had 5 children: Madge McDougal (born Colt), Anna Colt and 3 other children. Sam Colt, the bankrupt developer of the Colt Paterson revolver, heard that Walker was in the city looking to buy arms. Leave a message for others who see this profile. [6] He had learned about nitrous oxide (laughing gas) from the factory chemist of his father's textile plant, so he took a portable laboratory on tour and earned a living performing laughing gas demonstrations across the United States and Canada, calling himself as "the Celebrated Dr.Coult of New-York, London and Calcutta". When the breech plug was removed from the barrel no fouling from the tin foil was evident. Research genealogy for Samuel Colt of New York, as well as other members of the Colt family, on Ancestry. [72] Barbara M. Tucker, professor of history and director of the Center for Connecticut Studies at Eastern Connecticut State University, wrote that Colt's marketing techniques transformed the firearm from a utilitarian object into a symbol of American identity. Christopher Colt 3. Later versions contained his entire signature which was used in many of his advertisements as a centerpiece, using his celebrity as a seeming guarantee of the performance of his weapons. He began promoting the telegraph companies so he could create a wider market for his cable, for which he was to be paid $50 per mile. Zenas lived in 1910, at address, Massachusetts. He frequently gave custom engraved versions of his revolvers to heads of state, military officers, and celebrities such as Giuseppe Garibaldi, King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy, and Hungarian rebel Lajos Kossuth. Source: Connecticut Town Guide, CT State Library. Family tree of Samuel COLT Inventor Born Samuel COLT American inventor and industrialist Born on July 19, 1814 in Hartford, Connecticut, USA , United States Died on January 10, 1862 in Hartford, Connecticut, USA Born on July 19 34 Deceased on January 10 38 Family tree Report an error Colt Benjamin 1698 - 1754 Harris Miriam 1699 - 1765 Caldwell John Lucretia Ely 6. and it was also truly the first global manufacturing export in American history. Colt managed his plant with a military-like discipline: he would dismiss workers for tardiness, sub-par work or even suggesting improvements to his designs. The Blackest Bird. As ticket sales decreased, Colt realized that "serious" museum lectures were not what the people wanted to pay money to hear and that it was dramatic stories of salvation and redemption the public craved. [31] He established a ten-hour work day for employees, installed washing stations in the factory, mandated a one-hour lunch period, and built the Charter Oak Hall, where employees could enjoy games, newspapers, and discussion rooms. Research genealogy for Samuel G Colt of Pittsfield, Berkshire, Massachusetts, USA, as well as other members of the Colt family, on Ancestry. In 1896 a parish house was built on the site as a memorial to their son, Caldwell, who died in 1894. [15] This is shown by an 1836 letter that Colt wrote to his father in which he said, .mw-parser-output .templatequote{overflow:hidden;margin:1em 0;padding:0 40px}.mw-parser-output .templatequote .templatequotecite{line-height:1.5em;text-align:left;padding-left:1.6em;margin-top:0}, The first workman would receive two or three of the most important parts and would affix these and pass them on to the next who would add a part and pass the growing article on to another who would do the same, and so on until the complete arm is put together. [67][68], It is estimated that during its first 25 years of manufacturing, Colt's company produced more than 400,000 revolvers. Research genealogy for Samuel Colt of Ireland, as well as other members of the Colt family, on Ancestry. Walker and Colt became fast friends. During this period Colt received an extension on his patent because he did not collect on it in the early years. The advantage of Colt's over the English is, that the user can take a sight; and the disadvantage is, that the weapon requires both hands to fire. Oftentimes the family trees listed as still in progress have derived from research into famous people who have a kinship to this person. Colt hired Eli Whitney Blake, who was established in the arms business, to make his guns. [7] Colt thought of himself as a man of science and believed if he could enlighten people about a new idea like nitrous oxide, he could in turn make people more receptive to his new idea concerning a revolver.