Among American firearm manufacturers, Colt is an iconic name, and the company's history stretches back into the 1830s. For the Union Army during the American Civil War, its officers and cavalry troopers relied on one of Colt's most notable firearms: the 1860 Army revolver. Watch our "American Rifleman Television" I Have This Old Gun segment above to hear the history of this classic Colt wheelgun.
"For the whole history of Colt's Manufacturing Company, all the way from the Paterson guns in 1836, right up to the eve of the Civil War, Sam Colt is obsessed with getting a military contract," American Rifleman Executive Editor Evan Brune said. "And he keeps trying and he keeps trying, and he sells some guns to the Texans, you know, he sells some guns to the U.S. Cavalry, but it's really that big military contract that continues to elude him. And it's not until 1860, really, again, on the eve of the American Civil War, that it culminates in one of the finest percussion revolvers ever made."
Chambered to accept a .44-cal. round ball, the Colt 1860 Army revolver was a six-shot, single-action firearm that still required the manual loading of a separate projectile atop loose powder, which was ignited by a percussion cap placed onto the rear of the cylinder. As a result, reloading was a slow, cumbersome process, but the benefit of the 1860 Army was the ability to have six shots available in an era when many firearms only offered one.
"More than 200,000 of these things served with Union troops during the American Civil War, and they bridged that gap from cap-and-ball into the cartridge era. Cartridges were around in 1860, but they just weren't commonly used," NRA Media Editorial Director Mark Keefe said. "And the thing I just love, the lines of the 1860 Army. They call 'em 'open-top' guns because they don't have a topstrap. So the barrel and frame are joined by a wedge pin that's forward of the cylinder, and it just gives the gun just great lines."
At the conclusion of the Civil War, Colt's 1860 Army continued to serve as the official U.S. military sidearm, and the design underwent several updates and iterations as the self-contained cartridge era came into its own. Ultimately, several elements of the 1860 Army inspired the design of Colt's legendary Single Action Army, which was adopted by the military in 1873.
"When anybody asks me what I think the most beautiful handgun ever made, I immediately know the answer. The Colt 1860 Army. It is absolutely one of the most gorgeously designed svelte, stylish revolvers extant," American Rifleman Field Editor Garry James said. "The gun was made in 1860, but its lines would fit right in with Art Deco in the 1930s. I mean, it's a lovely gun. That being said, it was also probably the top-of-the-end percussion revolver manufactured by the Colt Company."
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