The American Revolutionary War

[vis-à-vis]

What kind of Pistol might George Washington and his Officers have used? Also does anybody know the type of pistol Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Bur used during their duel.

Essentially I am curious to know where an original or replica can be obtained and at what price.

 

[Dithsoer]

Washington pistol

Single-shot large-bore (Think .50 caliber plus) flintlock pistols were the 9mms of the day; ubiquitous in both the civilian and military sector. Although some primitive repeaters were around, they were generally too expensive and unreliable to be in very widespread use. Dixie Gun Works offers a Pedersoli-manufactured Revolutionary war era replica that is both handsome and a heck of a shooter. I believe that it is in .58 caliber. Although it comes with a front sight only as per the originals, it is quite accurate, capable of 1 inch groups at 25 yards once you get used to the sighting setup. I think it's priced around 500.00, but cheaper (and lower quality) models exist.

 

[4v50 Gary]

You might want to contact Mt. Vernon (a DAV operation), The Smithsonian Museum of American History or Carlisle Military History Institute to see where Washington's guns are.

 

[BobCav]

The Burr-Hamilton pistols were .50 caliber Wogdon Duelling Pistols, flintlocks, purchased by Hamilton's brother-in-law John Barker Church in London in 1797 and actually used in the Church-Burr duel in 1799! Here's a link to a page about the pistols: http://www.nysha.org/Library/exhibits/burrhamilton/burrhamiltonsite/DuellingPistols.htm

And the actual pistols:

Small note:

There was no such thing as the American Revolutionary War, though it has become commonly misnamed. as such. Remember Wikipedia is written by USERS, not historians!

The American Revolution is not just the war, but a whole period of new, radical "Revolutionary" thinking that began in 1763.

The "American War for Independence" is the actual name of the war that lasted from 1775 to 1783. The Surrender at Yorktown was in 1781 while the actual Treaty at Paris formally ended the war and recognized American sovriegenty in 1783.

 

[vis-à-vis]

Single-shot large-bore (Think .50 caliber plus) flintlock pistols were the 9mms of the day; ubiquitous in both the civilian and military sector. Although some primitive repeaters were around, they were generally too expensive and unreliable to be in very widespread use. Dixie Gun Works offers a Pedersoli-manufactured Revolutionary war era replica that is both handsome and a heck of a shooter. I believe that it is in .58 caliber. Although it comes with a front sight only as per the originals, it is quite accurate, capable of 1 inch groups at 25 yards once you get used to the sighting setup. I think it's priced around 500.00, but cheaper (and lower quality) models exist.

I am on their webpage, but cannot find the pistol. Can you post me a link please?

And Bobcav, thank you for that info!

 

[kuriti]

similar inquiry

Hello,

It is really odd i found this thread so close to its posting date. i have a set of the burr-hamilton pistols i inherited from my grandfather that i haven't looked at in years. my son just got a pirates of the caribbean toy pistol and it reminded me they were there. to convince him i was actually a pirate in a previous life, i dug them out. then i started wondering what they were worth, that led me here. So, if anybody has any ideas, i am also curious, though, sorry, i can't sell these. hope to see something soon. thanks,

kuriti

 

[BobCav]

Kuriti, that's great stuff! I have no idea about their value, but those would seem to be the replicas made for the Bicentennial in 1976! Perhaps a collector would know the value.

 

[Dithsoer]

Here's that link. http://www.dixiegunworks.com/default.php?cPath=22_92_187_188
Remember, the "U.S." at the time didn't really have a national armoury. Most of what was used came from European manufacturers, although a few American gunsmiths were turning out military production. It's hard to track down exactly who made what where at this time in our nation's history because a lot of our gunsmiths didn't "sign" their work for fear of British reprisal.

 

[Dithsoer]

Washington's pistols

P.S. Washington's pistols, a pair of silver-mounted flintlocks with his name inscribed on their back straps were placed on public sale in Alexandria, VA. on April 20, 1801. Weapons are now displayed at West Point Museum. The brass barrels appear to have seen considerable use ( and I bet they didn't get that way from squirrel hunting either )
By the way, this information is from an older book so chances are they may reside in a different museum now.

 

[vis-à-vis]

The Model 1805 was the first military handgun made at a national armory. It is significant that this pistol is used today on the insignia of the U.S. Army military police. Has a European walnut halfstock. The barrel is .58 caliber, bright, 10" tapered round. Ignition is flintlock and is a single shot. Features frass furniture, color casehardened lock. Lock is marked "Harpers Ferry 1807" on tail w/eagle over "US" ahead of hammer. Single trigger. Manufactured by Pedersoli/Italy. THIS PRODUCT CANNOT BE SHIPPED TO NEW JERSEY OR CANADA.

This one is nice. How accurate do you think this would be and how much would it cost to shoot this? (And does this need to go to an FFL and if so would an 03 work?)

 

[Dithsoer]

The five reviews on this weapon state that it is a fantastic shooter. The first reviewer states that he's getting 1" groups at 25 yards ! This gun looks so good that I think I'm going to get one myself. How much it costs to shoot depends on how involved you get into this bp. addiction. The occasional shooter who buys his bullets and flints, lube and patches ready made will pay more per shot than someone who likes to make his own ( of course you don't "make" flint but knap rough flint to the size you need ). Figure $15.00 for a pound of powder, 7000 grains. At 40 grains per shot that would be .08 cents. 100 lead balls of .58 caliber at $14.00 per 100, .14 cents each. Pillow ticking patches, 100 for $3.19, .03 cents each. Flints, figure $14.00 or so for 3. Depending on the flint, luck and circumstance, you may get 5 shots per flint, maybe more than 20. Crisco is a cheap lube, "free" if you steal some from the kitchen. So not counting flints the grand total would be somewhere around .22 cents per shot, or about the same price as a 9mm J.H.P. Casting your own bullets, cutting your own patches, would bring this price down quite a bit. Either way a pound of powder would last quite awhile. If you use real black powder, you could even screen out the fines for the priming, which means that you'd only need one granulation instead of paying another $15.00 for ffffg.
Most states don't require an ffl for bp. guns, although there may be local restrictions. I bet you could get it shipped right to your door without any problems.

 

[SeekHer]

Bob Cav posted

Small note:

There was no such thing as the American Revolutionary War, though it has become commonly misnamed. as such. Remember Wikipedia is written by USERS, not historians!

The American Revolution is not just the war, but a whole period of new, radical "Revolutionary" thinking that began in 1763.

The "American War for Independence" is the actual name of the war that lasted from 1775 to 1783. The Surrender at Yorktown was in 1781 while the actual Treaty at Paris formally ended the war and recognized American sovereignty in 1783
.

To distinguish it from the French Revolution or the Industrial Revolution maybe…

But only if you’re an American, in the Commonwealth countries it is called that war by those upstarts--all kidding aside--It is called the American Revolution, the Revolutionary War, the War for Independence, the American Revolutionary War by the numerous authors in my library of whom the majority are Americans.

As to the thinking, I'd add about a 100 years to that date.

Same as the American Civil War to distinguish it from the English or Spanish versions is also called the War of Northern Aggression, The Civil War, The Great Strife, Lincoln’s Folly/Dream/Mistake and others. It just depends on your location in the same country or elsewhere on the earth.

 

[BobCav]

King George began imposing laws around the 1763-64 timeframe that eventually led to the War for Independence. The actual beginning of the "Revolution" has always been debated, but is generally recognized around that time with the Sugar Act. With the war, the beginning was much easier. Here's a quick timeline:

http://www.historyplace.com/unitedstates/revolution/rev-prel.htm

I'm only referring ot the academically accepted official title. Heck, I've called it the Revolutionary War too, but the "American Revolution" refers to the period and not just the war.

Then again, history is written by the victors anyway!!