Springfield Armory Model 1817 Pistol
date: label: date made
content: 1818
name: label: maker
content: Springfield Armory
notes: label: Description
content: History:
label: Description
content: Because of the “1818” stamps on the lockplate and barrel, this pistol has been inaccurately called the Model 1818 Springfield Pistol. It actually originated in 1807 at Secretary of War Henry Dearborn's request for the mass production of pistols at the Springfield Armory. Three months later, Springfield Armory produced 300 locks, 400 barrels and one sample pistol for Dearborn. While Dearborn thought “the pistol [was] a good piece of work, the [.69] caliber [was] too large” (Smith, 278) and production ceased on the project.
label: Description
content: The locks and barrels were primarily untouched until 1817 when the Superintendent of the Springfield Armory at the time, Lieutenant Colonel Roswell Lee, wrote to the Ordnance Office in Washington because he believed “it would be a saving to make [these locks and barrels] work into pistols” (Smith, 278). After receiving approval, Lee ordered the production for this particular pistol and many other U.S. Model 1807 pistols.
label: Description
content: References:
label: Description
content: Smith, Samuel E. and Edwin W. Bitter. Historic Pistols: The American Martial Flintlock 1760 – 1845, Scalamandre Publications, New York: 1986, p. 279.
label: Description
content: Flayderman, Norm. Flayderman’s Guide to Antique American Firearms…and their Values, Gun Digest Books, Iola, 2007. 9th edition.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Massachusetts, Springfield
setName: label: See more items in
content: Military and Society: Armed Forces History, Military
label: See more items in
content: Military
label: See more items in
content: The Bitter Collection of Firearms
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: The Adriana and Edwin W. Bitter Family Collection
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1982.0785.12
label: accession number
content: 1982.0785
label: catalog number
content: 1982.0785.12
label: collector/donor number
content: P39D
objectType: label: Object Name
content: pistol
label: Object Name
content: pistol, flintlock
label: Other Terms
content: pistol; Firearms; Flintlock; .69 In; Smooth Bore; Muzzle Load; Sa
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: iron (part material)
label: Physical Description
content: wood (part material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 17 1/2 in; 44.45 cm
label: Measurements
content: overall: 2 3/8 in x 18 in x 6 1/2 in; 6.0325 cm x 45.72 cm x 16.51 cm