POTD: Allen & Wheelock Sidehammer Navy Percussion Revolver
Sam.S 03.21.22
Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have a pre-American, Civil War-era percussion cap sidehammer revolver. This is an Allen and Wheelock sidehammer revolver that was produced from 1858 to 1861. The Allen and Wheelock sidehammer revolvers were a 36 caliber black powder percussion cap revolver. I had previously covered their Lipfire revolver for a chance to talk about lipfire cartridges. The actions of this revolver and the lipfire were very similar. The loading lever is built into the trigger guard. The powder is poured into the cylinder, a ball placed on the mouth of the chamber, and then depressed in and on top of the lead ball by the loading lever in the trigger guard. The cylinder can be removed by unscrewing the screw at the rear of the gun where a hammer would normally be. This is why there is a sidehammer.
“Manufactured 1858-1861. Consignor note: from the Paul Henry Collection.”
Lot 2140: Allen & Wheelock Side Hammer Revolver 36 percussion. (n.d.). Rock Island Auction Company. photograph. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/1027/2140/allen-wheelock-side-hammer-revolver-36-percussion.
