POTD: Whitneyville No. 2½ – The Connecticut Colt Alternative
Sam.S 07.17.25
Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! This Whitneyville Model No. 2½ spur trigger revolver was made between 1871-1879 when every gun company in America was trying to eat Colt’s lunch after their master patents expired in 1857. Whitney built this .32 rimfire revolver in Whitneyville, Connecticut – practically next door to Colt’s Hartford factory. Whitney Arms was run by Eli Whitney Jr., son of the cotton gin guy. He’d made guns for the government during the Civil War and figured he could take on Colt in the revolver business. Problem was competing against Colt’s reputation while dodging their remaining patents. The Model No. 2½ came out during westward expansion when everyone wanted cheap, reliable pocket pistols. Whitney had good workers and decent tooling in Connecticut, so they could build revolvers as good as Colt’s for less money.
The spur trigger kept things simple and cheap – no trigger guard mechanism to complicate manufacturing. The ivory grips on this one show Whitney was going after the gentleman’s market, not just working-class buyers. Whitney made decent guns but never cracked Colt’s dominance. Their marketing sucked and Winchester bought them out in 1888. These revolvers are just reminders of how cutthroat the gun business got after the Civil War.
“Whitneyville Model No. 2 1/2 Spur Trigger Revolver, Ivory Grips.” Rock Island Auction Company, https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/5012/501/whitneyville-model-no-2-12-spur-trigger-revolver-ivory-grips. Accessed 12 Jul. 2025.
