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Passaic Revolver, 1840

The Passaic Arms Company is a historic enigma. What is know is that they began production in 1840 in Passaic, NJ, probably as a reaction to the closure of Colt’s Patterson factory, of a single action cap and ball revolver in .36 caliber. The pistol was clearly patterned after the “Texas Pattersons”, with a barrel length of seven inches and an overall length of fourteen inches. but had significant design differences. The most notable of these was a conventional ring trigger, the mechanism of which was simpler and cheaper to produce than the folding trigger of the Colt. Also noticeable is the simplified form and decoration on the pistol, no doubt another cost saving measure to compete with Colts on the secondary market. Also unusual are the German Silver grips, a standard feature on all known surviving examples. Like the original Patterson, the gun lacks a loading lever, indicating it was patterned after some of the earlier examples of the Colt. Total production numbers are unknown, but serial numbers indicate about 100 guns were produced from about 1840 to 1848 when Colt reentered the pistol market. It is speculated that either Colt threatened legal action agains the company, or that the release of Colts new pistols made the operation uneconomical, hence it’s abrupt termination. In any case, the guns while not as well regarded as Colts, they offer slight improvements over early Patterson revolvers and are almost as rare.

This particular example saw action in the Civil War, with a officer of the 3rd New Jersey Cavalry, the colorful “Butterfly Boys” unit of hussars. After the war, it’s original owner moved west to Denver, Colorado, where it eventually made its way into the hands of the local historical society after nearly a century of being stored in a trunk along with the veteran’s Civil War memorabilia. It remains there, on public display, to the date of publishing.