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Smith & Wesson
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Smith & Wesson was founded by two men who shared a dream of developing a new type of firearm, one capable of being fired repeatedly without the annoyance of having to reload with loose powder, ball, and primer. Their ideas moved firearms manufacturing out of the muzzle loading era that dominated the industry since the invention of the hand cannon in the 14th century.
  The dream became reality when Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson formed their first partnership in 1852 to manufacture a lever-action pistol that incorporated a tubular magazine which fired a fully self-contained cartridge.

This new repeating pistol could be fired as rapidly as the lever, which loaded the pistol and cocked the hammer, could be manipulated. The firepower of this lever-action pistol was so impressive that in 1854, when the gun was reviewed by Scientific American, it was nicknamed the Volcanic because its rapid-fire sequence had the force of an erupting volcano.

The original site of the Smith & Wesson Arms Co. was in Norwich, Connecticut, where the company operated until it suffered financial difficulties in 1854. During the reorganization of the company, a new investor by the name of Oliver Winchester provided additional finances to support the production of this particular type of firearm. The factory moved to New Haven, Connecticut, the site of some of Winchester's holdings, and the name of the company was changed to Volcanic Repeating Arms Co. Horace Smith and D.B. Wesson finally sold their majority interest to Oliver Winchester, who using the original Smith & Wesson patents, continued their venture. It emerged in 1866 as the Winchester Repeating Arms Co.
Horace Smith eventually returned to his hometown of Springfield, Massachusetts, and D.B. Wesson continued to work for Winchester as plant superintendent. While employed at the Volcanic, Wesson designed a small revolver that fired a cartridge that he and Horace Smith patented in 1854. Both men believed this new revolver had the potential to create a successful venture, and in 1856 they reformed their partnership to begin production of the revolver in Springfield.

This new rimfire cartridge was one of the most famous ever developed. It was originally called the "Number One Cartridge," but today it is known as the .22 rimfire. The new revolver was called the Model 1, and it gained immediate popularity due to the advantages offered by the new cartridge.


The S&W 952, modified by the S&W performance center. The Smith & Wesson Performance Center delivers limited run, unique design and special feature firearms - backed by the resources, experience and expertise of over 140 years as America's premier handgun manufacturer.
  In 1859, finding the demand could no longer be met in the small 25-manshop, Smith & Wesson built a new factory on Stockbridge Street in the center of Springfield, close to the United States armory. The factory continued to improve the Model 1. In 1861 the Model 2, a larger-frame revolver that fired a .32 rimfire cartridge, was introduced.

The demand for the Smith & Wesson product accelerated in 1861 with the advent of the Civil War. By mid-1862, the demand had so exceeded factory capacity that it was necessary to close the order books and only supply products against the heavy backlog. Wartime production helped firmly establish Smith & Wesson as one of the leading firearms manufacturers in the U.S. However, in the postwar depression, Smith & Wesson, like many other firms, suffered severe business curtailments and sales dropped to only a few guns per month.By 1867, the partners realized that a new approach was necessary. They had been experimenting with a new design but lacked the necessary market. They authorized Henry W. Hallot to negotiate contracts and establish a market in Europe in April of 1867, with sales agencies in England, France and Germany. One of Hallot's first functions was to organize a display of Smith & Wesson arms at a major exposition in Paris. The display included the total product line and a selection of highly engraved works to highlight the quality of the craftsmen employed by the firm.

The Smith & Wesson arms exhibit was extremely popular, and many nations expressed interest in the products. One of the most important people to view the exhibit was the Russian Grand Duke Alexis. He was so impressed with Smith & Wesson's revolvers that he purchased several small pistols for himself and his aides. This marketing approach proved highly successful, and European orders helped to relieve the effects of the domestic depression.
The opening of a worldwide market increased sales for Smith & Wesson,and the company soon introduced its first large-caliber .44 revolver called the Model 3. The gun was a totally new design known as a "top-break" revolver that incorporated an automatic ejection system to allow for rapid unloading and reloading. One of the first customers to receive the Model 3 was the Russian military attache, General Gorloff. He promptly sent this sample to Russia for evaluation, and it was so well received that in May of 1871 the Russian government signed a contract for 20,000 Model 3's, paying in advance with gold. This contract proved to be one of many signed with the Russian Government but more significantly, it influenced the total market and soon orders poured into the factory, far exceeding its ability to supply handguns. The Model 3 became extremely popular throughout the world and on the American western frontier.

One of the most interesting notes on the Model 3 appeared in an editorial in the September 24, 1876 issue of the Sunday Herald and Weekly National Intelligence shortly after the Custer Massacre. The article implied that if Custer and his men had been armed with Smith & Wesson's Model 3 Schofield, rather than the more slow-loading Colt Single Action revolver, they might have possibly survived the Indian attack.


  Smith & Wesson continued to grow and expanded its line in 1880 by introducing the first group of double-action revolvers. These handguns were the result of more than four years of extensive design research.

In 1899, Smith & Wesson developed its most famous revolver, the .38 Military & Police, which was the predecessor of today's Model 10. This revolver was designed to fire another first, the .38 Smith & Wesson Special cartridge.

In 1908, S&W introduced its N-Frame (large size) line of revolvers chambered in a new cartridge called the .44 S&W Special. This line of handguns would become legendary in the hands of such famous handgunners as Elmer Keith and Ed McGivern.

When Europe was thrown into conflict in 1914, Smith & Wesson responded to a request from the British Government by supplying an N-Frame revolver chambered in the .455 Mark II British Service cartridge. These 75,000 revolvers helped further establish, on a worldwide basis, the strength and quality of this new large frame S&W revolver.

During the 1930s, Smith & Wesson introduced two more famous revolvers, the K-22 Outdoorsman for the competitive shooter and the .357 Magnum for the law enforcement officer who needed a powerful handgun. The .357 Magnum also was significant as the beginning of the Magnum era of handguns.

As in World War I, Smith & Wesson answered the needs of World War II fighting forces, and by 1941 its total plant production was geared to supplying arms for the U.S. and her allies. By March of 1945, when World War II production was ended, Smith & Wesson had supplied 1,110,392 .38 Military & Police revolvers to complete the war demand.

At the end of World War II, Smith & Wesson continued its progressive leadership under the management of Mr. C. R. Hellstrom. Hellstrom, who was made president in 1946, was the first person outside the Wesson family to serve in that capacity. In 1950, the company moved to a totally new and larger facility in Springfield, Massachusetts.

The model 10, the evolution of the .38 police and military