Southern Derringers of the Mississippi Valley — John Shaqi
Southern Derringers of the Mississippi ValleyKirkland, Turner
History
Southern Derringers of the Mississippi Valley
Kirkland, Turner
Firearms industry and trade -- Mississippi River Valley; Pistols -- Mississippi River Valley
Henry Deringer of the famed Philadelphia company believed that the
greatest part of his trade was in the southern states. It was only
proper that many independent makers of derringer type guns would spring
up throughout the area where they were so popular. The line from St.
Louis to New Orleans was the starting point for the westward trade and
many of these guns were carried as a hideout weapon to California during
the most popular period from 1845 through 1870. A casual study shows
great differences between the southern made derringers and those of
Philadelphia, each of which has its own peculiar and particular
characteristics.
In the court case of Henry Deringer vs. Plate, Deringer states that he
started producing his celebrated small gun in 1825. A careful study of
the southern manufactured derringers shows that all of them started
around 1855 or later with some of them continuing production until the
1870s.
There are two kinds of Southern Derringers; those that are made by Henry
Deringer with agent markings and those that are manufactured in the
South.
Henry Deringer pistols bearing agents names and marked with the legend
“MAN^d for” appear to date from the earlier period of his manufacture.
Later pistols omit this stamping and read, for example:
WOLF & DURRINGER LOUISE KY AGENTS
LULLMAN & VIENNA MEMPHIS, TENN.
Please note that the Calhoun, Hyde & Goodrich, J. B. Gilmore, Lullman &
Vienna and the two F. H. Clarks are marked with the earlier marking,
while the Swett, the one F. H. Clark and the two Lullman & Vienna’s are
marked with the later type of stamping. These are the only guns in my
collection that are genuine Henry Deringers.
Of those southern made derringers that are manufactured in that area,
only a few have the escutcheon plate underneath the forearm with a screw
through the plate holding the barrel. Most of this type did not use a
wedge but one did use a wedge and this screw. Many used a screw through
the trigger plate to the barrel.
A few of the southern made derringers had flat butts particularly those
of Nashville and Memphis.
About half of the southern manufactured guns had octagon barrels and the
other half had those of the Henry Derringer style with a round barrel
and a rib on top.
Never before have I observed a gun photograph using a mirror to show the
underside of a forearm and the guard. Although this innovation is about
1½ inches out of focus, because of the extra light travel, it does show
these features that are otherwise hidden and that are very important in
identification. All of this photography, and for our catalog, is done
with an ancient Polaroid with portrait lenses.
In 1957 I obtained my first specimen of a southern made derringer from
Nathan Swayze, author of “51 Colt Navies”, at the Jackson Mississippi
Gun Show. This was a Glassick Derringer as was my second gun obtained
later that year at another Jackson Mississippi Gun Show.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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