San Francisco Public Library

Revolver, Sam Colt and the six-shooter that changed America, Jim Rasenberger

eng

Includes bibliographical references and index

individual biography

illustrationsportraitsplates

index present

non fiction

Revolver

bibliography

1124338250

Jim Rasenberger

Sam Colt and the six-shooter that changed America

"A sweeping, definitive biography of Samuel Colt--the inventor of the legendary Colt revolver (a.k.a. six-shooter)--which changed the US forever, triggering the industrial revolution and the settlement of the American West. Patented in 1836, the Colt pistol with its revolving cylinder was the first practical firearm that could shoot more than one bullet without reloading. For many reasons, Colt's gun had a profound effect on American history. Its most immediate impact was on the expansionism of the American west, where white emigrants and US soldiers came to depend on it, and where Native Americans came to dread it. The six-shooter became the iconic weapon of gun-slingers, outlaws, and cowboys--some willing to pay $500 out west for a gun that sold for $25 back east. In making the revolver, Colt also changed American manufacturing--his factory revolutionized industry in the United States. Ultimately, Colt and his gun-making brought together the two most significant forces of change before the Civil War--the industrial revolution in the east, Manifest Destiny in the west. Brilliantly told, Revolver brings the brazenly ambitious and profoundly innovative industrialist and leader Samuel Colt to vivid life. In the space of his forty-seven years, he seemingly lived five lives: he traveled, womanized, drank prodigiously, smuggled guns to Russia, bribed politicians, and supplied the Union Army with the guns they needed to win the Civil War. Colt lived during an age of promise and progress, but also of slavery, corruption, and unbridled greed, and he not only helped to create this America, he completely embodied it. By the time he died in 1862 in Hartford, Connecticut, he was one of the most famous men in the nation, and one of the richest. While Revolver is a riveting and revealing biography of Colt, a man who made significant contributions to our country during the nineteenth century, it's also a lively and informative historical portrait of America during a time of extraordinary transformation" -- Bookdepository.comPatented in 1836, the Colt pistol with its revolving cylinder was the first practical firearm that could shoot more than one bullet without reloading. Its most immediate impact was on the expansionism of the American west, where white emigrants and US soldiers came to depend on it, and where Native Americans came to dread it. In making the revolver, Colt also changed American manufacturing, and revolutionized industry in the United States. Rasenberger brings the brazenly ambitious and profoundly innovative industrialist and leader Samuel Colt to vivid life. During an age of promise and progress, and also of slavery, corruption, and unbridled greed, Colt not only helped to create this America, he completely embodied it.-- adapted from info provided

Prologue: A taste for distasteful truths -- Before the mast (1814-33). Lord's Hill ; His name was Colt ; The voyage of the Corvo ; The nitrous oxide tour -- Exertions and enterprise (1833-38). The anatomical cabinet ; On the verge ; Fire ; Burst -- Smoke and mirrors (1838-45). Legerdemain ; In the blood -- Young America (1846-51). Year of decision ; Now is the time ; Oh! This California ; Guns in the Crystal Palace -- Coltsville (1852-62). The anthem of bang ; Emperor of the south meadows ; Fathers and sons ; I am loth to close -- Epilogue. Legatees and legacies

adult

Sam Colt and the six-shooter that changed America