Item:
ON21123

Original U.S. Civil War Marston 3-Barreled Derringer Pistol Serial 2597 - As Seen on Pawn Stars

Item Description

Original Item: Only One Available: This very pistol was featured and fired successfully for an episode of History Channel's Pawn Stars in 2022. Watch the episode below:



William W. Marston was born in England in 1822. He was the son of Stanhope W. Marston, who was a gunmaker that immigrated to America sometime prior to the 1840s. Stanhope established himself as a gunmaker in New York and produced percussion pepperboxes, as well as single and double barrel pistols, some with swivel breeches. He worked from 1844-1866 and during that time received two US patents (#7,887 in 1851 and #45,712 in 1865) for innovations in firearms design. His son William was naturalized as a citizen on April 8, 1843 and went into the family business, initially working for his father and then going out on his own. William worked from 1844 until he died in 1872, and during that time amassed at least 6 firearms related patents. These included #6,514 in 1849 for a lock design, #7,443 in 1850 for a breechloading firearm and #13,581 in 1855 for a pepperbox. He also received two patents for ammunition designs (#8,956 in 1852 and #40,490 in 1863), the latter of which was for a self-contained metallic cartridge.

Some of the most famous and intriguing of his firearms were his line of three-barrel rimfire cartridge pocket pistols. He produced them in both .22 and .32 rimfire, with the majority of the .22s being made with a sliding knife blade along the side of the 3 superimposed barrels. The larger caliber superimposed pistol was manufactured in .32 rimfire, but was made without the knife blade. However, the .32 caliber pistols did include a useful extractor mechanism to remove the spent cartridges. Marston manufactured some 3,300 of these 3-barreled “derringers’ between 1864 and 1872. They were made with either 3” or 4” barrels, and the standard configuration was a silver plated brass frame, blued barrels and two-piece wood grips. The guns were single action, and had an indicator switch on the right side of the frame that showed which of the barrels the pivoting the firing pin was going to fire. The firing pin automatically indexed from the “0”, or safe position, to #1 (bottom barrel), #2 (middle barrel) and #3 (top barrel), each time the hammer was cocked. The rotating switch gave the shooter a visual indication of which barrel had just been fired and which one would be next. After the gun was discharged and reloaded, the indicator switch was rotated by the user back to the “0” position, to be ready to fire again the next time the hammer was cocked.

Our example is really a very nice example, still retaining the complete manufacturer marking on the left side of the frame:

WM. W. MARSTON
PATENTED
MAY 26. 1857
NEW YORK CITY
IMPROVED 1864

It also bears "ALL MATCHING" serial number 2597 on the grip frame under the grips, on the barrel cluster near the hinge, and on the inside of BOTH grip scales. We see no evidence that any parts are not original to the pistol, making this a great "ALL MATCHING" original example.

The blued barrels of the pistol retain about 70% of their deep, dark original blue, with some thinning and fading from handling over the years. The metal is almost entirely smooth throughout out, with only a couple of minute areas of very minor pinpricking noted. The pistol barrel bores are all in very good condition and remain with crisp rifling. There is only the most minimal pinpricking present in some of the grooves, and the grooves show some minor frosting as well, but no serious indications of any significant use. The case hardened hammer retains about 30% of its original case coloring. The balance of the hammer has faded to more mellow bluish-gray patina. The frame of the pistol has mellowed to a lovely "mustard" patina.

The action of the pistol works perfectly, and the hinged barrels open smoothly when the top latch is rotated clockwise (with the muzzle pointed away from the body). The latch locks the pistol together tightly when the barrels are closed and there is no perceptible wobble or shake present. The indicator switch on the right side of the frame shows which barrel will be fired when the hammer is cocked. To reset the firing pin, the switch it rotated to the “0” position, so that the next time the hammer is cocked, the pistol will fire the first barrel. The action of the pistol remains quite crisp and the hammer locks tightly into the full cock position and responds appropriately to the spur trigger. When the hammer is cocked, the pivoting firing pin rotates through its positions as it should, and the indicator on the frame moves as well. The rotating indicator is a little tight, but it functions exactly as designed. The original rear sight notch is in place on the top of the barrel catch, and the original brass front sight blade is in place on the top barrel, near the muzzle. The pistol is adorned with a gorgeous pair of varnished rosewood grips.

Overall a really nice example of a hard to find very collectible pistol, offered in mechanically sound working order.

Specifications:
Year of Manufacture: c. 1864 - 1868
Caliber: .32 RF
Ammunition Type: Cartridge
Barrel Length: 3"
Overall Length: 6 1/4"
Action: Single Action
Feed System: Single Shot - Three Barrels Index Fire

NOTE: International orders of antique firearms MUST be shipped using UPS WW Services (courier). USPS Priority Mail international will not accept these. International customers should always consult their country's antique gun laws prior to ordering.

  • This product is not available for shipping in US state(s): New Jersey

    This product is available for international shipping.
  • Not eligible for payment with Paypal or Amazon

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

Cash For Collectibles