UPDATE: Firearm historian C. Roger Bleile's examination report
The Robert Swartz booklet, ‘Defender of Texas: A Colt Mystery'
Stunning Colt Second Model Dragoon Revolver (serial no. 9343), .44 caliber with a 7.5" octagon-to-round barrel, is not just a firearm, but a significant piece of history. Engraved by the legendary Louis D. Nimschke— his earliest known work—and finished in Boettger nickel, this revolver was presented by Samuel Colt to the legendary Texas Ranger Col. John Coffee Hays. The backstrap bears the inscription:"Presented to Col. John C. Hays, Compliments of Sam Colt, November 24, 1849." Below the grip’s shield appears an engraved tribute: "Defender of Texas." The gun is featured in Jim Supica's 16-page article, "Pieces of History: Historically Attributed Firearms," published in the 2025 edition of Standard Catalog of Firearm, p. 809.
Manufactured in 1850, the revolver features Nimschke’s hallmark artistry—elaborate scrollwork on the cylinder and wolf’s-head motifs on the hammer. On the right side of the frame, a spread-winged American eagle perches atop a shield bearing the five-pointed Texas star, flanked by the U.S. and Lone Star flags and the famous “Come and Take It” cannon below. The left panel features a portrait of Louis Napoleon (later Napoleon III), echoing other exhibition Dragoons engraved with figures such as George Washington and the Marquis de Lafayette—likely all part of the same historic presentation group.
Marked “U.S.” on the frame, the revolver was intended for sale to the army but was condemned by U.S. Ordnance. Colt repurposed condemned pieces for other uses, frequently as presentations. This gun became one of fifty extraordinary engraved Colts for the 1850 Industrial Exhibitions in New York and Boston, where Colt aimed to win gold medals that would enhance European sales.
In 1851, with Hays now living in California and Colt preparing to name his new .36-caliber revolver the “Ranger,” the armsmaker sought to establish a bond that, for reasons explained elsewhere, had always been rocky. Colt dispatched company manager Luther Sargeant to California, crossing the Isthmus of Panama, with this revolver and a letter of introduction to Hays hoping to gain the former Ranger's endorsement. Hays declined, and the would-be Colt Ranger became known as the Colt Navy after the Texas Navy's victory at Campeche roll-died on the cylinder.
Hays had no use for the gun, or Colt. He sent the gun to a former comrade-in-arms, famed Texas Ranger Creed Taylor. Taylor carved in the base of the walnut grip, —“C. Taylor” and “T [star] R”.
This auction offers collectors a rare opportunity to acquire one or both of the most important Colt presentation revolvers of the 19th century—each given by Samuel Colt to John Coffee Hays. This is the first time the two have appeared together, and it may well be the last. Individually, each revolver tells a story of craftsmanship, frontier legend, and Colt’s personal legacy. Together, they form an unparalleled pairing—Colt’s tribute to a man who helped define the revolver’s place in American history.
Antique firearm. Transfers with no federal restrictions.
Research and Forensics:
• 2003 Letter of Authenticity by R. L. Wilson, describing it as an
“HISTORIC DELUXE ENGRAVED AND PANEL-SCENE ENGRAVED COLT SECOND MODEL DRAGOON… worthy of the finest museum or private collection of American firearms.”
• 16-page expert examination by C. Roger Bleile, founder of the Firearms Engravers Guild of America, concluding:
“Authentic, original, and… the earliest known engraving by Louis D. Nimschke.”
• Metallurgical analysis confirming original Boettger chemical nickel plating—predating Bessemer steel and the Adams electroplating process (1872) and inferior steel before the Bessemer process of 1858. Results of the EDS study conducted by BakerRisk, San Antonio, can be seen here. https://discovercolt.com/coltmetallurgya.html
• Feature coverage in Military Antique Collector Magazine (Vol. 3, No. 5, 2004) and The Rampant Colt (Summer 2024).
• Research monograph by Robert Swartz: Defender of Texas: A Colt Mystery
• 2021 forensic report and LOA by Horacio F. Acevedo, Acevedo Restoration and Engraving
Markings & Condition:
• Barrel: “ADDRESS SAML COLT NEW YORK CITY”
• Frame: “COLT’S / PATENT / U.S.”
• Serial number “9343” appears in seven locations.
• Condition: Fine, with minor flaking of original plating. Bore shows strong, defined rifling with only light oxidation.
All engraving was executed before plating, except for the inscriptions, which—per Colt's custom—were cut through the silver afterward.
• Expert assessment by Charles Pate confirms the serial number font and style are correct, noting particularly a missing portion of the left bar of the number 4.
Provenance:
• Presented by Samuel Colt to Col. John Coffee Hays, 1849
• Passed to Creed Taylor, fellow Texas Ranger, ca. 1851
• By descent through the Taylor family. Mentioned, obliquely, in the Galveston Daily News 1910.
• Acquired before 1959 by S. P. Stevens, San Antonio collector
• Acquired ca. 1960 by Russell B. Aitkens, famed artist, noted arms collector, resident of New York and Newport, Rhode Island, and namesake of the arms gallery at a Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY.
• Sold by Christie’s, 2003, from Aitkens estate
• Sold by Little John’s Auction, 2020, to Robert Swartz
