Looks like an early version of the Lee Loader. I haven't seen one like it, but I have seen similar ones in other calibers. In the early 1880s, .45 cases with Boxer primers replaced the earlier inside primed cases, and that allowed reloading to be performed. The earlier Frankford Arsenal ammunition packets for Boxer-primed ammunition were labeled as being reloadable. Just how many troopers reloaded their fired .45 cases is debatable, but probably not many. One problem with reloading back then is that early priming compositions often contained Mercury Fulminate, and the Mercury would amalgamate the brass cases and weaken them. As Mercuric primers had other problems in addition to case amalgamation (mainly a very short shelf life, especially in hot weather), they were replaced by chlorate primers fairly quickly.