Fun fact,
The U S Army protected the ownership of the Springfield Single Shot Rifle and the Colt Model P the way the current military protects the M16 and probably the M1911. All sales were to the Army and very limited sales to the general public.
Kevin
Colt manufactured some 1911's for the civilian market beginning in 1912.
I Have This Old Gun: Colt Commercial Model 1911 | An Official Journal Of The NRA
That's my understanding of commercial sales for Schofield and Colt revolvers. Just the opposite was the situation for Winchester lever rifles. The only Winchester model I know of (showing my ignorance here) made for the Army was the model 95. I'm not sure the US Army ever adopted it however after the Spanish American war. There are some US marked 95's but most went to foreign militaries. I think the Krag–Jørgensen rifle came along about that time and became the official military rifle.
So with that, if you were a civilian on the frontier you likely had a Winchester of some sort, instead of a Colt or Schofield.
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