Wesson Damascus Shotgun Serial #6

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Gunner327 said:
Hello,
I have serial #6 of the Wesson 12-Gauge Shotguns. I am looking for any manufacturing or shipping history that may exist. Emailed S&W and they recommended I post something to our Forum. This shotgun is Gustave Young Engraved and must have been sent somewhere special. Thanks In Advance.
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Sorry I have no info for you but some pictures of it would be interesting. Might draw some more interest and comments, too.
 
We have the records for Wesson shotguns. Fill out the form under downloads and send it to the address listed along with the $75.00 fee.
Don Mundell
Assistant Historian
Smith & Wesson Historical Foundation.
 
Is the gun marked with the Wesson name? Many weren't, having only the patent information. Those that weren't marked with a name have only an assembly number. All were engraved, even those not marked by name. Total production was around 250 guns in 1869-70. Roy Jinks is the expert on these, and owns a number of them.
 
We would love to see some photos!
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Welcome to the Forum. It is very unusual to find a Wesson shotgun with a serial number under 100, as it is believed production (except for prototypes, etc. ) started at serial number 100. All known guns are engraved. Do you have the case and accessories? The Wesson Firearms Co. was formed on May 27, 1867 by D.B.Wesson, Horace Smith, J.W.Storrs, Franklin Wesson and C. E. Buckland. Whether the S&W factory actually saw the manufacture of these shotguns is unknown. All guns bear the patent date Nov. 24, 1868, and by that date the production had been moved to the Hall & Buckland plant in Springfield. Production ceased in 1870 and all assets were sold. It is believed that Dexter Smith may have assembled some guns from parts later as his monogram appears on a few guns instead of D.B.Wesson's. All known guns are 12 ga. with 30 inch barrels. I once owned an 16 in barrel example, but it had been cut from the original 30 in. Various sources list serial numbers up to # 219. #215 is marked "Smith & Wesson" instead of Wesson Firearms Co. and is Gustave Young engraved. Ed.
 
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There is not much out there, but it seems that Wesson's shotgun was a very important hammer doublegun that may have been instrumental in the start of the Parker Gun Company.

An entry in Best Guns, by Michael McIntosh is below along with the patent image of the lock and a picture of a Gustave Young factory engraved Wesson Damascus double barrel hammer-gun
 

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So Ed if I am understanding you correctly the Wesson Firearms Company ran concurrently with the Smith & Wesson firerarms company?

If that is correct, why not build them under the S&W moniker???
 
H Richard, Good question. The shotgun was to be the best American made shotgun of the period. Nothing else like it in the American market and it was to rival the best foreign guns. Some sources say the original price was $200, a very expensive sum for it's time, so perhaps the founders decided to try the endeavor as a separate entity in case it didn't pan out - which it didn't. Probably because of the price, not the quality. My guess why the last one produced was stamped Smith & Wesson, and engraved by Gustav Young,was an ego trip by D.B. perhaps, although none were made in the S&W plant - only in the Hall & Buckland ammo. plant. Jinks may have better info. Ed.
 
I have one of the Wesson shotguns. It is one of those without a serial number, but has the patent date and is engraved. The firing lock work is very similar to a single action S&W, except mounted on the lock plate. The gun is opened by lifting the top lever rather than rotating it. The barrels are locked by a rising bolt which engages a dolls head extension of the barrel rib. It does not seem to me to be a very strong locking system, but my gun shows a lot of use, and is still tight.
Wesson brought a barrel maker from England to make the Damascus barrels, and after the Wesson was discontinued, the Parker Gun company hired him before deciding that it was not economical to manufacture Damascus barrels in the US.
 
I am impressed with the extreme coverage and quality of the engraving on this example. It has about twice the coverage of mine. I would welcome comments from others with access to examples of these shotguns,.

Gunner327, would you be willing to let us post a copy of your photos over to the SWCA private forum where we would try to get Roy Jinks to make some comment on your example compared to the range of known examples, since it seems to me that maybe your example is sort of an exceptional one?

CB
 
H Richard: As I posted above, the barrels were made at the Wesson company by the Damascus barrel maker they brought over from England. Wesson even patented a process to manufacture the ribs from a tube of steel that was machined and then sliced lengthwise into individual ribs. I am sure that this was an effort to reduce the amount of hand work required, as any other method of forming them results in a very crooked piece of work that requires skilled straightening before use.
 
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Back in the 60s I was a partner in an antique gun store and we would buy up old shotguns, usually percussion type, for little money from pawnshops, etc., saw off the barrels to 18 inches, paint them with gold & silver paint, put on some flower decals and sell them at flea markets for "Wedding Guns" One day I came to the store and my partner was busy sawing off barrels on a new batch of shotguns. I glanced at the pile and immediately spotted a Wesson Fire Arms 12 ga. double he had just shortened to 18 inches. They are easy to spot with the odd pull up lever behind the breech. It actually made the gun better, as the muzzle of the gun had been flattened by a truck running over it. That gun's now in a S&W collection in Little Rock, Arkansas. Ed.
 
opoefc said:
Back in the 60s I was a partner in an antique gun store and we would buy up old shotguns, usually percussion type, for little money from pawnshops, etc., saw off the barrels to 18 inches, paint them with gold & silver paint, put on some flower decals and sell them at flea markets for "Wedding Guns" One day I came to the store and my partner was busy sawing off barrels on a new batch of shotguns. I glanced at the pile and immediately spotted a Wesson Fire Arms 12 ga. double he had just shortened to 18 inches. They are easy to spot with the odd pull up lever behind the breech. It actually made the gun better, as the muzzle of the gun had been flattened by a truck running over it. That gun's now in a S&W collection in Little Rock, Arkansas. Ed.
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Ed
Please tell me it's not in the governors mansion!
 
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