26 GUNSOFTHEOLDWEST FALL 2019
tomframeplateandsilver-inlaiddetails,
waslimitedto1,000examples.Thecased
setincludeda Patersonpowderflask,an
authenticColtcapper,a singlebulletmold
and tools,anda copyof thebookPaterson
ColtPistolVariationsbyPhilipR.Phillips.
Thesetsoldfor$2,500in1988.
All great things come to an end at some
point, and for the original Patersons,it
was the late 1840s, after John Ehlers sold
the last of the Paterson inventory he’d
purchased from Samuel Colt’s bankruptcy
in 1842. Ehlers sold his improved “Ehlers
Paterson” models until the stock was
exhausted. These late-model Colts had
the round-shoulder cylinders and loading
levers added to the No. 2 Pocket Models.
For CBA, the end of production camein
2002, with the final run of Colt percussion
models and the blued No. 5 Holster Models.
Uberti, which was purchased by Beretta
after Aldo’s passing, discontinued the
Patersons in 2008 after 20 years of Paterson
manufacturing. But it wasn’t quite overyet.
America Remembers purchased thevery
last Patersons in the CBA inventory in 2002
and put them in storage for a future project
that would become the most ambitiousand
rarest Paterson reproduction series ever done.
After five years in development by
America Remembers, I began working
with gunsmith and engraver Conrad
Anderson to put a limited edition ofjust
20 original-style Paterson cased setsinto
production in 2011. Each hand-engraved
pistol came with a rare 4-5/8-inch barrel
as well as a scarcer 12-inch barrel.
The accessories were as importantto
each set as the guns themselves, andinclud-
ed the very last of the finely reproducedColt
cappers and period-correct tools, including
an authentically styled and functioningtwo-
piece, five-round Paterson powder-and-ball
flask copied from the original design.
The pistol frames and barrels were
engraved in an original vine-scroll pattern
with silver accent bands, also copiedfrom
original guns, and the case was madeinthe
correct period size and style with spring
devices for securing accessories, a wooden
spool for the spare cylinder, and brasspins
to secure the gun and extra barrel.
The guns were hand finished and
engraved by Anderson and blued byDoug
Turnbull, while the cases and woodenacces-
sories were handcrafted by Pennsylvania
furniture maker Duncan Everhart. The 20
guns sold out almost immediately andtook
more than two years to complete, selling
for $5,995 each. An original 1842 Paterson
ca sed set like this would be worth over
$400,000. And you would be just as hard-
pressed to find one for sale today as one
of the 20 reproductions.
If you’ve tried to find an Uberti Paterson
for sale these days, you know it is a long
search. They are out there, but few in
numbers, and engraved examples fewer
still. Limited editions like those from the
U.S. Historical Society and the Samuel Colt
Heritage Museum of Fine Firearms are
even harder to find. Only a handful of the
America Remembers No. 2 Belt Models
are around, and the two-barrel set done in
2011 is virtually unavailable.
In the end, Uberti really closed the door
on the Paterson as an authentic reproduc-
tion of Samuel Colt’s first models. Today,
the only Paterson reproduction made is
the Texas Paterson with the 9-inch barrel
(favored by Texas Rangers in the 1840s)
manufactured in Italy by Pietta. It isn’t
the same model as those Uberti and CBA
produced, but it’s as close as anyone mak-
ing them today will likely ever come. Even
reproductions can be very collectible! ✪
HUNTING FOR PATERSONS
All 20 ofthe 2011 gunswerehand-engraved
byConradAndersoninoriginal 1842
Patersonscrollwork,withsilver-inlaid bands
on the barrel, cylinder and recoil shield.
Pietta is the only company currently making Paterson
reproductions today with 9-inch barrels like those
favored by the Texas Rangers in the 1840s.
Pietta also offers a deluxe model with
laser engraving, silver-inlaid bands and
a polished steel frame and backstrap.
