The factory letter lists this revolver in .45 caliber with a 3 1/2 inch barrel and blue finish. The grips are not listed. It was part of a shipment with three guns of this type sent to Simmons Hardware Co. in St. Louis, Missouri, for W.M.C. Hill on September 27, 1901. Per page 326 of "The Official Record of the Colt Single Action Army Revolver, 1873-1895", a total of 224 .45 Colt "plain revolvers without ejectors" were made between serial numbers 1 and 164100 and only 52 had 3 1/2 inch barrels and blue finish. The matching serial number is marked on the frame and butt. This revolver appears to have been part of an order by William M. C. Hill (1846-1928) of Texas for the state penitentiary at Huntsville. Hill was the financial agent and manager of the penitentiary from early 1899 to early 1903. He had been born in Kentucky and came to Dallas in 1861 after losing his parents and a sister to yellow fever. He served in Company K of the 19th Texas Cavalry during the war. He married in Dallas in 1875. He is identified as the first man to sell wholesale goods in Dallas which was then a small frontier town and became a grocer. He was elected county clerk in 1882, 1886, and 1886. In 1894, he was appointed as postmaster for Dallas. Provenance: The Charles Marx Collection

Very good with a "frontier issued" appearance with some original finish in the protected areas and otherwise mottled gray and brown patina, minor pitting, punched out/obliterated trigger guard number, a few dings and scratches, partially smoothed grips, and general mild wear. Mechanically fine.