Introduced in 1935, the virtually custom built S&W .357 Registered Magnum Revolver was the first production arm chambered for the .357 Magnum cartridge. The .357 Magnum was the most powerful handgun cartridge at the time, and this “state of the art” handgun quickly gained popularity with law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, looking for a sidearm to deliver more stopping power. Offered here is a pair of Registered Magnums deeply connected to the model’s rich law enforcement legacy. The handguns are only four serial numbers apart (A: 53444 and B: 53448) and have consecutive registration numbers (A: 2636 and B: 2635). A factory letter for each revolver confirms the 5 inch barrel, Call gold bead front sight, square notch rear sight, blue finish, and checkered Magna grips as well as the pair being part of an August 18, 1937 shipment of 20 units (19 with 5 inch barrels and 1 with 4 inch barrel, otherwise in the same configuration) delivered to the City of Butte Police Department, Montana. The 5 inch barrel is of special note as S&W only manufactured 869 Registered Magnums in this barrel length. Other documents provided by the S&W Historical Foundation show an anxious city clerk awaiting the delivery of the 20 Registered Magnums, which are found with the Registration numbers 2627-2646, and S&W vice president Doug Wesson himself calming his client. In a Western Union telegram to S&W, Butte City Clerk Beryl Wilson inquired when delivery of the 20 Registered Magnums would be made. In his July 13, 1937 response to the city clerk’s telegraph, S&W Vice President Douglas B. Wesson reassured the city clerk “that these arms are receiving our best attention and will go through as rapidly as close workmanship, and even closer inspection will permit.” Each Registered Magnum was built to customer specifications and registered to the owner by D.B. Wesson himself. D.B. Wesson believed the order to be ready for shipment within the next three or four weeks. Both “A” and “B” guns have respective matching serial numbers on the butt, cylinder, and ejector shroud. Additionally, the right grip panel to “A” is numbered to the gun. The right grip panel to gun “B” is unnumbered. We know of one other Registered Magnum that was part of the 20 unit shipment to the Butte Police Department, and this revolver serial no. 53463, reg. no. 2646 was sold by RIAC in the December 2017 Premier Auction #72. Additional documentation includes several copies of photographs of Butte police officers circa late 1930s- 1940s as well as City of Butte Police Department rosters for officers serving around the time the 20 Registered Magnums were shipped. Information provided by the consignor states that shortly after the Butte Police Department received its 20 Registered Magnums, the Butte Police Protective Association presented Butte Mayor Charles Hauswirth with a 5 ½ inch Registered Magnum (reg. no. 3079), and this presentation was made at the conclusion of one week of FBI training given to Butte police officers. Copies of the Montana Hardware Co. order and S&W invoice for the revolver presented to the mayor as provided by the S&W Historical Foundation are included. The group of 20 Registered Magnums containing of these two revolvers in the August 19, 1937 shipment would have been used during the FBI training from October 18-22 and would have been handled by the men listed in the included department rosters. The presentation Registered Magnum (reg. no. 3079) was ordered on September 9, 1937, shortly after the 20 Registered Magnums were shipped and likely served as a gift of appreciation for the city’s procurement of the 20 Registered Magnums for the Butte Police Department that had seen its share of violent crime. Charles Hauswirth’s first year as city mayor, 1935, was a very bloody year for the Butte Police Department. Two officers were killed in the line of duty and a third was seriously injured. In September, 42 year veteran Chief of Police Jeremiah “Jere the Wise” Murphy died from injuries following a physical altercation with a miner. On Christmas Day, officer Tom O’Niell was killed in a shootout and his partner, James Mooney, took two bullets, narrowly surviving. Information pertaining to these two incidents is also included. As the era’s most powerful handgun, the 20 Registered Magnums were certainly a morale booster to a police department that suffered great loss at the hands of violent criminals.

Exceptionally fine overall, retaining 85% original blue finish and 90% original case colors, showing great character associated with a sidearm carried in a holster at the hip of a Butte police officer for many years. The holster wear and very good chipped worn grips are a testament to the .357 Registered Magnum's legendary legacy as the sidearm of choice for members of law enforcement. Mechanically excellent.

As described in "A."

Excellent, retaining 90% plus original blue finish and nearly all original case colors. Like its sister, this revolver shows authentic character and use associated with being a police department sidearm carried by an officer for many years. Mechanically excellent. This well-documented pair of Butte, Montana Police Department S&W .357 Registered Magnum Revolvers with consecutive registration numbers and rare 5 inch barrels will be a great addition to any public or private S&W or law enforcement collection no matter how advanced.