Ethan Allen (September 2, 1808 – January 7, 1871) was a major American arms maker from Massachusetts. He is unrelated to the revolutionary Ethan Allen. His first firearm, the "Pocket rifle" was developed in 1836, and his first patent was granted in 1837.
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Early life
Allen began his career as a cutlery maker in Milford, Massachusetts, in 1831. He gained knowledge of metalworking and manufacturing processes by producing knives and shoemaking tools before moving his business to Grafton.
While working on a cane gun for a doctor, Allen came up with the idea for an underhammer pocket rifle and designed it in 1836. The following year he applied for a patent for a "tube hammer" pocket pistol and went into business with his brother-in-law, Charles Thurber. Ethan proved to be a true family man, investing and partnering with a nephew in a New York sporting goods retailer, hiring another brother-in-law Thomas Wheelock who was eventually made a partner, and similarly hiring and later making partners his two sons-in-law Sullivan Forehand and Henry Wadsworth. The latter two continued the business under their own names after Allen died in 1871.
Trade names
1831–1837: E. Allen (Grafton)
1837–1842: Allen & Thurber (Grafton)
1842–1847: Allen & Thurber (Norwich)
1847–1854: Allen & Thurber (Worcester)
1854–1856: Allen Thurber & Co (Worcester)
1856–1865: Allen & Wheelock (Worcester)
1865–1871: E. Allen & Company (Worcester)
In 1843, the company relocated to Norwich, Connecticut. In addition to arms making, they built prototypes of Thurber's typewriter designed for the blind, disabled, and those “nervous” about writing by hand. Though patented, the typewriter was never manufactured for commercial sale.
In 1847, the company moved to Worcester, Massachusetts, and in 1854, Wheelock became an equal partner with the firm's name changing to Allen Thurber & Co. In 1856, following Thurber's death, the company reorganized as Allen & Wheelock. After Wheelock's death in 1865, Allen's two sons-in-law, Sullivan Forehand and H. C. Wadsworth, began working for him, and the company changed its name to Allen & Company. Upon Allen's death in 1871, the two operated the company under their own names, Forehand & Wadsworth, until Forehand reorganized the company in 1890 as the Forehand Arms Company after Wadsworth's retirement.
Ethan Allen's companies made a vast variety of firearms. Most recognized is the Allen & Thurber "pepper-box" revolving pistol—known as the "Gun that won the East". This pistol was actually much more common than the early Patterson Arms revolvers made by Colt. Few records survive, so much is derived from the physical weapons still in existence and by extrapolating from advertisements, patent dates, etc.
Single-shot and double-shot percussion pistols
Pocket rifle
Allen's first firearm was the "Pocket rifle", a single-shot under-hammer percussion pistol. The name likely derives from the fact that most pistols of the day did not have rifled barrels, rather than any claim to extraordinary size. The hammer located on the bottom of the weapon allowed for target sights to be mounted on the top axis of the barrel. Made in .28 to .44 caliber, the average barrel length was 12 inches. Typically sold in pairs, the pocket rifle was produced from 1837–1847. Though most of this period was during the Thurber partnership, markings show exclusively 'Ethan Allen', and evidence from an accounting ledger indicates that supply and distribution orders were processed separately from other models of firearms. This likely indicates that Allen retained ownership of this model after establishing the partnership with Thurber. A second pocket rifle was produced under the Allen and Thurber name, retaining the under-hammer design but with much smoother lines. The pictures the author has seen show a barrel much shorter than 12 inches, and the caption reads .36 caliber.
Tube Hammer pistol
A single-shot percussion pocket pistol with the hammer in the more usual top position for contemporary pistols. The spectacular innovation was the 'double action' which allowed firing simply by pulling the trigger. Most firearms of the day and for decades thereafter were 'single action', requiring the user to manually cock the firearm prior to pulling the trigger. The barrel had a smooth bore with no rifling. With no sights, this was a close-range personal defense weapon used with a 'point and shoot' method rather than careful aiming. This model also introduced a screw barrel, allowing for easy disassembly and cleaning. Judging solely from patent dates, production of this pistol began around 1837 and continued beyond 1844 when a patent reissue was granted.
Model 6 Shotgun Hammer boot pistol
Single-shot percussion pistol.
Model 9 Bar Hammer pistol
The tube hammer was followed shortly by the Bar Hammer single-shot percussion pistol. Produced in a wide variety of calibers and barrel lengths, the Model 9 introduced a bar-shaped hammer on the top of the barrel which would be less likely to catch on clothing when drawn from a coat pocket. Barrel length was typically 2-6 inches with a smooth bore, while the most common calibers were .30-.36. Retaining the double action, single shot, screw-barrel design of the tube-hammer, the Model 9 was a success and was produced well into the Allen and Wheelock era. Though made possibly as early as 1837–1838, the bar hammer was eventually marked with an 1845 patent date.
Revolver pepperbox percussion pistols
An entire volume could be written about the variations of the Allen and Thurber iconic pepperbox 'revolving pistols'. Often referred to as 'the gun that won the east', the Allen and Thurber pepperbox was a favorite of '49ers' and other early immigrants to the western United States. Mark Twain famously quipped that these pistols often discharged more than one barrel when fired, and were not much of a danger to the target, but were dangerous to the shooter. Holding several patents, Allen and Thurber pepperboxes were the most popular multi-shot pistols of the 1830s and 1840s, slowly losing market share in the 1850s to Colt's 1849 Pocket and 1851 Navy revolvers. The later revolver pepperboxes were produced well into the Allen and Wheelock era. During the American Civil War, due to a shortage of pistols, many soldiers on both sides carried an Allen & Thurber pepperbox as a backup arm. Harley Van Cleve and his son Phillip collected and categorized 22 distinct models/variations of the Allen pepperbox, and were an invaluable early 20th-century resource for these pistols. Patent dates of 1837 and 1845 help to demarcate sub-models to a limited extent, but many improvements were incorporated on the fly to reduce manufacturing costs and/or create a more reliable product. The 1845 patent represents several simplifications to the design that likely achieved both of these aims. Pepperbox production did not survive the end of the Allen and Wheelock era (c 1864). Due to the number produced, smaller pepperbox pistols are common on the secondary market in a wide spectrum of conditions. The Dragoon model noted below is quite rare and commands a premium even in scruffy condition. Please see the cited work for extensive descriptions, illustrations, and a wide variety of photographs.
4-barrel pepperbox pistols
The four-shot pepperbox was introduced during the Allen and Wheelock era, highlighting that the pepperbox was still an important design through the end of the 1850s. A patent dated 1857 shows that the four-shot barrel assembly attached to the frame in a different manner than the six-shot and five-shot pepperboxes. The standard caliber was .34. All of the pictures this author has seen do not show a nipple shield.
5-barrel pepperbox pistols
It was during the Worcester period that the five-shot pepperbox was introduced. Percussion nipples were integrated into the barrels. It would have been expensive to make the machining, but it would likely have significantly reduced production costs. Made with a bar hammer and standard trigger, models have been encountered with or without an integral nipple shield. .32 was the most common caliber. The five-barrel is relatively rare compared to the six-barrel models
Percussion revolvers
Bar-Hammer percussion revolver
It is uncertain when production of the bar-hammer revolver began or ended. The 1845 patent on the bar-hammer is the same as on the pepperbox and some single-shot pistol models. It is likely some number of years after 1845 before this type was produced. A patent for Rollin White was issued in 1858 that pictured a modified Allen bar-hammer revolver. This would seem to indicate that production started no later than 1856–1857. However, it is possible that production started several years earlier. Production almost certainly ended before the end of the Wheelock era (c 1864). This is based on no more than the logic of simplifying production. In 1861, it is possible that Allen produced the bar-hammer, side-hammer, and center-hammer percussion revolvers as well as the rimfire and lipfire cartridge revolvers simultaneously. Because demand from the Civil War was consuming just about any arm produced, it would have made sense to cease production of the less advanced models. The lineage of the pepperbox is clear in the cylinder design, grip design, standard-style trigger, and patented bar hammer double-action design. This may represent a simple design evolution, as the double-action pepperbox 'pocket pistols' were very popular. Allen may have been counting on visual and functional design similarity to help sell these revolvers. The design may also have been intended to avoid patent issues. By incorporating his unchallenged 1845 patent for the bar-hammer double-action mechanism, Allen may have wished to avoid any patent infringement problems from Colt for his own revolving mechanism if the revolver was produced before the expiry of the Colt patent in 1857. Considering all of the evidence that Allen was a thoughtful and frugal businessman, it may simply demonstrate that using common parts was less expensive than designing new ones. The finish was blued, with wood grips as standard, though ivory could be had for an extra cost. The Allen bar-hammer is quite advanced in that pulling the trigger advances the cylinder, cocks the hammer, and drops the hammer, firing the weapon. The cylinder can be removed for cleaning by removing the cylinder pin. A separate ramrod would be needed for loading. The cylinder would likely be removed for loading, so reloading under duress is not practical. The author finds these revolvers aesthetically pleasing and very practical for a pocket pistol. This style was manufactured and sold in three different sizes.
Small frame Bar-Hammer revolver
The small frame is a five-shot, .28 caliber revolver, though some .30 caliber models are known. The barrel is 2.5 inches long. The cylinder is engraved with a scene of forest animals identical to the 'pocket-size' side-hammer percussion revolver. As with many models, changes were made during production, and collectors note an 'early' and 'late' variation.
Cartridge pistols
Like many other arms makers, Ethan Allen saw the bored-through cylinder allowing for the rear loading of self-contained metallic cartridges as the wave of the future. Unfortunately, the patent holder, Rollin White, had sold exclusive rights to this innovation to Smith and Wesson, preventing other companies from making firearms leveraging the bored-through cylinder. This legal constraint proved no barrier to Ethan Allen, who made two different rimfire revolvers that hit the market possibly as early as 1857, simultaneous to the Smith and Wesson model 1. As a holder of many patents, it is unlikely that Ethan Allen was ignorant of patent law—he simply chose to ignore it. Perhaps, he reckoned that he could outlast the upstart Smith and Wesson in legal maneuvering. He soon invented the 'lipfire' cartridge, a modified rimfire that only held the priming compound in approximately 1/8th of the circumference of the base of the cartridge. This made the cartridge base much stronger, as early rimfire cartridges tended to split at the base, causing extraction malfunction. It was also more economical, as only 1/8th of the expensive fulminate was required. Ethan Allen then invented manufacturing equipment for metallic cartridges that far exceeded the competition in quality and efficiency. Allen was awarded a patent for the lipfire cartridge. Production of lipfire revolvers likely began around 1859. With the coming of the Civil War, Allen likely smelled immense profits for his 'better mousetrap'. However, the conservative procurement agents of the US Government awarded only small contracts—likely not trusting the technology or the supply of cartridges. By 1863, Rollin White finally won his patent infringement lawsuit, and production of all Allen and Wheelock cartridge revolvers ceased.
Rimfire revolvers
.22 caliber rimfire revolver
This is the first cartridge revolver made by Allen and Wheelock, and one of the first cartridge revolvers from any manufacturer (competing with the Smith and Wesson model 1). It is a single-action seven-shot revolver in .22 Rimfire (black powder equivalent of the modern .22 Short). It features the side-hammer of the early percussion revolvers and a spur trigger. Empty cases were removed by removing the cylinder and using the cylinder pin to push the case out of the cylinder. There are many variations, typically organized into six models, though all share the size and critical design features. Most were made with a 3-inch barrel. The first through fourth models have engraved cylinders, with crossed rifles, a horse and rider, military articles, an Indian with a bow, and a sailing ship. Allen obtained a patent granted in 1858, and production likely began in 1857. Production continued until 1863, when production of all cartridge revolvers was halted by the lawsuit described previously. Production resumed upon the expiry of the Rollin White patent in 1869, though likely from parts manufactured in the earlier period. After Allen's death in 1871, production continued for some period under the new company name Forehand and Wadsworth.
Cartridges
On September 25, 1860, Ethan Allen was granted a patent for his lipfire cartridge. He also manufactured pinfire cartridges from 1862 until at least 1865.
