Massachusetts Arms Company facts for kids

The Massachusetts Arms Company was a company in Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts. It made firearms and related products. The company was active from around 1849 until the early 1900s.

Founding the Company

The Massachusetts Arms Company officially started on March 5, 1850. It was founded by Joshua Stevens. He worked with Horace Smith and Daniel Wesson. These two later started the famous Smith & Wesson company. Massachusetts Arms grew out of an earlier company called Wesson Rifle Company.

Early Inventions and Revolvers

Around 1849 or 1850, Christian Sharps brought his first rifle design to the company. Sharps later created the Sharps Rifle Company.

Between 1850 and 1851, Massachusetts Arms also made Wesson & Leavitt revolvers. These revolvers were special because they were among the first patented after Colt's designs.

Legal Challenges and New Designs

In 1851, a big legal case happened. Samuel Colt sued the Massachusetts Arms Company for using his patented ideas. Colt won the lawsuit. Because of this, the company had to stop making many types of revolvers. They focused on less popular designs by Edward Maynard until 1857. That's when Colt's patent finally ended.

Maynard's Rifle Design

Edward Maynard invented a new type of breechloading rifle in 1851. A breechloading rifle loads from the back of the barrel, not the front. Massachusetts Arms actually built these rifles. They had been using Maynard's system for several years under a special agreement.

Maynard's rifle worked with a lever. When you pushed the lever down, the barrel lifted. This opened the back of the gun for loading. You would then put in a brass cartridge, which Maynard also invented. Pushing the lever back up closed the gun. After cocking the rifle, you could add a percussion cap. This cap would ignite the gunpowder when the gun fired. Maynard also had a special system to automatically feed primers to the gun.

In 1855, the company made 2,000 Greene Carbines. These were a type of Maynard firearm. They were made for the British government. However, these carbines were not used in the Crimean War.

Adams Revolvers

In 1857, the company got a contract to make Adams revolvers. They made these under a special license for the U.S. government. About 500 of these revolvers were produced. Some of them were used during the U.S. Civil War.

Shotguns and Civil War Production

The company also made different kinds of shotguns. These included single-barrel and double-barrel shotguns. Later, they made 20- and 28-bore Maynard-action shotguns. These were based on designs from 1865 and 1873.

As the American Civil War was about to begin, some Southern states bought Maynard rifles. They bought them for their state militias. Out of nearly 3,000 sales, most went to Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi. The First Model Maynard was even named an official firearm for the Confederate army.

Factory Fire and Rebuilding

In January 1861, the factory burned down. This stopped all production. The factory was rebuilt and reopened in 1863. After rebuilding, the company received a large order. They were asked to make 20,000 of the simpler Second Model Maynard carbines.

Deliveries of these guns started in June 1864 and continued until May 1865. Since the war was ending, not many of these guns saw action. However, some were used by the 9th and 11th Indiana Cavalry. The 11th Tennessee Cavalry regiments also used them.

Later Years and Company End

In 1893, the company was bought by the J Stevens Arms & Tool Company. This company was also founded by Joshua Stevens, who had left Massachusetts Arms in 1864. The purchase was made to help Edward Maynard's widow and to keep the workers employed.

In the late 1800s, Massachusetts Arms started making revolvers. These were based on various designs from Smith & Wesson.

The company continued making firearms until the factory closed for good. This happened during the Great Depression, a time of great economic hardship around the world.

The name Massachusetts Arms Company was later used by Stevens. It became a trade name for firearms sold by the Blish, Mize and Silliman Hardware Company. This company was located in Atchison, Kansas.