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.
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.
Inline pistol
Single-shot percussion pistol.
Double-barreled single trigger pistol
Percussion pistol.
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
6-barrel pepperbox pistols
Only six-barrel pepperbox pistols were produced during the Grafton and Norwich periods (1837–1847), and all had smooth barrel external contours until the later Worcester and Allen and Wheelock period, when fluted barrels became the norm. Six-barrel pepperboxes usually have a standard trigger, but some examples have a ring trigger. Most were double-action with the iconic 'bar hammer', but some were single-action with standard hammers. While simplifying shooting (no manual cocking of the hammer), the bar hammer did preclude the inclusion of usable sights. However, this early example of a double-action pistol must have been quite a selling point. As these were considered 'point and shoot' short-range defensive weapons or 'belly guns', the market did not seem to object to the limitation of not having sights. Barrel length varied between three and six inches. There were four frame sizes, accommodating various calibers. Most common were .32 and .34 caliber, though the .28 and .30 caliber 'pocket size' have been reported. The 'Dragoon' model was the king, typically sporting six-inch barrels and .36 caliber. Except for early models and later Allen and Wheelock era production, most have engraving on the frame.
Percussion revolvers
Bar-Hammer percussion revolver