The Colt Model 1848 Percussion Army Revolver is a .44 caliber revolver designed by Samuel Colt for the U.S. Army's Regiment of Mounted Rifles. The revolver was also issued to the Army's "Dragoon" regiments. This revolver was designed as a solution to numerous problems encountered with the Colt Walker. Although it was introduced after the Mexican–American War, it became popular among civilians during the 1850s and 1860s and was also used during the American Civil War.
Third Model Dragoon, U.S. Cavalry issued
Colt Model of 1848 Holster Pistol (First Model Dragoon), square back trigger guard, oval-shaped Cylinder Stops]
Colt Dragoon 1848 second model, square back trigger guard
Colt Dragoon 3rd Model, Colt Baby Dragoon 1848 with square back trigger guard
Samuel Colt was an American inventor, industrialist, and businessman who established Colt's Patent Fire-Arms Manufacturing Company and made the mass production of revolvers commercially viable.
Engraving by John Chester Buttre, c. 1855
Portrait of Col. Samuel Colt, engraving by George Catlin after a painting by Charles Loring Elliott (Wadsworth Atheneum), Hartford.
Samuel Hamilton Walker (1817–1847).
Modern reproductions of the Colt Paterson [top] and Colt Walker (Middle).