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Original Item: Only One Available. WONDERFUL CONDITION genuine U.S. Civil War era Spencer Repeating Carbine. The bore on this gun is exceptional, you won't find another like this anytime soon. All parts completely correct and never messed with an fine untouched excellent example. Serial Number 49062 this was produced half way through the U.S. Government Contract of 1863 of almost 100,000. Military Krag- U.S. Rifles and Carbines Models 1892 to 1899: Covering numbers: 1 - 484000. Please enter a serial number and click the submit button.
Spencer Carbine Serial Number Search
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Serial Numbers
SERIAL NUMBERS OFTEN ALLOW YOU TO DETERMINE YEAR OF MANUFACTURE
Knowing the year your vintage firearm was made makes it easier to decide which gun catalog we sell will give you the best information about the company, models made and more. To help you determine the year made, find your serial number and then select a link from those below to sites that offer serial dates.
The Blue Book of Used Gun Values offers serial numbers for the following makers:
AYA, Boss & Co., Ltd, Browning, EJ Churchill, Colt, Colt Black Powder 2nd Gen, John Dickson & Son, AH Fox, German early Date Codes, German Modern Date Codes, Stephen Grant, WW Greener, Harrington & Richardson, High Standard, Holland & Holland, Italian Year of Mfg. Date Codes, Ithaca Gun Co., Charles Lancaster, Joseph Lang, Marlin Firearms, Mauser Broomhandles, Parker Brothers Shotguns, Piotti, James Purdey, Remington Date Code & SxS Shotguns, Savage/Stevens, LC Smith, Smith & Wesson, Spanish Year of Mfg. Date Codes, Sturm, Ruger & Co., Winchester Rifles, Winchester Rifle & Shotgun 1969+, Winchester Shotguns.
Other websites that may help (Information from websites other than the manufacturer website should be examined with some skepticism):
- High Standard Pistols Serial Ranges 1932-1942
- Ithaca Guns - Baker, Crass, Lewis, Manier, Magnum, Pre-WWII choke marks, Lefever Singles, Flues, Knick, Lefever Grade A, NID, Western Long Range
- Ithaca Guns Serial Numbers and Date of Manufacture
(containing serial information about: Baker DB Shotguns, Crass DB Shotguns, Lewis DB Shotguns, Manier DB Shotguns, Flues SB and DB Shotguns, NID DB Shotguns, Knick SB Trap Guns, LeFever Nitro Special DB Shotguns, LeFever 'A' Grade, Western Long Range DB Shotguns, Model 37 Standard Model Shotguns, Model 37 Solid Rib Shotguns, Model 37 All Grade Guns. - Lancaster, Charles (London) 1826-1901
- Lefever Sideloack Shotguns 1913 & Later (not serial numbers)
- Lefever Sideloack Shotguns before 1913 (not serial numbers)
- Mossberg did not put serial numbers on most long guns until 1968 (GCA 1968 required them)
- Remington - Navy Single Shot Pistols, Model 8, 81, 24, 241, RB Pistols (Types- not serial), RB Rifles- 1870, 71, RB Rifle Models- 1866-1933, Contract Lee Rifles, Pistols and Revolvers 1857-1918 (incomplete serial number for some), Rifles 1866-1933 (ditto), Shotguns 1874-1910 Serial numbers unknown.
- Smith & Wesson - Single Action Pistols, First Model .22, Second Model .22, New Departure Safety Hammerless, Ladysmith 1902-1911+
- Springfield Model 1873 and 1884 Rifles, Model 1873 Shotgun, Model 1903 Rifle, 1903A3 by Smith Corona Co.
- Stevens (description, illustration and years made)- Stevens did not put serial numbers on all long guns until 1968 (GCA 1968 Required them)
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Spencer Carbine Serial Number Range
This Spencer rifle bears serial number 4452 and was manufacturedin 1863.
Spencer Carbine Serial Number Dates Calculator
M1860 Spencer Carbine Serial Numbers
The Spencer rifle, with its lever action, seven shot tubularmagazine and internally-primed metallic-cased cartridge, was apopular wartime breechloader. Its inventor, Christopher Spencer,was a native of Connecticut and a former employee of Samuel Colt.His design was one of the most technologically-advanced arms of theCivil War era, but because of the time required to sell both hisidea and his guns to the U.S. government, they were not availableuntil 1863.
These modern arms, in both rifle and carbine configuration, weremore than a match for anything that the Confederates could muster.The firepower of the Spencer was used with devastating effect onmany Civil War battlefields. In its first combat test,Spencer-armed Union troops under the command of Colonel John Wilderearned the nickname 'Lightning Brigade' when they defeated anumerically-superior Confederate force at the Battle of Hoover'sGap, Tennessee on June 24, 1863.
One week later, the Spencer again saw action in the hands oftroopers of the 5th Michigan Cavalry Regiment of George Custer'sBrigade at the Battle of Gettysburg. Spencers continued to servethrough the end of the Civil War, and saw action during the IndianWars as well.
Christian Minor Spencer was born in Manchester, Connecticut onJune 20, 1833. At age 11, he went to live with his maternalgrandfather, Josiah Hollister, a veteran of the Revolutionary War.It was there that young Christian learned the rudiments of wood-and metalworking. By the age of 14, Spencer was apprenticed to theMount Nebo Silk Manufacturing Co., located in South Manchester,Connecticut. This firm was owned by the Cheney family, one of NewEngland's most enterprising and influential families. After a year,he entered a second apprenticeship, this time with local machinistSamuel Loomis.
In late 1850, Spencer returned to the employ of the Cheneys as amachinist. During this period, he perfected several experimentalmachine designs, and in the process, he developed what would be alifelong relationship with the Cheneys. At the advice of FrankCheney, Spencer worked as a toolmaker in Rochester, New York, thenas a machinist in the locomotive repair shops of the New YorkCentral Railroad. He also worked briefly for the N. P. Ames Companyof Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts, where he received his firstformal experience with the manufacture of firearms. His next stopwas at the factory of Samuel Colt, where he helped to design manyof the specialized machines used in the production of Coltrevolvers. C
hristian renewed his employment with the Cheney family in 1854when, at the age of 22, he became superintendent of hisbenefactor's new silk ribbon manufactory in Hartford. During thisperiod, Spencer designed and patented a machine to attach labels tospools, thus allowing one shop girl to do the work of three. TheCheneys paid Spencer a $25 royalty on every machine he produced.Although working 11 hour days six days per week, Spencer began toexperiment with an idea for a breech-loading repeatingfirearm.
By 1859, with the encouragement of both his father and theCheneys, he had perfected a lever-action rolling block rifledesign, and on March 6, 1860, he was awarded a U.S. patent for hiswork. With financial backing from his father, Ogden Spencer, aprosperous wool merchant, Christian was able to secure the servicesof Luke Wheelock, an experienced gunsmith, for the production ofprototype firearms. Spencer also befriended Richard S. Lawrence,then superintendent of the Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company, andthis association most likely influenced certain aspects ofSpencer's design.
By the spring of 1861, civil war had come to America, and theCheney family entered into a contract with Spencer in which allrights and patents for Spencer's rifle design would be assigned tothem. In return, Spencer would receive a royalty of $1 for everyrifle produced. This was later lowered to 50 cents for eachmilitary arm produced. The Cheneys had long been friends of GideonWelles, Secretary of the Navy in Abraham Lincoln's administration,and this gave them, and Spencer's rifle, access to governmentofficials in Washington.
At this time, Spencer also contracted with Connecticut ammunitionmakers Crittenden & Tibbals for the manufacture of a .56caliber rimfire metallic cartridge for use in his rifle. In itsfinal form, the Spencer rifle employed a spring-loaded seven-shottubular magazine which was located in the buttstock, and alever-action which, when operated, ejected a spent cartridge andchambered a fresh one. Manual cocking of the hammer then readiedthe rifle for firing.
The stage was now set for Spencer's rise to fame. Through thepatronage of Secretary Welles, Spencer's rifle was successfullytested by the Navy, resulting in the purchase of 1,000 guns. Armytrials followed in the spring of 1862, and this resulted in thesale of an additional 10,000 guns. In addition, President AbrahamLincoln also took part in a demonstration of the Spencer, firingseven shots at a target forty yards away. This demonstration tookplace on the Mall, near the site of the Washington Monument, andresulted in Lincoln's personal endorsement of the arm. Spencer nowhad contracts but no manufacturing facilities.
Once again, the Cheney family would prove to be indispensable toSpencer, as Charles Cheney rented a portion of a piano factory inBoston for production of Spencer firearms. After several delays,the first shipment of Spencer carbines was delivered on December31, 1862. Both Army and Navy placed additional orders during thesummer of 1863, and many other Spencer arms were purchasedprivately.
By the end of the war, more than 144,000 Spencer rifles andcarbines had been manufactured; over two-thirds were purchased bythe U.S. government. To keep up with demand, Spencer subcontractedsome production to the Burnside Rifle Co. of Providence, RhodeIsland. Spencer rifles and carbines met with high praise from thosewho were equipped with them, and with respect from those who facedthem in battle. In its first combat test, Spencer-armed Uniontroops under the command of Colonel John Wilder earned the nickname'Lightning Brigade' when they defeated a numerically superiorConfederate force at the Battle of Hoover's Gap, Tennessee on June24, 1863.
One week later, Spencer rifles again saw action in the hands oftroopers of the 5th Michigan Cavalry Regiment of General GeorgeArmstrong Custer's Brigade at the Battle of Gettysburg. Wilder'stroops were called on again at the Battle of Chickamauga inSeptember, 1863, when they fought to hold the Union center in theface of determined attacks by General James Longstreet'sConfederates. Spencer rifles and carbines also saw service withseveral other Union infantry and cavalry regiments.
Although the South lacked the capacity to manufacture metalliccartridges used by the Spencer, captured arms and ammunition sawservice with troops under the command of Colonel John Mosby, thefamed 'Gray Ghost of the Confederacy,' as well as with other unitsand individuals. The effectiveness of the Spencer was greatlyincreased by two other inventions, the Blakeslee cartridge box, andthe Stabler cut-off device. The Blakeslee cartridge box wasinvented by Union cavalryman Erastus Blakeslee and consisted of aleather-covered wood box containing six to ten tubes, each of whichheld seven Spencer cartridges. Troops equipped with these boxescould quickly reload the gun that, in the words of one awedConfederate, could be 'loaded on Sunday and fired all week.'
Later Spencers, beginning with the Model 1865, were equipped witha cut-off mechanism invented by Edward Stabler which, when engaged,prevented the breechblock from moving far enough to chamber acartridge from the buttstock magazine. This device permitted theSpencer to be used as a single-shot arm, with a full magazine heldin reserve. Spencer carbines continued to serve on the frontierafter the Civil War, but the firm's prodigious wartime outputcontributed to a large post-war surplus.
Declining sales forced the Spencer Repeating Rifle Co. intoinsolvency, and in October, 1868, all of the company's assets weresold to the Fogerty Rifle Co. of Boston. Within a year, Fogerty'sassets were in turn purchased by Oliver Winchester, and ChristianSpencer agreed to assign all future repeating rifle designs orimprovements to Winchester. Spencer later returned to the firearmsindustry with the formation of the Spencer Arms Co., whichmanufactured his design for the first practical pump-actionshotgun. This firm was later sold to noted arms dealer FrancisBannerman. Christian Spencer died on January 14, 1922.
These modern arms, in both rifle and carbine configuration, weremore than a match for anything that the Confederates could muster.The firepower of the Spencer was used with devastating effect onmany Civil War battlefields. In its first combat test,Spencer-armed Union troops under the command of Colonel John Wilderearned the nickname 'Lightning Brigade' when they defeated anumerically-superior Confederate force at the Battle of Hoover'sGap, Tennessee on June 24, 1863.
One week later, the Spencer again saw action in the hands oftroopers of the 5th Michigan Cavalry Regiment of George Custer'sBrigade at the Battle of Gettysburg. Spencers continued to servethrough the end of the Civil War, and saw action during the IndianWars as well.
Christian Minor Spencer was born in Manchester, Connecticut onJune 20, 1833. At age 11, he went to live with his maternalgrandfather, Josiah Hollister, a veteran of the Revolutionary War.It was there that young Christian learned the rudiments of wood-and metalworking. By the age of 14, Spencer was apprenticed to theMount Nebo Silk Manufacturing Co., located in South Manchester,Connecticut. This firm was owned by the Cheney family, one of NewEngland's most enterprising and influential families. After a year,he entered a second apprenticeship, this time with local machinistSamuel Loomis.
In late 1850, Spencer returned to the employ of the Cheneys as amachinist. During this period, he perfected several experimentalmachine designs, and in the process, he developed what would be alifelong relationship with the Cheneys. At the advice of FrankCheney, Spencer worked as a toolmaker in Rochester, New York, thenas a machinist in the locomotive repair shops of the New YorkCentral Railroad. He also worked briefly for the N. P. Ames Companyof Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts, where he received his firstformal experience with the manufacture of firearms. His next stopwas at the factory of Samuel Colt, where he helped to design manyof the specialized machines used in the production of Coltrevolvers. C
hristian renewed his employment with the Cheney family in 1854when, at the age of 22, he became superintendent of hisbenefactor's new silk ribbon manufactory in Hartford. During thisperiod, Spencer designed and patented a machine to attach labels tospools, thus allowing one shop girl to do the work of three. TheCheneys paid Spencer a $25 royalty on every machine he produced.Although working 11 hour days six days per week, Spencer began toexperiment with an idea for a breech-loading repeatingfirearm.
By 1859, with the encouragement of both his father and theCheneys, he had perfected a lever-action rolling block rifledesign, and on March 6, 1860, he was awarded a U.S. patent for hiswork. With financial backing from his father, Ogden Spencer, aprosperous wool merchant, Christian was able to secure the servicesof Luke Wheelock, an experienced gunsmith, for the production ofprototype firearms. Spencer also befriended Richard S. Lawrence,then superintendent of the Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company, andthis association most likely influenced certain aspects ofSpencer's design.
By the spring of 1861, civil war had come to America, and theCheney family entered into a contract with Spencer in which allrights and patents for Spencer's rifle design would be assigned tothem. In return, Spencer would receive a royalty of $1 for everyrifle produced. This was later lowered to 50 cents for eachmilitary arm produced. The Cheneys had long been friends of GideonWelles, Secretary of the Navy in Abraham Lincoln's administration,and this gave them, and Spencer's rifle, access to governmentofficials in Washington.
At this time, Spencer also contracted with Connecticut ammunitionmakers Crittenden & Tibbals for the manufacture of a .56caliber rimfire metallic cartridge for use in his rifle. In itsfinal form, the Spencer rifle employed a spring-loaded seven-shottubular magazine which was located in the buttstock, and alever-action which, when operated, ejected a spent cartridge andchambered a fresh one. Manual cocking of the hammer then readiedthe rifle for firing.
The stage was now set for Spencer's rise to fame. Through thepatronage of Secretary Welles, Spencer's rifle was successfullytested by the Navy, resulting in the purchase of 1,000 guns. Armytrials followed in the spring of 1862, and this resulted in thesale of an additional 10,000 guns. In addition, President AbrahamLincoln also took part in a demonstration of the Spencer, firingseven shots at a target forty yards away. This demonstration tookplace on the Mall, near the site of the Washington Monument, andresulted in Lincoln's personal endorsement of the arm. Spencer nowhad contracts but no manufacturing facilities.
Once again, the Cheney family would prove to be indispensable toSpencer, as Charles Cheney rented a portion of a piano factory inBoston for production of Spencer firearms. After several delays,the first shipment of Spencer carbines was delivered on December31, 1862. Both Army and Navy placed additional orders during thesummer of 1863, and many other Spencer arms were purchasedprivately.
By the end of the war, more than 144,000 Spencer rifles andcarbines had been manufactured; over two-thirds were purchased bythe U.S. government. To keep up with demand, Spencer subcontractedsome production to the Burnside Rifle Co. of Providence, RhodeIsland. Spencer rifles and carbines met with high praise from thosewho were equipped with them, and with respect from those who facedthem in battle. In its first combat test, Spencer-armed Uniontroops under the command of Colonel John Wilder earned the nickname'Lightning Brigade' when they defeated a numerically superiorConfederate force at the Battle of Hoover's Gap, Tennessee on June24, 1863.
One week later, Spencer rifles again saw action in the hands oftroopers of the 5th Michigan Cavalry Regiment of General GeorgeArmstrong Custer's Brigade at the Battle of Gettysburg. Wilder'stroops were called on again at the Battle of Chickamauga inSeptember, 1863, when they fought to hold the Union center in theface of determined attacks by General James Longstreet'sConfederates. Spencer rifles and carbines also saw service withseveral other Union infantry and cavalry regiments.
Although the South lacked the capacity to manufacture metalliccartridges used by the Spencer, captured arms and ammunition sawservice with troops under the command of Colonel John Mosby, thefamed 'Gray Ghost of the Confederacy,' as well as with other unitsand individuals. The effectiveness of the Spencer was greatlyincreased by two other inventions, the Blakeslee cartridge box, andthe Stabler cut-off device. The Blakeslee cartridge box wasinvented by Union cavalryman Erastus Blakeslee and consisted of aleather-covered wood box containing six to ten tubes, each of whichheld seven Spencer cartridges. Troops equipped with these boxescould quickly reload the gun that, in the words of one awedConfederate, could be 'loaded on Sunday and fired all week.'
Later Spencers, beginning with the Model 1865, were equipped witha cut-off mechanism invented by Edward Stabler which, when engaged,prevented the breechblock from moving far enough to chamber acartridge from the buttstock magazine. This device permitted theSpencer to be used as a single-shot arm, with a full magazine heldin reserve. Spencer carbines continued to serve on the frontierafter the Civil War, but the firm's prodigious wartime outputcontributed to a large post-war surplus.
Declining sales forced the Spencer Repeating Rifle Co. intoinsolvency, and in October, 1868, all of the company's assets weresold to the Fogerty Rifle Co. of Boston. Within a year, Fogerty'sassets were in turn purchased by Oliver Winchester, and ChristianSpencer agreed to assign all future repeating rifle designs orimprovements to Winchester. Spencer later returned to the firearmsindustry with the formation of the Spencer Arms Co., whichmanufactured his design for the first practical pump-actionshotgun. This firm was later sold to noted arms dealer FrancisBannerman. Christian Spencer died on January 14, 1922.