KEEPING GOOD COMPANY

If you look closely, 1873 was one helluva year for cartridge development. The Civil War was over, and things were on the mend. The Westward expansion was fully underway, and the centerfire metallic cartridge was ascending to the throne, supplanting the percussion cap muzzleloaders and large-caliber rimfire cartridges that had come before.

Also, 1873 saw the .45-70 Government cartridge take the baton from the .50-70 Government, and 1873 saw the release of the .44-40 Winchester, in the Model 1873 Winchester rifle (check out the 1950 movie Winchester ’73, starring Jimmy Stewart).

But my personal favorite cartridge of that fateful year is the .45 Colt, which the U.S. Army would adopt in the Colt Single-Action Army revolver. While the .44-40 would go on to grab the lion’s share of the glory—any time you hear a cowboy singing about a “forty-four” he’s referring to the .44-40—the .45 Colt cartridge was issued to the U.S. Army from 1873 to 1887. You see, the Frankford Arsenal ceased production of .45 Colt ammo in 1887 in favor of producing the shorter .45 S&W, which could also be fired safely in the Colt SAA revolver.

Additionally, the .44-40