A Motherless Boy

Sam Colt Becomes an Indentured Servant

Oct 2, 2006

Sam Colt's mother dies. His father's business fails. Sam is hired out as an indentured servant. He realizes a dire need for a repeating firearm.

Sam Colt’s pranks, such as firing the old horse pistol, were typical for a youth of the early and mid-1800s, especially one, like Sam Colt, who lived his young years secure in his family’s wealth and security. But that security was soon to come to a shattering end.

Sam Loses His Mother

When Samuel Colt was eleven years old, his mother died. Shortly afterwards his father’s business failed. Sam’s three older brothers were sent to live and work for friends and relatives. Sam was indentured to a farmer for one year.

Repeating Firearm Needed

While working for the farmer Sam learned he did not like farm work. He also came to realize that men who lived in the vast unsettled land outside of the safe cities were desperate for a better means of protection. These men who fought the elements, the Indians, wild animals, and wild outlaws just to stay alive wanted a repeating firearm.

The best that anyone had come up with improving firearms to that time was either a double-barreled riffle or pistol. But even this had a considerable disadvantage; the twin-barreled rifle was heavy and inconvenient. Most folks figured that improvement in firearms had advanced just about as far as possible.

When Sam left home to work for the farmer he took the old horse pistol with him. Often of an evening, after his chores were finished, he’d set and stare at that old relic and try to figure how you could get more barrels on a gun without increasing its weight.

Firearms on His Mind

When his year with the farmer was up, he went to work in a textile factory his father had started in Ware, Massachusetts. This was much better than farming and Sam was in his element amongst all kinds of tools as well as chemicals. As assistant to the factory’s chemist, he spent his after-hours time tinkering around in the lab. Sam Colt still had firearms on his mind.

A Motherless Boy: Sam Colt Becomes an Indentured Servant continues with Exploding Four-Barrel Gun: Sam Colt Gets Big Bang Out of Electricity on October 3, 2006.

Previous: Samuel Colt the Boy: Have Cannon, Will Explode.

The copyright of the article A Motherless Boy in American History is owned by Mary Trotter Kion. Permission to republish A Motherless Boy in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.