The Model 1799 flintlock pistols are among the rarest and most highly prized American firearms, and are certainly the most desirable of all U.S. martial flintlock pistols. The Model 1799 pistol was the first official pistol adopted by the United States military, and they were replaced with the more conventional Model 1805 pistols after less than a decade. Only 2,000 were manufactured by Simeon North and his brother-in-law Elisha Cheney, a clock maker, in Berlin, Connecticut, in 1799-1801 in two contracts. In "Historic Pistols: The American Martial Flintlock, 1760-1845" by Smith and Bitter, the authors note that only seven of the First Contract pistols and nineteen of these Second Contract pistols were known to survive. The first initials of the maker's were dropped after the completion of the 500 pistols on the first contract. The second contract, dated February 6, 1800, was completed and delivered by the middle of 1801. North went on to manufacture many of the U.S. martial flintlock pistols and long guns, including the innovative Hall carbines, over slightly more than half a century of arms making. He is often noted as "the First Official Pistol Maker of the United States" since he was the main government contractor in the early national period and the first to manufacture pistols based on official, recognized patterns for the government. Like the Model 1795 muskets of the era, the Model 1799 pistol was heavily based on a French design, the Model 1777 pistol. The primary differences between the two aside from the markings is that the U.S. Model 1799 pistols have longer barrels with a rounder breech section and an additional barrel screw on the bottom of the frame at the front. Serial number "816" marked on the left side of the breech plug, underneath the barrel, and inside the brass frame; "VIII" assembly mark on the underside of the back strap, and "II" assembly marks on the trigger guard bow and the screws. The underside of the frame on the right side of the trigger guard is marked "NORTH & CHENEY BERLIN" in an arched curve. The top of the barrel is stamped "V P/US" in two lines on top of the breech. "H.M.Stewart-Purch.Aug.1950" marked in black ink inside the back strap mortise in reference to noted antique American firearms collector Henry M. Stewart. In a study titled "A Report to the Owners of the Surviving North & Cheney Pistols on Present Ownership, Whereabouts, and Condition of the Surviving North & Cheney Pistols" performed by noteworthy collector James Frisbie with information provided by Samuel Smith and James M. Wertenberger, this pistol is listed by serial number as whereabouts unknown at the time (unknown) of the study, notes its last known sale was through an Eric Vaule advertisement in the June of 1976 "Gun Report" magazine, and records all of the known previous owners of this pistol including Henry Stewart, in which he states he, "...was the first real collector to own the pistol, bought it in July of 1950 for $500." Provenance: James Lucie Collection, Henry M. Stewart Collection, Clay Bedford collection, Eric Vaule Collection, Vincent Collection, a Gentleman

Very good. The iron components exhibit a gray and brown patina with scattered pitting from genuine use. The markings on the top of the barrel are deep and legible. The brass retains an attractive golden aged patina. The North & Cheney markings on the bottom of the receiver are defined. The wood is good as lightly sanded and re-oiled with scattered light scratches, a chip behind the lock area, a re-glued large cracked section to the right of the barrel tang, a long thin crack inside the back strap mortise, and a re-glued crack above the front of the butt pommel. Mechanically fine. A Model 1799 North & Cheney flintlock pistol in the original flintlock configuration is a key piece in the evolution of U.S. military handguns and one of the most difficult of all U.S. handguns to obtain. This is a solid example of a rare Model 1799 Pistol that would make a tremendous addition to the most advanced U.S. martial arms collection.