ACTION REVOLVER ID'D TO DEPUTY U.S. MARSHAL WILLIAM THOMPSON WITH HOLSTER, FACTORY LETTER, & PROVENANCE. Cal. 45 Colt. S# 4338. Bbl. 4". Model 1878 double action revolver mfg. by Colt in 1880. Top of the bbl. is faintly marked with Colt's 2-line address. Left side of the frame is retailer marked "J.P. LOWER", with "45 CAL." marked on the left side of the forward trigger guard bow. Frame is mounted with 2-piece checkered wood grips. Standard fixed blade front sight and frame notched rear sight. Frame and bbl. mfg. without provision for ejector rod housing, with no provision for lanyard swivel on butt. Interior of grip panels match the frame via a handwritten "4338" (very faint on left panel). Accompanying documentation indicates that this revolver was used by Deputy U.S. Marshal in the shooting of Edward Meeks Dalton, whom was wanted on a misdemeanor charge of Polygamy for having two wives, and ultimately was considered a martyr by the Mormon community across the United States at the time. To this day, Dalton is the only Mormon to have been killed at the hands of a Federal Marshal, and is the only known death over polygamy before the church's October 6, 1890 declaration to abolish the plural marriage custom. UNATTACHED ACCESSORIES: finely tooled brown leather holster, featuring a tool Mayan pattern glyph on the front of the body, an unmarked brown leather belt, as well as a Deputy U.S. Marshall badge. Revolver is accompanied by a range of documentation, including: a Colt factory letter stating: "Serial Number: 4338/ Caliber .45/c/ Barrel Length: 4"/ Finish: Blue/ Type of Stocks: Not Listed/ Shipped To: J.P. Lower and Sons/ Address: Denver, Colorado/ Date of Shipment: February 5, 1880/ Number of Same Type Guns in Shipment: 6", a letter dated March 2nd of 1951 from the wife of a previous owner indicating that this revolver was given to her husband by Oscar Thompson (son of William Thompson Jr.), an article detailing the shooting of Edward Meeks Dalton by William Thompson on December 16th of 1886, scans of Dalton's grave, as well as additional documents detailing the shooting and its significance. CONDITION: metal components have faded to a gray/brown patina, exhibiting scattered handling marks and scattered spots/patches of mild pitting overall. Bore is relatively bright, exhibiting consistent mild to moderate pitting, while retaining strong rifling throughout. Proper manual mechanics. Grips show moderate smoothing, as well as scattered marks and impressions from handling and storage, with the right panel exhibiting a repair along the rear edge. Holster is very good overall, remaining malleable, and exhibiting consistent crazing on the belt. PROVENANCE: From the Buckstix Collection. (01-28592/MLW). ANTIQUE. $4,000-6,000.

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Shipping

19. SHIPPING: Poulins makes every attempt to ship your goods in a timely fashion. Because of the high volume of items being shipped and delays that shipping carriers deal with, please allow 2-3 weeks for your items to be delivered after all paperwork and full payment is received and applied. We do not attempt to make money on shipping but neither do we wish to lose money on shipping. The following is our shipping policy and shipping/handling/box and insurance charges.
SHIPPING CHARGES:
All shipping charges must be charged to a credit card. The shipping cost is calculated at the time the package has been prepared so we have accurate dimensions and weights. This includes the carrier shipping cost, handling insurance. Insurance is required and provided through Poulin's insurance carrier. If you have your own insurance or do not want insurance you will need to fill out a Poulin Insurance Waiver and submit it. Please be aware if you do not utilize Poulin's insurance and decide to self-insure, there is no compensation for any damage or loss.
*ASAP Orders: Are available on small quantities of 10 guns or less, however there is an additional charge of $50.00
*Hard Cases: There is a $20.00 charge for hard cases.
*Handling charges: Handguns are $8.00 per gun. Longarms are $15.00 per gun. Miscellaneous items and larger Class III items will vary depending on material used and time it takes to package. Labor rate is $30.00 an hour on these other items.
*Insurance Charges: A rate of $8 for the first $800 and 95 cents PER each $100.00 after $800. This covers the Hammer & Buyers Premium only. This does not include shipping, nor does it include what you expected to get for the item if resold.
*Shipping cost: Carrier cost plus all firearms (including antiques) are shipped with adult signature required. Any item(s) shipped with a value of $1000.00 and up is shipped with signature required.
*Boxes: $7.50 per box used in your shipment. No charge if it is a free box supplied by the carrier. (We do not carry all box sizes from these carriers, only generally sized ones).
POLICIES:
*Multiple winning bids will be combined to save buyer money.
*We reserve the right to not ship an item if we feel that it is too fragile or bulky to be done safely. (i.e. Bronzes, frames, delicate and/or oversized items, etc.)
*Poulins will not pack or ship anything that consists of a frame with glass or mirror. We recommend using a company that specializes in handling these types of items, such as Sure Express or a similar company. Prior to the release of the items, it is required that a Poulin insurance waiver be signed by the customer and it would be understood that insurance on said shipment is the sole responsibility of the customer and or the specialized company they choose to handle their shipment.
*We are happy to assist you in your shipping needs. Please understand that we will try to expedite your shipment when requested, but we make no guarantee that it can be completed in such a time frame as you may request or in the manner that you may request.
12/18/25

by Poulin Antiques & Auctions
February 28, 2026 10:00 AM EST
199 Skowhegan Road
Fairfield, ME, US 04937

Poulin Antiques & Auctions

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Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $499 $25
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 + $5,000