Owen Powell, Gun, Pistol & Rifle Maker, 66 High Street

[Ponytail]

Owen Powell, gun, pistol & rifle manufacturer, 66 High Street, Market Place. 

Advertisement Whites, Directory 1856. 

Whites Directory 1849

Powell, Owen, gun maker, &etc, 66 High Street. 

 

Whites Directory 1852

Powell, Owen, gun & pistol maker, 66 High Street

 

Whites Directory 1856.

Powell, Owen, gun and pistol maker, 66 High Street, h. 8 Adelaide Place. 

 

Advertisement Whites Directory 1862

Whites Directory 1862.

Powell, Owen, Gun, rifle and pistol maker, 66 High Street, h. Conway Place, 15 Hanover Street. 

 

Advertisement Drakes Directory 1862

 

Owen Powell was a long time client of William Powell (no relation) gunsmith of Birmingham. Showing the earliest surviving records of pinfires made by William Powell & Son. Owen was charged £11 probably given a 15-20% discount. 

 

A scarce English .36 Cal percussion bar-hammer 6 shot pepper box revolver by Powell. Circa 1840-1850. The side plate is engraved with the makers name Powell in decorative scrolling. Probably Owen Powell who had a workshop at 66 Market Place, Sheffield, Yorkshire circa 1847-1862. Decorative scrolling to both side plates. Two piece wooden grips. Six shot 2.5inch barrel stamped with British proof marks. 

The pepper box was primarily used for civilian defence in areas of high population. A pepper box wielding person would not always aim the pistol but rather shoot from the hip, holding the gun low and pointing at the largest area of the target in front of them. While smaller pistols were preferred by the man in the street, larger pistols were favoured by gold prospectors during the California Gold Rush era for protection against rival prospectors, robbers and Indians. Although intended for civilian use, many military men made private purchases of pepper box pistols and carried them into battle as an extra line of defence. 

https://www.andrewbottomley.com.uk

 

 

Owen Powell, Sheffield, A cased 80 bore percussion revolver, Model Wembley-Bentley type. 

https://www.invaluable.com.uk

 

13 bore double barrelled percussion sporting gun. 

https://www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-5356676

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firearms_regulation_in_the_United_Kingdom

 

[SteveHB]

1847

[SteveHB]

Moving to Birmingham, June 20 1863

 

[SteveHB]

Birmingham

[Ponytail]

The beginning and the end.

Thanks SteveHB

[Edmund]

On his semi-retirement Owen Powell returned to his home town.  His father was the well known Birmingham gunsmith William Powell, and his elder brother, also William, took over the Birmingham business on the death of William senior.

https://williampowell.com/pages/history-of-william-powell

[Ponytail]

52 minutes ago, Edmund said:

On his semi-retirement Owen Powell returned to his home town.  His father was the well known Birmingham gunsmith William Powell, and his elder brother, also William, took over the Birmingham business on the death of William senior.

https://williampowell.com/pages/history-of-william-powell

That's interesting, I relied on the information from 

https://www.doublegunshop.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=575866

to be correct. That was why he received a big discount, not because he was a long term customer. Thank Edmund for putting the record straight.