Smokin’ Guns – Cripple Creek Colorado Gold Camp Victorian Society

Smokin' Guns

Celebrating the Legacy

Some members within the Gold Camp Victorian Society wished to draw on the rich history of the Victorian Era, in period dress, while carrying firearms. Firearms played a vital part in taming the “Wild West” for a more genteel and civilized society. We wanted to include gun history in our education and ambience to the public. We saw weaponry as an important aspect of the dress of the day. Believing this part of history needed to be told, the “Smokin’ Guns” section, of the Society, was formed.

The mission of the Smokin’ Guns is to bring to life the legacy of the arms that were used in the Victorian era. Smokin’ Guns members are history buffs as well as gun enthusiasts. Dressed in authentic period clothing, they provide entertaining skits and educational talks at community events and GCVS sponsored events. The presentations, skits and educational talks always emphasize gun safety.

Qualified members use their own authentic replicas. Colt Single Action Army revolvers (and various copies) in .45LC caliber are the most popular. We carry unloaded guns while attending non-shooting activities. We use blank cartridges when performing shooting events such as parades, skits from the past, and “quick draw” contests. Smokin’ Gun members, along with other Society members, enjoy “fun days” on occasion. These hearken back to a time when neighbors got together for a potluck meal, socialized and played games. We meet to eat, visit and shoot (where legal/safe).

In the late 1800’s firearms were commonly used for hunting, law enforcement and self defense. While most men of the day did own a gun, Cripple Creek was a crowded but peaceful town. Most of the “tenderfoot” prospectors who flooded into Cripple Creek in the early years were basically law-abiding citizens from Colorado Springs. Arguments were more often settled with fists than with firearms. The district also had a strong Sheriff who kept the peace and made it known that outlaws were not welcome. The firearms used by law enforcement, the military and civilians in the Victorian era represent an important part of American history and the members of the Gold Camp Victorian Society wished to portray this rich history of the American arms of the Victorian Era. Therefore, in 2004, the Smokin’ Guns unit of the Gold Camp Victorian Society was commissioned to preserve and celebrate the legacy of the firearms of the Victorian era in America.

Public Events and Safety

Safety is viewed by the Smokin’ Guns as the first and foremost consideration. All Smokin’ Guns members have passed Colorado State Bureau of Investigation (CBI) records checks and are trained in safe handling of firearms. Our qualified members use their own authentic replica firearms in .45 caliber. Whenever we carry guns in public for non-shooting events our guns are unloaded. In shooting events we only use blanks. For these blank-shooting events, The Smokin’ Guns Armorer is the only person that is authorized to create the blanks we use and he remains in sole possession of them prior to distributing them to the members. Before all shooting events, the club Armorer conducts a safety meeting and he and local law enforcement representatives inspect all blank rounds, firearms and gun belts. Each Smokin’ Guns member is asked and personally attests to not having any live ammunition in his or her possession before the event begins. After each event the Armorer collects all spent cartridges and accounts for all rounds that were used or unused. All Smokin’ Guns members follow strict safety rules during shooting events as well as when carrying their replica guns unloaded for show purposes.

A Legacy of Arms

The 19th century was a time of rapid development of firearms technology. During the early years, the rifles and handheld firearms used by most military men and civilians were either hand held single shot pistols, single shot rifles, or smooth bore muskets. These were either flintlocks or used the new (1840) percussion caps to ignite the charges. They relied on black powder, were often unreliable, and were difficult and time consuming to reload.
Then, in 1836, Samuel Colt secured a patent for his “revolver” design. This handheld firearm featured a rotating cylinder with multiple chambers that could fire bullets rapidly through a single barrel. This development led to many different designs by competing manufacturers (Remington, Smith & Wesson, Starr, etc.) in the 19th Century. Most of the handguns at this time were percussion (“cap and ball”). Colt continued to produce percussion revolvers throughout the Civil War. In 1859, a Colt employee by the name of Rollin White invented the bored-through cylinder that enabled the use of fixed ammunition. Colt did not immediately purchase the Rollin White patent, so White sold it to Smith & Wesson who manufactured the first
revolvers using fixed ammunition. It wasn’t until 1869 when the patent expired that Colt was able to produce revolvers with bored-through cylinders. This enabled Colt to produce the iconic 1873 Single Action Army revolver in 1873. Colt sold these revolvers to the US military as well as civilians throughout the United States. The Colt Single Action Army, also known as the “Peacemaker,” was chambered in several calibers and
became the most recognized revolver in history. Most gun-carrying individuals on both sides of the law were known to have carried the Colt Peacemaker. The Colt Single Action Army (and copies of it) has been produced almost continuously from 1873 until the present.

The Best Experience Ever

The Gold Camp Victorian Society is a Not-for-Profit Corporation, known and respected throughout the state of Colorado and beyond. The society is applauded by history buffs and Historical Societies everywhere for the attention given to authenticity in clothing, manners and activities. All text and images copyright 2021-2024 by Gold Camp Victorian Society Incorporated. Reproduction in any form is prohibited without prior written consent.