This stunning revolver was owned by General Andrew A. Humphreys and would have been acquired by him while he was serving as chief of the Army Corps of Engineers in 1866-1879. Setting aside its important owner, it is an absolutely stunning example of Remington's finest work in the transitional period between percussion firearms and metallic cartridges in the post-Civil War era. It has nearly full coverage scroll and geometric pattern engraving, nickel plating on the barrel and frame, gold plating on the loading lever and cylinder as well as the hammer, attractive contrasting niter blue finish on the small parts, and classy pearl grips with radiant natural iridescent colors. The barrel has a blade front sight and is marked "PATENTED SEPT. 14. 1858/E. REMINGTON & SONS. ILION. NEW YORK. U.S.A./NEW MODEL" on top and "16497" on the bottom. The cylinder is the rimfire conversion type with a removable breech plate and is numbered "1701" on the rear face and rear of the plate. The left grip did not want to come off easily and thus was left as is, but it is assumed the same serial number as the barrel is marked underneath on the grip frame. The case has a brass plaque on the lid with the inscription "Genl/A.A. Humphreys/USA" in ornate script and inside has a large cartridge block fitted around the gun and a key. Andrew Atkinson Humphreys (1810-1883) was born in Philadelphia. His father and grandfather were both shipbuilders for the U.S. Navy. His paternal grandfather, Joshua Humphreys, is considered the "father of the U.S. Navy" and designed the Navy's first six frigates when the Navy was recreated in the 1790s, including the famed U.S.S. Constitution. A letter to him from fellow patriot Paul Revere is in a following lot. Andrew Humphrey's father, Samuel Humphreys, was a chief naval constructor at the Philadelphia Naval Yard from 1826-1846 and was the builder of the U.S.S. Pennsylvania which had the distinction of being the U.S. Navy's largest vessel of the period with three decks, 130 guns, and a crew of over 1,000 men. Given that pedigree, you might expect Humphreys to have been all but destined to a career in the shipbuilding; however, his father instead saw that he was enrolled in West Point where he graduated in 1831, and his career was largely spent in engineering, especially improvements of harbors, rivers, and relate projects. He served in the 2nd Artillery Regiment in the Second Seminole War, but he appears to have caught yellow fever and resigned on September 30, 1836. After recovering, he worked as a civil engineer under Major Hartman Bache, and on July 7, 1838, was appointed as a first lieutenant in the newly created Army Corps of Topographical Engineers. His major contributions in this period were his extensive survey of the Mississippi River and its delta which resulted in "Report Upon the Physics and Hydraulics of the Mississippi River" published in 1861 with his assistant and co-author, Henry L. Abbot. Humphreys also worked closely with Secretary of War Jefferson Davis who assigned him to lead the Pacific Railway Surveys of the 1850s which consisted of a massive expedition of engineers, scientists, and soldiers and was charged with finding the most efficient route for the Transcontinental Railroad. The report based on that survey totaled some thirteen volumes. These two massive undertakings established him as one of the nation's top scientists and gained him international recognition and membership in the American Philosophical Society. He was also one of the planners for the expansion of the capital. Humphreys remained with the Union Army at the outbreak of the war despite ties to the Confederacy and was able to climb the ladder through his own merits. His friend General Abbot wrote of his service during the war: "When peace was proclaimed he had few equals, and no superiors, among the generals developed by the war. His service throughout was with the Army of the Potomac, in which he rose to the command of an army corps. If fortune had favored him with independent command, it is certain that the country would have been the gainer." After the war, General Humphreys served as commander of the District of Pennsylvania, and on August 8, 1866, he was promoted to brigadier general and appointed as chief of the Army Corps of Engineers which he served as for thirteen years. It was during this period that this revolver was most likely presented to him, but it is also possible he purchased it himself. He established the Army's engineering school (1868) at Willets Point, New York, and again oversaw surveys of the West as well as improvements throughout the nation which was still far from unified. He received an LLD from Harvard in 1868. He also previously helped form the National Academy of Sciences (1863) and was a member or honorary member of the following international organizations: the Geographical Society of Paris, the Austrian Society of Engineer Architects, the New Orleans Academy of Sciences, and Italian Geological Society. He served on the Washington Monument Commission, the Lighthouse Board, and the commission responsible for exploring options for what ultimately became the famous Panama Canal. When he retired in 1879 with the permanent rank of brigadier general, he sat down to write his histories of the campaigns in Virginia: "From Gettysburg to the Rapidan" and "The Virginia Campaign of '64 and '65." He died in the nation's capital after spending nearly his entire adult life in the service of his country. Included is a signed affidavit from the consignor explaining how this item was passed down through the Humphreys family.

Excellent with essentially all of the original nickel plating which has taken on a lightly aged patina, the vast majority of the original gold with some fading primarily on the cylinder, vibrant niter blue on the small parts, minor cylinder drag lines, some faint spotting, and minor handling and storage wear. The grips are likewise very fine and have beautiful natural colors, minor wear at the screw, and a faint surface crack on the left at the edge of the butt. Mechanically excellent. The case is very good and has only minor wear and compression marks on the lining, a piece missing on the lower front right edge, and light storage wear. This is new discovered and an absolutely exceptional Remington revolver in its own right and a truly historic revolver owned by a true American patriot that served through the most trying times in our nation's history. This is the very first time this revolver has been offered at auction.