Samuel Colt

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Samuel Colt
Engraving by John Chester Buttre, c. 1855
Born	(1814-07-19)July 19, 1814 Hartford, Connecticut, U.S.
Died	January 10, 1862(1862-01-10) (aged 47) Hartford, Connecticut, U.S.
Resting place	Cedar Hill Cemetery, Hartford, Connecticut, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Inventor, industrialist, businessman, hunter
Spouse	Elizabeth Hart Jarvis (m. 1856–1862)
Relatives	John C. Colt (brother) Caldwell Hart Colt (son) Samuel P. Colt (nephew)
Awards	Telford Medal
Signature

Samuel Colt (/koʊlt/; July 19, 1814 – January 10, 1862) was an American inventor, industrialist, and businessman who established Colt's Patent Fire-Arms Manufacturing Company and made the mass production of revolvers commercially viable.

Colt's first two business ventures were producing firearms in Paterson, New Jersey, and making underwater mines; both ended in disappointment. His business affairs improved rapidly after 1847, when the Texas Rangers ordered 1,000 revolvers during the American war with Mexico. Later, his firearms were used widely during the settling of the western frontier. Colt died in 1862 as one of the wealthiest men in America.

Colt's manufacturing methods were sophisticated. His use of interchangeable parts helped him become one of the first to use the assembly line efficiently. Moreover, his innovative use of art, celebrity endorsements, and corporate gifts to promote his wares made him a pioneer of advertising, product placement, and mass marketing.