Harpers Ferry Model 1805
- Category
- Pistol
- Barrel
- 254 mm
- Weight, empty
- Not recorded
- Introduced
- 1806
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Harpers Ferry Model 1805 was the first pistol manufactured by a United States military arsenal. A single-shot .54 caliber flintlock 'horseman's pistol' with a 10-inch smoothbore steel barrel, brass mountings and a curved walnut grip, it was produced at the Harpers Ferry Armory in Virginia (now West Virginia) between 1806 and 1808. Issued in matched pairs with identical serial numbers, it equipped mounted troops in the early decades of the 19th century.
The Harpers Ferry Armory that built this pistol was the same federal arsenal John Brown's raiders seized in 1859, an event that helped ignite the American Civil War.
Often catalogued as the Model 1806 because production ran 1806-1808. Over 4,000 were produced. Smoothbore despite some catalog references to rifled examples; reproductions are sometimes made in .58 caliber.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Harpers Ferry Armory
- Category
- Pistol
- Country
- United States
- Status
- Out of production
- Produced
- 1806 to 1808
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 254 mm
- Overall length
- 400 mm
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Muzzleloader
- Firing mechanism
- Flintlock
- Trigger
- Single stage
- Capacity
- 1
- Magazine
- Internal
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Frame
- Steel
- Barrel
- Steel
- Stock
- Wood
- Finish
- Browned
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Effective range
- 20 m
- Maximum range
- 60 m
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
No load solved for this record yetThe flight path is computed from a cartridge and a bullet. This record has no ammunition filed against its chambering, so there is nothing to solve.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Front fixed sight
Brass furniture
Curved grip
Wooden ramrod
Muzzle loader
Horsemans pistol
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall lengthAmong 1,911 pistols | 400 mm | 196 mm | Longer than about 90% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 1,941 pistols | 254 mm | 102 mm | Longer than about 90% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 1,962 pistols | 1 | 8 | Among the smallest capacities |
Answers
Questions about the Harpers Ferry Model 1805
What caliber is the Harpers Ferry Model 1805?
The Harpers Ferry Model 1805 is chambered in .54 Caliber Ball.
How many rounds does the Harpers Ferry Model 1805 hold?
The Harpers Ferry Model 1805 holds 1 rounds, fed from an internal magazine.
How long is the Harpers Ferry Model 1805?
The Harpers Ferry Model 1805 is 400 mm (15.7 in) long overall, with a 254 mm (10.00 in) barrel.
Who makes the Harpers Ferry Model 1805?
The Harpers Ferry Model 1805 is made by Harpers Ferry Armory (United States).
When was the Harpers Ferry Model 1805 introduced?
The Harpers Ferry Model 1805 was introduced in 1806 and discontinued in 1808.
How does the Harpers Ferry Model 1805 operate?
The Harpers Ferry Model 1805 uses a muzzleloader action, and its firing mechanism is flintlock.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
In service
- United States Army
- 1805
Provenance
Confidence in this record
70%
Stockists
Where to buy
Offers link straight to the shop. GunSpec never takes the order.
No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/harpers-ferry-1805' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "harpers-ferry-1805", "name": "Harpers Ferry Model 1805", "manufacturer": { "id": "harpers-ferry-armory", "name": "Harpers Ferry Armory", "countryCode": "US", "foundedYear": 1799, "website": null, "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "updatedAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "version": "d339b51501233ffeeb175a0f192db73768ccdea5cf55eb41f8266eeca6b1a1b3" }, "category": { "id": "pistol", "name": "Pistol", "description": "Handguns designed to be fired with one or two hands" }, "country_of_origin": "US", "year_introduced": 1806, "barrel_length_mm": 254, "weight_empty_g": null, "action_type": "muzzleloader"}