A SELECTION of NSW COLONIAL POLICE ARMS By Mal Southwell & John Newton
SPENCER CARBINE Civil War Model, aka the Model of 1860 – lever action .52 calibre (56-56 rim-fire) seven shot repeating cavalry carbine. The illustrated arm is one of four known surviving NSW Police Spencer carbines. This particular carbine, marked NSWP over 7 on the LHS of the butt, is serial no. 41804, and is most likely one of 20 included in the second batch of carbines smuggled to Australia in contravention of a ban on the export of arms and munitions from the US during the American Civil War. The sailing ship Warrior arrived at Port Melbourne on 7/5/1865 carrying the carbines (and 8000 cartridges) in four crates marked “hardware”. The NSW Police had purchased the entire shipment after earlier acquiring five carbines from the first shipment of about 50 smuggled carbines, which had arrived in Melbourne on the Lady Dufferin in September 1864 in crates labelled “castings”. The importer of the carbines, Maguire and Co of Melbourne, sold 25 from the first shipment to the Victoria Police. In agreeing to sell the carbines to Maguire, the Spencer Co had violated not only the US ban on the export of arms and munitions, but also an agreement to sell its entire production to the US government. The first two acquired by NSW were on-sold by the Victoria Police to enable assessment by the NSW force, who at the time were seeking weapons for use in the hunt for the Hall/Gilbert gang of bushrangers. Although most of the carbines arrived too late to be deployed against Hall and Gilbert they were extensively issued for escort and other special duties. At least one was issued to special constables hunting the Clarke gang in 1867. It appears that about 40 carbines were purchased in total - other surviving carbines known to date are serial nos. 28359 (unmarked), 43532 (NSWP 17) and 50297 (NSWP 13). The highest recorded police no. is “33”. At least one carbine was unmarked.
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ARMS CAVALCADE 2020
AC2020_020-27 NSW Colonial Police Arms - John Newton.indd 20
2/09/2020 8:50:51 AM
