Good information was thin when I attempted to do any research on Pittsburgh Firearms Company. There is a common thread however, and I hope I am getting on to something.
First things first. The Pittsburgh Firearms Company was a dealer located at 68 5th Avenue, Pittsburgh PA from 1860 to 1882. It was owned by J. Palmer O'Neill.
J. Palmer O'Neil was the president of PFC. They sold a long list (See one of the attachemnts) of imported guns, some of which were marked with their name. Among others, they imported Westley Richards shotguns.
There also was a J. Palmer, O'Neil & Co of Pittsburgh, Pa in operation from 1882 to 1885, which imported Samuel Buckley guns, of which, I've read, were made by Westley Richards and/or I' Hollis & Sons. I have what I surmise is a Westley Richards made Samuel Buckley. (See picture)
"Shotgun markings 1865 to 1914" by Joseph T. Vorisek lists Samuel Buckley & Co. as an English retailer with shotgun actions that appear to have been made by Westley Richards.
A link to an ad that ran in the December 14, 1882 Edition of Forest and Stream is below. It advertises them as agents in the US for Westley Richards:
http://books.google.com/books?id=K0ohAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA400&img=1&zoom=3&hl=en&sig=ACfU3U11eTHd064JuzujaCzJr_vG9IR2xw&ci=25%2C15%2C968%2C746&edge=0
http://books.google.com/books?id=K0ohAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA279&img=1&zoom=3&hl=en&sig=ACfU3U1l3vSobEZMahnT3c4J4qc52CXdEQ&ci=20%2C13%2C927%2C766&edge=0
http://books.google.com/books?id=K0ohAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA520&img=1&zoom=3&hl=en&sig=ACfU3U3g2_xXDwm1b5yDMLEf5Sktk80fWQ&ci=29%2C92%2C964%2C677&edge=0
I can not figure out how to attach the pictures. I hope the links work. You need to copy and paste them to your browser.
J. Palmer O'Neil was into all types of ventures.This story was on several web sites:
"A duck hunt in the fall of 1883 proved to be a very significant day for hunters and trapshooters in America. Frank Chamberlin invited J. Palmer O'Neil, president of the Pittsburgh Firearms Co., to shoot ducks on a marsh near Chamberlin's home in Cleveland, Ohio. The quality of the shells provided by Chamberlin impressed O'Neil. When he learned the ammunition had been loaded on a machine Chamberlin invented, his eyes lit up with dollar signs. Up to that time, all shells were loaded by hand with components supplied almost exclusively by the Union Metallic Cartridge Co. and the Winchester Repeating Arms Co., both Connecticut companies. Mass-produced shotgun shells were unheard of, and Mr. O'Neil quickly recognized the tremendous profits in store-bought, loaded shells.
Soon, with O'Neil's money and Chamberlin's loading invention, the Chamberlin Cartridge and Target Co. was born.
The timing couldn't have been better for an ammunition company just getting started. Bogardus and Carver were touring the country for George Ligowsky, promoting his new clay target that was quickly replacing the glass target ball. Gun clubs were being organized in every little town, and millions of game birds were being shot annually for market and sport. Chamberlin's first automatic loading machine produced from 1,200 to 1,500 shotgun shells an hour. It was housed in a building owned by Chamberlin's former employer, J. H. Webster.
Like O'Neil, Webster quickly recognized the potential of the product manufactured in his barn, and he wanted to be included in the profit picture. Expansion was a necessity and funds were short. The new firm hired Webster after he loaned the company a sizeable amount of money. Business flourished, and soon a new factory in San Francisco served the Western market."
In the 1890's old J. Palmer O'neil owned the Pittsburgh Nationals baseball team. During the baseball rivalries between the two major leagues in the 1890s, the Pittsburgh Nationals took advantage of a technicality and signed a player away from another club. The Nationals' president, J. Palmer O'Neill, was called J. "Pirate" O'Neill, and his club became the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Everything I have read makes me think that this is all the same guy. If anyone else has any information to share, I'd sure like to hear it.
My 16 gauge damascus Samuel Buckley:
