doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com E.M. Reilly; History; Chronology; Serial Numbers

*63 1870, Paris-4: Fall of Napoleon III; Reilly Prosecuted; Pro-French proclivities:

Two and a half years later the Franco-Prussian War broke out. After the battle of Sedan September 3, 1870 Napoleon III fell from power*63a - the Third French Republic was declared; the medals (with Napoleon III's profile on them disappeared from Reilly's case labels for awhile yet continued occasionally to resurface on both labels and in advertisements for the next 15 years.

Bismark and Napoleon III after the battle of Sedan, 03 September 1870:


Note: Napoleon III died in exile in England in 1873. His widow Empress Eugenia*63b bought a Reilly 12 bore SxS shotgun, while in England SN 17532 (dated per the chart to mid 1872), and a second Reilly 16 bore (SN unknown) both of which are now in the USA somewhere. Her son was killed in the Zulu Wars in 1879. She died in 1920 having been awarded the Order of the British Empire.



Reilly's affinity for France was well known and commented on in London newspapers at the time. (Was this possibly an Irish-French Catholic connection?)

-- A French woman was found in his house in the 1861 census;*63c

-- In Fall 1870 he was prosecuted for attempting to smuggle 2,000 shells to his rue Scribe address, a violation of UK neutrality in the conflict; The London press commented to the effect that this Reilly-Francophile affinity was inevitable (i.e. Reilly "couldn't help himself."). Reilly maintained that the French Republic had invaded his store and confiscated all the guns; he dared not resist their insistence on ammunition. (The cartridges in question were for Snider .577 sporting rifles in Reilly’s inventory in Paris. What happened to his shotguns is unknown).*63d, *63e, *63f

-- and in 1871 Reilly offered to sell 6,000 Chassepot rifles (stored in Birmingham) to the new French Republic. (Obviously the rifles were to be sent to France via some sort of back-channel; the French parliament - really a sort of 3rd Republic "Revolutionary Committee," hesitated over a few centimes of commission - the opportunity was lost).*63g

-- There are Reilly trade labels from the period where the owner of the gun has taken pains to erase the Paris address - Francophobia was alive and well in UK.*60h

-- And with this long-time connection, one must assume that early on, after the 1851 exposition, EM was in contact with French center-break breech-loader makers and must have been experimenting. He had contacts in Liège (as did Trantor or perhaps through Trantor) possibly as early as the 1850's.

-- Whether he spoke French is unknown. However, there are mid-1860’s Reilly advertisements which mention, “Ici on Parle Francais” (French spoken here).*63i


*64 1869-76: Reilly and the American Market

From as early as 1868 Reilly evinced an interest in penetrating the American market.*64a He acquired an American agent (Joseph Grubbs, Philadelphia),*64b and had his guns advertised in mail order catalogs.*64c At the 1876 Philadelphia centennial*64d he exhibited along side very high-standard British guns*64e, and won a medal which was later displayed on his post 1897 case labels.*64f


*65 1868-76: New Labels and Descriptions

. . . . .1869: New Description - Gun and Rifle Manufacturers: Around 1869 EM changed the description of the company in print journal ads to "Gun and Rifle Manufacturers" (as did many other English gun makers).*65a This description was occasionally but not usually used on some trade/case labels for the next 15 years.*65b

. . . . .There are two extant guns with this phrase on the ribs or barrels:

. . . . . . . . . .-- SN 25572, a .450 BPE SxS U-L hammer gun rifle dated 1883 with “To their Majesties Kings of Spain and Portugal.”*65c

. . . . . . . . . .-- SN 26537, a .450 BPE SxS U-L hammer gun rifle (later rebored as a 20 gauge shotgun) dated 1884.*65d

. . . . .The phrase also appeared on some of his post February 1868 (opening of rue Scribe) long-gun presentation cases.*65e

. . . . .1868: New label for handguns: Shortly after the 1867 Paris exposition for a short time he used a different label for revolvers with only the 315 Oxford Street address, without the scollops or the medals, advertising “Breech Loading Gun and Rifle Manufacturers," which included the phrase, "By appointment to his majesty emperor Napoleon III.*65f. The label was only used for a few years.



. . . . .1876: New outlier Label for 502 New Oxford St: In 1876 an outlier Reilly trade label for 502 New Oxford Street began advertising a connection to the King of Portugal*65g echoed by advertisements in the print press.*65h (Only two examples of this case label have so far been found).



. . . . .1876: New Label for 315 Oxford Street: Also around 1876 315 Oxford Street got its own label back; it was slightly different from the classic 502 label, without scollops and with no scroll work at the bottom.*65i




*66 1875-80: Choke Boring and New Proof Marks

In Jan 1875 WW Greener had perfected his choke boring method which became the standard of the industry. It was immediately controversial with some traditionalists maintaining it did nothing but make shooting more difficult. However, tests run by “the Field” in March 1875 showed its advantages. London and Birmingham proof marks were immediately changed with “Not For Ball” being added to choke bored shotguns. Of course, if a gun had no choke the stamp was not used and most UK shotguns sold up to 1880 were cylinder bore.

The interesting fact about Greener's choke boring system is that unlike some inventions, just about every gun-maker in London jumped on it. By late spring all sorts of high-quality makers were advertising the system. (This almost instanteous adoption of Greener's choke boring is an interesting phenomena from the formerly extremely change-resistant UK gun community. By 1875 excitement over new innovations was apparently driving the market; and much like Reilly did in the late 1850's others now jumped whole-heartedly onto the band-wagon of new ideas, to sell new guns and make the old ones feel out-dated; shades of modern marketing).

. . . . .Reilly's first advertisement for a choke-bored shotgun is from 08 May 1875, "The Field"*66a.

. . . . .SN 20681 (1877) - 12 bore SxS side-lever hammer-gun shotgun: 1st extant Reilly shotgun with a confirmed “Not For Ball" proof stamp.*66b


*67 1875-80: Reilly paying royalties for Patent uses:

This esoteric chapter is placed here for academic reasons because it potentially could be a very important tool in understanding Reilly (and other London gunmakers). From the early 60’s to the end of the company in 1912 Reilly used others’ patents on his guns and paid patent royalties to these companies (as did virtually every gun-maker in London). Reilly apparently thought it cheaper and faster to build his own versions of the patents than wait an intermiable period for an action or forend or an ejector to be delivered.

However, the question remains (never to be adequately answered because of the chaotic nature of patent use numbers), “if a gun has a patent use number stamped on it, was it built by the payer of the royalties, or by the owner of the patent, who built it in the white and sent it to the royalty payer?” It would seem to be the former but it could be both. The problem of trying to investigate patent use numbers also lies with individual users and auction houses. With the exception of Toby Barclay no one seems to pay attention to these important markers.

This chapter will not go deep into this rabbit hole, but is meant to be an example of what one might find in investigating it further because Reilly is recorded historically as paying patent royalties to various companies.

The most common patents found on existing post 1860 Reilly guns (with patent use numbers- i.e. royalties paid to the patent owners) are as follows:

1860, May - J.D. Dougall “Lockfast” action patent. Per published information Reilly made a gun in 1861 with documented royalty payents paid to Dougall. *67a

1860, 15 Nov - Henry patent 2802 - 7 groove shallow rifling. The patent was extended in December 1874 for four years and then by a process not understood for another 10 years to 1888. Reilly built dozens of Henry barreled rifles and paid the royalties (as did virtually every gun-maker in London). Henry records exist but do not record royalty payments. The first extent Reilly Henry-barreled rifle is SN 17626 (1872) and last gun being SN 27405 (1885).

. . . . .SN 17626 (1872) - E.M. Reilly & Co., New Oxford Street, London. .450 SxS Rifle. BPE. C-F, U-L, hammer gun. 28” Henry Pat #408, 409.*67b

. . . . .SN 27405 (1885) - E.M. Reilly & Co., (address not mentioned). .577/500 SxS BPE Rifle. U-L, hammer gun. 8 lbs, 11 oz. Henry rifling A&T.*67c (Note there are no use #'s on this patent stamp. There was a time in UK gun history where certain patents had acquired a status in and of themselves for quality - Whitworth for steel barrels being one of them and as such some makers went out of their way to stamp those patents on their guns but without a patent use #. It was sort of like, "As advertised on television" from the 1960's.

1863, 01 May - J. Purdey patent no. 1104 - “double bite” under action bolt. Found on Reilly guns up to the expiration of the patent in 1877. The Purdey patent 1104 combined with the Scott spindle became one of the standards of the industry. It expired on 01 May 1877. The patent cost a user £2, a considerable sum.

Nine extant Reilly guns have 1104 patent use numbers. Presumably Reilly paid Purdey (and Scott) directly. Patent use numbers were usually not chonological and were sometimes sold in batches. Purdey was queried about records for patent use payments; unfortunately these are locked away and cannot be accessed; they would have a story to tell. The first extant Reilly with a 1104 patent use # is SN 17393 (1872) and the last SN 20623 (April 1877) (the last month before the expiration of Purdey Patent 1104).

. . . . .SN 17393 (1872) - E.M. Reilly & Co., New Oxford Street, London and 2 Rue Scribe, Paris; 12bore. Shotgun SxS. Push-forward U-L, hammer gun. Purdey Pat 1104, use #948 (dated 1872)*67d

. . . . .SN 20623 (Apr 1877) - E.M. Reilly & Co., New Oxford Street, London and Rue Scribe, Paris. 12 bore. Shotgun SxS. U-L, rebounding hammer gun. (Purdey patent 1104 use #4928 (April 1877)*67e

1875, 11 May - Anson & Deeley patent 1152 and/or 1756 - Boxlock hammerless action. See separate post below. 25% of extant Reilly's made after 1880 are boxlocks. The first extant A&D Reilly boxlock is SN 22482, use # 1156:

. . . . .SN 22482 (early 1880) - E.M. Reilly & Co., (address not mentioned), 12 bore SxS Shotgun. BLE. A&D use # 1156. *67f

1876. Scott patent 761 from 1878, the "Triplex Action" which included crystal indicators, etc. There are 5 extant Reilly’s with the Scott patent 761: Please note that Holland & Holland bought a bunch of the Scott patent 761 “Triplex Actions” early on during the first 6 years of the patent; in 1882 he advertised a "Triplex grip" pigeon gun*67g :

. . . . .SN 24675 (1882) - E.M. Reilly & Co., (address not mentioned). 12 bore SxS. top lever, hammerless, back lock, non-ejector. Scott action patent 761(no use #).*67h

. . . . .SN 24736 (1883) - E.M. Reilly & Co., (stock, action,forend). 12 ga. Shotgun SxS. Scott triplex action Pat 761 use #339, Perks, crystal indicators, Scott gas check Pat 617 use #1233.

. . . . .SN 25038 (1883) - E.M. Reilly & Co., New Oxford Sreet, London & Rue Scribe, Paris. 12 Bore Shotgun SxS. Top lever, hammerless. Scott/Baker pat 761, use #200; Needham/Hinton sears (Pat 705) 1879 patent.*67i

. . . . .SN 27853 (1886) - E.M. Reilly & Co., Oxford Street, London & Paris Improved Patent. 16 bore, Shotgun SxS. Dolls Head; Side-clips; S-L, Scott triplex action Pat 761 use #2112, Perks, crystal indicators, Scott gas check Pat 617 use #1953, Whitworth Steel barrels, 1st of pair. "Not for Ball"*67j

. . . . .SN 27854 (1886) - E.M. Reilly & Co., Oxford Street, London & Paris Improved Patent. 12 bore, Shotgun SxS. Dolls Head; Side-clips; S-L, Scott triplex action, Perks, crystal indicators, Whitworth steel barrels, 2nd of pair.*67k

1882, 8 Feb - Scott patent 617 - gas check. An amazingly simple patent which preserved shotgun actions from the corrosive effect of black powder, found with patent use #’s on 20 or so Reilly shotguns from 1882-to the dawn of smokelesspowder. (It was not used on rifles apparently).*67l

1886 - Perkes patent 10679 – ejector. Reilly used several Perkes patent forends and ejectors on his rifles.

1865 - Whitworth patent for fluid compressed steel barrels. Patent extended for 5 years in 1879. Reilly began using Whitworth steel barrels on his pigeon guns in 1882 (SN 24365). (see separate chapter on steel barrels below.

. . . . .SN 24365 (1882) - E.M. Reilly & Co., (address not mentioned). Shotgun SxS, 12 bore, top lever, 31" whitworth steel barrels, pigeon gun).*67m


*68 1878-80: Paris exposition; Situation of the company



Reilly again exhibited at the 1878 Paris exposition*68a and again won medals.*68b

In 1880 Reilly sold about 650 serial-numbered guns a year, a number which had remained pretty constant since the opening of the Paris store in 1868. This was still a third more hand-made bespoke guns than both Holland & Holland and Purdey combined.

This was in addition to other revenue streams for the company including:
. . .-- a very active business in guns sold under license from well known gun makers including revolvers - Trantor, Baumont-Adams, Walker, Colt, etc), rook rifles, repeating rifles - Sharps (sole importer)*68c, Winchester*68d, etc.,
. . .-- as well as merchandising every type of gun accoutrement - reloaders, cartridges, shells, cases, etc.
. . .-- and sustaining a huge business in previously owned guns.

Reilly got regular publicity from users of his guns, who posted comments in "The Field"*68e and from an editor of "The Field" who consistently lauded his Reilly-made 20 bore shotgun in numerous articles.*68f

The company had a firm niche in the London gun-making business and several commentators have speculated that he was building guns in the white for other makers. But EM, with the death of his dreams of obtaining a contract for a military rifle, still had big plans.


. . . . . XI: REILLY – 1880’s; 1,000 GUNS A YEAR:


*69 Reilly in the early 1880's; 1881 Census; 1000 guns a year

Reilly's business was booming and in 1881 expanded dramatically. Serial numbered gun production rose from about 650 a year in 1880, a number which had remained pretty constant for 12 years, to over 1000 a year in 1882.

Reilly told the 1881 census taker that he employed some 300 people in his firm in his two workshops on Oxford street and store in Paris and agents in Birmingham, an extraordinarialy high number for the times, an indication of the extent of his gun manufacturing and sales business.*69a (WW Greener in the same census claimed to employ 140, less than half the number of Reilly; Purdey in 1871 said he employed 58, 1/5th the number of Reilly workers).*69b



The number “300” has become controversial and a number of writers have tried to downplay it or explain it away. After all the average number of employees at a London gunmaker in 1851 was "14." But the words are from E.M. Reilly to the census taker as are those of Greener, etc. Reilly had no reason to embellish. The gun trade was highly cyclical as illustrated by this post on the Birmingham gun industry. Not one Birmingham gun making concern could say exactly how many workers were employeed on a given day.*69c

Since Reilly, at the time of the 1881 census was quite dramatically expanding his sales of serial numbered guns. it is entirely possible that at the time of the census Reilly was adding to his workforce and this could have included independent gun part makers under contract to him. However, the fact remains that this is what the census taker noted; if the figure is challenged then the figures for Greener, Purdey et.al are also wrong.

Note: See below chapters on the A&D Boxlock and his decision to begin “selling off the rack.” It is probable that with his 1880 pivot to the boxlock that he began to sell guns made in the white in Birmingham like everyone else, which might well account for the increased production.

He also around this time allegedly (not confirmed) began importing cheap Belgian-made revolvers in parts which he assembled in his buildings, engraved and sold. (Reilly, like Trantor and others, possibly was involved with the Belgian manufacture and "assembly trade" much earlier...perhaps dating to as early as the 1850's).


*70 1880: Reilly and the Anson & Deeley Boxlock

In early 1880 Reilly adopted the boxlock (Anson & Deeley 1875 Patent) and began building or having them built in significant numbers. Some 25% of the surviving Reilly guns from 1880-1912 are Boxlocks.

The Anson & Deeley boxlock articles and ads began to appear in the UK press in March, 1877 following a full page ad in “The Field” by Westley-Richards.*70a W-R quoted an article in the US Press for the 1876 centennial about the gun cribbed from a Birmingham press article of 1876.*70b By summer 1877 the Anson & Deeley was being touted by all sorts of London gunmakers. Even a few prominent ones such as Greener began to market the gun.*70c However, Reilly (like a few other London gun-makers) never specifically advertised the A&D. Reilly endorsed the boxlock whole-heartedly an 1882 cameo on his company but he was clearly several years behind some.*70d

By 1880 Reilly was beginning to dramatically expand serial numbered production from 650 to over 1000 a year and had decided to "sell off the rack." (see below) The A&D boxlock would certainly have simplified the manufacturing process. Reilly could have tried to produce these himself at least early on..he had the ego and the manufacturing space.

But almost certainly Reilly began to avail himself of Birmingham produced actions in significant numbers for the first time. Buying boxlock actions from Birmingham and finishing them in London, as just about the entire trade did at the time, would have been a logical business step. Birmingham was fully geared up to produce boxlocks by 1880. The impression is strengthened since Reilly did not include the A&D in his late 1870-early 1880 ads. Importing guns in the white from Birmingham would also explain how Reilly could jump serial numbered gun production up 400 a year without adding more manufacturing space.

Birmingham box-lock actions usually have workers' initials on them someplace. None have yet to be found on a Reilly box-lock but this type of information is not usually published by auction houses.

. . . . . . . . . .-- SN 22482 (1880): The first surviving Reilly box-lock is SN 22482 (1880), a 12 gauge top lever shot gun, A&D Patent use #1156.*70e


*71 1882: Selling Off The Rack

In late 1881 per advertisements it appears that Reilly made a business decision to stock ready-made guns and sell them off-the-rack as well as selling his usual bespoke made-to-order guns.*71a This might account for the soaring number of guns serial numbered per year, which grew from about 650 numbered in 1880 to some 1050 in 1882. It might also account for certain discrepancies in serial numbered guns from this time forward such as 303xx which would have been numbered in late 1888-early 1889 but still has "Not For Ball" on its barrels (a stamping discontinued in 1887).*71b

If this were the case, Reilly possibly serial numbered his bespoke guns when ordered (usual London practice) and his off-the-rack guns when sold. (When knowledgable gun historians and makers were queried about this phenomena - guns with pre-1887 proof marks apparently made after that date - they shrugged and said essentially that no-one can logically explain the process at the time - some gun makers ignored or stretched the law; some used barrels already proofed..etc.)

As pointed out above, the decision to vastly expand production and sell ready-made guns may mark the origin of a trend towards marketing Birmingham-made guns finished in London to satisfy demand, supplementing Reilly’s own production which seemed to max out at about 650 a year per the attached chart.


*72 Nov 1881: Oxford Street Re-numbered; Change in Labels

In November 1881 Oxford Street was renumbered; "502" became "16 New Oxford Street" and "315" becoming "277 Oxford Street." The first advertisements for the new numbers appeared in early November 1881.*72a.

(Prior to the renumbering virtually the entire block were 315 and Purdey's 314 1/2 were located was numbered either "314" or "315." Attached is the 1882 London postal directory which has both sets of numbers for that block for the record.*72b.

The first Reilly with either of the new addresses is SN 23536 below:

. . . . .SN 23536 (Nov 1881) - The first extant gun with either of the new addresses on the ribs is SN 23536, a 12 ga. SxS BLE shotgun with E.M. Reilly & Co, 277 Oxford St., London on the rib. *72c

In spite of the formal change in numbering, the old numbers occasionally appeared in Reilly ads and on gun ribs for the next couple of years.*72d

Labels changed to reflect the two new addresses:

. . . . .-- A label for "16, New Oxford Street" with "rue Scribe" exists obviously post November 1881 and pre July 1885.*72e



. . . . .-- However, the Reilly trade label used at "315 Oxford Street" does not appear to have changed definitively to the new numbering system until after rue Scribe closed in 1885; no "277 Oxford Street, London" labels with the Paris branch have so far been found. (There are a very limited number of the 277 labels for this time period uncovered so far; one may still turn up).*72f

. . . . . . . . . ._____________________
. . . . . . . . . |. . .Searching for . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . |. . . .Reilly Label. . . . .|
. . . . . . . . . |. 277 with rue scribe . .|
. . . . . . . . . |____________________|

. . . . .-- A presentation case label from this time period has yet to come to light. However there is a presentation case for SN 26181 (a very special gun) SN'd in 1883 but with a case from 1880 for the King of Spain with the 502 address and "Gun and Rifle Manufacturers" on it. The key is the use of blue velvet which appears to have become the Reilly hallmark for the next 30 years for presentation cases:




*73 1881: Spanish and Dutch Royal connection

In 1881 in addition to the connection to the King of Portugal Reilly began advertising a connection to the Spanish and Netherlands thrones, advertising which continued for the next 8 years.*73a The crests of the two monarchs appeared also on an outlier label from 1884-85.*73b

Spanish King Alphonso XII was a modernizer and much liked by the Spanish people. He unfortunately died in November 1885, cutting short what could have been a revitalization of the country.*73c He introduced the English sport of pigeon shooting to Spain. There are two existing Reilly gun’s dedicated to the King of Spain:

. . . . .SN 25161 (1883) - E.M. Reilly & Co., 502, New Oxford Street, London & rue Scribe, Paris. .500 BPE/12 ga. Rifle/Shotgun; side lever, hammer gun. (King of Spain prize - 1880 case; Purdey double-bite patent 1104.*73d The story of 25161 is odd but it likely led to the Reilly claim to build guns for Alphonso XII. 25161 was to be given as a prize in 1880 by the King according to the case. However, the gun has an 1883 serial number and a pre Nov 1881 address on the rib. It is a beautiful gun and case presentation

. . . . .SN 25572 (1883) - E.M. Reilly & Co., 16, New Oxford Street, London and Paris, Gun & Rifle Manufacturers. .450 BPE. Rifle SxS. U-L, hammer gun. "To Their Majesties Kings of Spain and Portugal” on the rib. The gun was purchased in Spain but there is no history attached.*73e

No extant examples of Reilly guns made for the King of the Netherlands, William III, a giant abusive man who may have been insane, but who, with his second marriage in 1878 settled down quite a bit,*73f or the King of Portugal, Louis I from the Braganza Dynasty,*73g have been discovered. (Reilly’s claim to make guns for the King of Portugal has already been discussed and dates to 1876.)