Foehl, Charles

Name	Street	Town	State	From	To
Foehl, Charles	535 N. 3rd Street	Philadelphia	Pennsylvania	1868	1892

Patent	Date	Remarks
139,461	June 3, 1873	Improvement in Revolving Fire-Arms view patent
180,216	July 25th, 1876	Improvement in Breech-Loading Fire-Arms view patent
417,672	December 17, 1889	Fire-Arm, patent, assignor, by direct and mesne assignements, to the Foehl & Weeks Fire Arms Manufacturing Company, New Yersey view patent
447,219	February 24, 1891	Lock for Revolvers, joined patent of Charles A. Weeks and Charles Foehl, Philadelphia view patent
468,243	February 2, 1892	Revolvers joined patent of Charles Foehl andCharles A. Weeks, Philadelphia view patent
471,112	March 22, 1892	Barrel-Strap Catch for Revolvers, joined patent of Charles A. Weeks and Charles Foehl, Philadelphia view patent
530,759	Decembeer 11, 1894	Revolvers, Foehl assigned one-half to Henry Ruhland, Philadelphia view patent
554,058	February 4, 1986	Cylinder-Stop for Revolvers, Foehl assigned one-half to Henry Ruhland, Philadelphia view patent

Contract	for

Product
see Foehl & Weeks Firearms Manufacturing Co. and Columbian Firearms Manufacturing Co. and Columbian. Charles Foehl was born in the state of Würtemberg, Germany in September of 1840, died on Octover 1913. He immigrated to the United States in 1859. He learned gunsmith work at John Wurfflein or Henry Deringer, Jr. After the war Foehl worked for the Deringer Rifle and Pistol Works, which was owned by a great-grandson of Henry Deringer, Jr. The firm made cartridge firearms, and its First Model Deringer Revolver utilized some features from Foehl's first firearms patent, U.S. patent 139,461. In 1889 Foehl formed a company with a Philadelphia machinist, Charles A Weeks, to make guns based on Foehl's patents. They called their company the Foehl & Weeks Firearms Manufacturing Company. Their revolvers were mostly top-break, in .32 and .38 caliber, some with a grip safety on the front of the grip, some with a safety behind the trigger guard. They were usually marked "THE FOEHL & WEEKS F. A. MFG. CO." Some were marked "PERFECT" on the topstrap. Foehl & Weeks may have never actually manufactured the Baby Hammerless under their own name, since the company went bankrupt in the financial panic of 1893, and while they continued to be listed in city directories until 1896, there are no Baby Hammerless other than prototypes that can be definitively traced to this period. The two patent dates on the Baby Hammerless are February 2, 1892 and February 4, 1896. The 1892 patent applied to the Baby Hammerless Revolver was Foehl & Weeks' patent #468,243, and the 1896 patent was Foehl's patent #554,058. The entire production of all types of Foehl & Weeks revolvers was no more than a few thousand. Henry M. Kolb was egally born in Germany. He was first listed in the Philadelphia city directory in 1895 as a machinist. He claimed having found his hirearms company in 1897 (year when Columbian Firearms Manufacturing Co. seems being closed). There is no evidence he ever occupied the address of the old Foehl & Weeks/Columbian com- panies, nor is there any record that he purchased their machinery, though it is possible that he may have done so. Here lies the root of the question as to who made the Baby Hammerless. Other than the hard rubber grips, there are no differences between the Columbian and Kolb Baby Hammerless revolvers-they were probably made with the same equipment. Charles Foehl was also associated with Henry Kolb. They took out several patents together after Kolb entered the firearms business, though none of them were related to the Baby Hammerless. Foehl got a joined patent no 702,735 with Henry M. Kolb in 1902 and patent no. 1,019,446 for Automatic Shell-Ejecting Device for Revolvers on March 5, 1912 when he got a joined patent with Henry M. Kolb. .41 caliber percussion, single shot pistol. .45-70 caliber, Martini action rifle, 27 3/4" part round part octagon barrel, double set triggers. No serial number, maybe pattern for the military or civil market. The rifle is marked "MANUFACTURED AT THE / DERINGER RIFLE & PISTOL WORKS / PHILADELPHIA, PA, U.S.A. / PATD JULY 25TH 1876, MAY 14TH 1879 / CHAS FOEHL, INVENTOR" Foehl's rifle

Product

see Foehl & Weeks Firearms Manufacturing Co. and Columbian Firearms Manufacturing Co. and Columbian.

Charles Foehl was born in the state of Würtemberg, Germany in September of 1840, died on Octover 1913. He immigrated to the United States in 1859. He learned gunsmith work at John Wurfflein or Henry Deringer, Jr. After the war Foehl worked for the Deringer Rifle and Pistol Works, which was owned by a great-grandson of Henry Deringer, Jr. The firm made cartridge firearms, and its First Model Deringer Revolver utilized some features from Foehl's first firearms patent, U.S. patent 139,461.

In 1889 Foehl formed a company with a Philadelphia machinist, Charles A Weeks, to make guns based on Foehl's patents. They called their company the Foehl & Weeks Firearms Manufacturing Company. Their revolvers were mostly top-break, in .32 and .38 caliber, some with a grip safety on the front of the grip, some with a safety behind the trigger guard. They were usually marked "THE FOEHL & WEEKS F. A. MFG. CO." Some were marked "PERFECT" on the topstrap.

Foehl & Weeks may have never actually manufactured the Baby Hammerless under their own name, since the company went bankrupt in the financial panic of 1893, and while they continued to be listed in city directories until 1896, there are no Baby Hammerless other than prototypes that can be definitively traced to this period. The two patent dates on the Baby Hammerless are February 2, 1892 and February 4, 1896. The 1892 patent applied to the Baby Hammerless Revolver was Foehl & Weeks' patent #468,243, and the 1896 patent was Foehl's patent #554,058. The entire production of all types of Foehl & Weeks revolvers was no more than a few thousand.

Henry M. Kolb was egally born in Germany. He was first listed in the Philadelphia city directory in 1895 as a machinist. He claimed having found his hirearms company in 1897 (year when Columbian Firearms Manufacturing Co. seems being closed). There is no evidence he ever occupied the address of the old Foehl & Weeks/Columbian com- panies, nor is there any record that he purchased their machinery, though it is possible that he may have done so. Here lies the root of the question as to who made the Baby Hammerless. Other than the hard rubber grips, there are no differences between the Columbian and Kolb Baby Hammerless revolvers-they were probably made with the same equipment.

Charles Foehl was also associated with Henry Kolb. They took out several patents together after Kolb entered the firearms business, though none of them were related to the Baby Hammerless. Foehl got a joined patent no 702,735 with Henry M. Kolb in 1902 and patent no. 1,019,446 for Automatic Shell-Ejecting Device for Revolvers on March 5, 1912 when he got a joined patent with Henry M. Kolb.

.41 caliber percussion, single shot pistol.

.45-70 caliber, Martini action rifle, 27 3/4" part round part octagon barrel, double set triggers. No serial number, maybe pattern for the military or civil market. The rifle is marked "MANUFACTURED AT THE / DERINGER RIFLE & PISTOL WORKS / PHILADELPHIA, PA, U.S.A. / PATD JULY 25TH 1876, MAY 14TH 1879 / CHAS FOEHL, INVENTOR"

Foehl's rifle