19 x 14 7/8 in. albumen photograph on 24 1/2 x 19 in. cardstock mount. Prescott & White's credit, title, and copyright statement printed on mount recto. Verso with aged framing studio label affixed to lower edge.

After early failures, In 1848, Samuel Colt (1814-1862) purchased a large tract of land on the Connecticut River and built his first factory, and in 1855 named the operations The Colt Armory. Colt revolutionized the firearms industry, introducing the assembly line, a 10 hour work day and strict discipline among his employees. This photograph, taken after his early death at 42, shows the enormity of the operations and the success that the company had achieved -- largely through Government contracts during the Civil War.