The History of Deringer

Henry Deringer was the son of a German gunsmith and, after an apprenticeship in his father’s shop, he established his own firearms manufacturing facility in Philadelphia in 1806. He manufactured flintlock pistols, muskets, and percussion rifles for the U. S. Army. In 1825, Deringer began the production of percussion dueling pistols. By 1840, he was manufacturing a smaller dueling pistol and by the 1850s the short barreled, single-action percussion pocket pistol which rapidly gained popularity among pistols for sale at the time. Go to GrabAGun and look through our more modern Derringer collection!

Interestingly, the Deringer lacked a standardized caliber and came with its own bullet mold specific to the caliber of the pair of pistols which varied from .33 to .51 inches. With Henry Deringer’s death in 1868, competitors began applying the breechloading system to their own versions of concealable pistols, and called them “Derringers” to avoid trademark infringements. From then on, guns made by Henry Deringer were the Deringer, while any small short barreled and non-automatic concealable firearm was called a derringer.

The Deringer’s Infamy

The Deringer went down into infamy as the gun that killed Abraham Lincoln. He was shot by actor John Wilkes Booth in April, 1865. Lincoln died the following morning. Forensic evaluation of the pistol in 1997 revealed a characteristic unique to the Booth Deringer, unlike the majority of Deringer pocket pistols, the Booth pistol bore rifling with a left twist. Today the infamous tiny pistol is on display in the Ford Theater Museum.

The end of the Civil War saw the decline in the percussion Deringer’s popularity. The new .41 Short rimfire cartridge was introduced in 1863 resulting in the availability of more modern pistols for sale using the more convenient rimfire cartridges.

The Derringer Today

Today’s Derringer is an exceedingly popular among pistols for sale. The typical modern derringer, or pocket pistol, has significantly improved Henry Deringer’s little gun. Modern Derringers provide greater quality, increased round capacity, and improved safety features and performance.

Derringers at GrabAGun

GrabAGun is an online gun dealer offering an extensive selection of guns for sale from a large selection of models. GrabAGun has the largest selection of guns on the internet and our inventory isn’t limited! If you seek a particular weapon, give us a call and we will locate the firearm.

Shop our site for rifles for sale, shotguns for sale, AR-15’s for sale and pistols for sale including a large selection of the diminutive derringer pistols for sale. Our selection of derringers includes derringers with interchangeable barrels for sale.