Colt Walker of Texas had been the major purchaser of the early Paterson Holster Pistol (No. 5 model), a five shot cal .36 revolver, and Samuel Walker became familiar with it during his service as a Texas Ranger. In 1847, Walker was engaged in the Mexican-American War as a captain in the United States Mounted Rifles. He approached Colt, requesting a large revolver to replace the single-shot Aston Johnson holster pistols then in use. The desired .44-.45 caliber revolver would be carried in saddle mounted holsters and would be large enough to dispatch horses as well as enemy soldiers. The Colt Walker
.44 Colt .44 Colt The .44 Colt is an American centerfire revolver cartridge that was produced commercially from 1871 until the 1940s. The cartridge was developed for the United States Army, and introduced by Colt's Patent Firearms around 1871. The Army used it until 1873, at which time it was replaced by the better known .45 Colt cartridge used in the recently adopted Colt Single Action Army revolver. The .44 Colt was used in the Richards-Mason conversions of Colt's 1860 Army percussion revolver. The conversion process involved boring through the chambers of the obsolete cap and ball revolvers to enable them to