On this day in 1836, Connecticut-born gun manufacturer Samuel
Colt (1814-62) received a U.S. patent for a revolver mechanism
that enabled a gun to be fired multiple times without reloading.
Colt founded a company to manufacture his revolving-cylinder
pistol; however, sales were slow and the business floundered. In
1846, with the Mexican War (1846-48) under way, the United
States government ordered 1,000 Colt revolvers. In 1855, Colt
opened what was the world’s largest private armament factory.
In Hartford, Connecticut, Samuel Colt built the world’s largest private armament factory. The factory was not only the largest, it was the
world’s most advanced manufacturing facility.
On February 25, 1964, underdog Cassius Clay, age 22, defeated champion Sonny Liston in a technical knockout to win the world heavyweight boxing crown. The highly anticipated match took
place in Miami Beach, Florida. Clay, who later became known to
the world as Muhammad Ali, went on to become the first fighter
to capture the heavyweight title three times.