The late 1950s marked a heightened interest in Civil War firearms as the Centennial approached. Reenactors waging battles in blue and gray soon discovered the supply of original blackpowder arms in shooting condition was limited and expensive. Entrepreneurs like Val Forgett of Navy Arms and Turner Kirkland of Dixie Gun Works travelled overseas to have the more popular percussion revolvers and military muskets reproduced for the American market.

This widespread attention soon galvanized the Colt company into returning to production its own Civil War era models, beginning with the popular Model 1851 "Navy" revolver. Colt quickly discovered that higher Stateside labor and other manufacturing costs meant that American-made revolvers could not compete with lower priced imports. Colt subcontracted with Italian companies to produce their "Second Generation" blackpowder revolvers as parts, which were shipped to the United States for assembly under Colt supervision. Colt proofed and marketed the revolvers under their own logo, numbering them sequentially after original serial number ranges.