Derringer

[Wesley Harris]

I don't put much stock in the "difference" in the rifling of the Booth Deringer. Every Deringer was handmade and each is slightly different from the others. Deringer barrels were actually cut from longer rifle barrels and then modified. A craftsman might cut a barrel to a length of 3" or 3 1/8" or 2 3/4" or whatever--his discretion. There was little standardization on Henry Deringer pistols. Since each is hand engraved, every one is slightly different in its appearance. The world's #1 Henry Deringer expert showed me a pistol that was the closest he had seen to the size of the Booth pistol. It is much smaller than most Deringers, and the only one he had ever seen remotely close to the size of the Booth weapon.

The direction of the rifling twist--left or right--would make no difference in the ballistics or accuracy of a tiny pistol. The Booth Deringer doesn't have any significant rifling anyway. The deep grooves (cuts) you see at the tip of the barrel do not extend at that depth down the barrel. See attached photo of the Booth pistol I took at the Ford's museum. The expert I mentioned say the deep grooves at the muzzle are "for show." They don't affect the projectile at all.

There are a number of documented instances of Booth carrying a pistol. I can't say he was always armed, but frequently enough that it was routine for him.

And the book WILL be finished some day!

Another photo of the barrel taken by the FBI: