Weapons

The weapons used at Glenrowan differ depending
on who you listen to.
Presented here are the lists various people consider to be accurate.
There is also a question of what happened to many of the surviving
guns. (more work will be done in this area at a later stage)
Most of the weapons mentioned here are well known to people
reading this page, however some time back I was informed about
the existence of two tiny pistols said to have belonged to Steve Hart.
Unfortunately despite very good provenance, it is difficult at this stage
to know if they did in fact belong to the young bushranger.
Not being a gun expert, I cannot say with any certainty if they were
used at Glenrowan or not.
They seem far too small (see image below) and are not in the
slightest way damaged. If they belonged to Hart and were taken by
Duross at Glenrowan (as suggested on the labels) why are they in
such good condition? Obviously Ned & Joe's weapons were with them
when they were removed/captured. However Steve & Dan fought to the
end so it is all a bit strange. I had been trying to get to the bottom of
all this before uploading the pictures, however time is getting on and
unfortunately I am none the wiser on this. I do know that the donor died
only a few years ago, and not a lot is known about these guns.

Above, said to be the guns of Steve Hart taken by Const Duross.
Photo reproduced with written permission by the West Australian
Police Historical Society. (received Dec.2004)

THE KELLY GANG'S

-Pocket Colt 1849 model .31 cal, Ned’s one
had a 4 inch barrel. (Smith)

-1856 American Colt .56 cal 5 shot percussion used by Ned until
his thumb was shattered. Was found with his skullcap.
(Passey) (Smith) (Phillips)

-A Colt .45 with the corner of the butt
shot off can bee seen at the Old Melbourne Gaol.

-1851 American Colt used by Ned at Glenrowan (Passey)

-each bushranger had two pistols, plus Ned had a rifle. (Bracken)

-possibly 2 small handguns which were found at Glenrowan
prior to fire. (WA historical society)

-a pistol said to have belonged to Joe Byrne was recently sold
at auction.
Alleged to have been hidden and later found by the Griffith’s family.

-a pistol was taken from the stationmaster by Ned after Curnow
informed on him as part of hid plan to gain Ned's trust & escape.

Corfield's list: (from the Ned Kelly Encyclopedia)

-15 revolvers

-2 dble barrel shotguns

-4 single shot rifles

-3 single shot carbines

-4 repeating rifles

-old sawn off carbine

-Snider – Enfield (to sympathizers)

-Colt revolving rifle (Ned)

-Colt Navy revolver

-Webley (ex Lonigan)

THE KELLY GANG'S OTHER WEAPON!

Blasting Powder…a drum of explosive powder…

The Herald called it ‘an infernal machine’, it was in fact a drum
of dynamite. Brought to Glenrowan to blow up the line if needed, it was
never used and was found after the siege by one of the Stanistreet kids
behind McDonnell’s pub. (hidden in a log)
It was carefully packed in an oil can with a hole left for a fuse.

Source: Herald newspaper July 2 1880

Sadleir was severely reprimanded for destroying this drum.
He claimed it was unsafe to move.

McIntyre believed that the blasting powder was there to be used on the
proposed raids into Benalla.

Report re Blasting Powder.

North Eastern Police District.
Glenrowan Station.
2^nd July 1880.

Report of Const Bracken 2228
relative to Finding of Blasting Powder at Glenrowan.

I beg to report for the information of the Supt
that on the 1^st inst Mrs Stanistreet wife of the
Station Master at Glenrowan called my attention
to an “oil drum”, which she had concealed.
On examination I found it to contain about
25 or 30 lbs of Blasting Powder, apparently
brought there by the outlaws, Mrs Stanistreet
informed me that her children found it con-
cealed close to the vicinity of the railway
gates. I have it now in my possession
at this police station.

Hugh Bracken
Mntd Const 2228

Constable McHugh.

VICTORIA POLICE-(47)

N. Eastern Police District
Beechworth Station
5th July 1880

Report of Const McHugh 2551
Relative to Kelly property

I beg to report that the only article
in my possession from the Glenrowan
affray is a Webly revolver branded with
kit No 730 which I picked up in the
bush about a hundred yards from Jones
Hotel. It was covered with blood and had
no case. The case I afterward got from Jack
Sherritt.

While the hotel was burning one of the
men who had been bailed up in it told me
where I would get a pack horse of the Kelly's
I found it tied up to a fence some distance
beyond McDonnells hotel. In the pack was
a coil of fuse, a broken gun, an old pistol ?
and an oil drum banged up so tight that I
could not learn what it contained. I got a
couple of boys to carry it, but it was so heavy
that they had to drop it halfway. It was
about 50 lbs. I told the Benalla police
about it (Const Phillips, I think) but he
could not find it. The mare, pack and
contents I handed over to the Benalla police
the mare having been identified by Const Reilly
as one stolen from a man in Benalla.

As the revolver is scarcely
fit for re-issue as part of a kit and is the
only memento I have of the affray I would
respectfully ask to be allowed to keep it,
and I will pay the amount of whatever value
it may be to the Department

His request was refused.

SYMPATHISER WEAPONS.

-.577 carbine sawn off rifle held together with wax
string previously used at Stringybark Creek was (possibly) loaned
to sympathisers and later recovered at Glenrowan.

Others: pistol held by reporter Joe Melvin of The Argus.
Pistol issued to Dowsett by the Victorian Railways.
Pistol taken off Ned by Dowsett. (Now in State Library of Victoria)

Prisoner Piazza, the boss of the navvies, had a rifle in his tent when
Ned came in, according to eyewitness John Lowe.

Bystander firearms……a pistol was said to have been found in
1997 that was supposed to have belonged to someone at the siege.…
(see 1880 link)

MODERN NEWSPAPER ARTICLES

The following questions & answers appeared in the stated newspapers.

Daily Telegraph, April 28, 2004--

What sort of guns were used by Ned Kelly and his gang, particularly at
the time of the siege of Glenrowan in 1880? Did they have Colt .45s?
Ed Thomas, Lewisham

From what I know, Colt .45s were not used, and would not have been
available. They would have used English revolvers. (I assume we talk of
handguns only here.) I am not too sure of the maker, as there are a few
variants of the style, slight but noticeable. They were cap and ball,
five-round chambers, with a hexagonal barrel, with rifling i.e. not
smooth bore, with a calibre of 0.49 inches.

D.C Roberts, Caringbah

The Kelly gang used Winchester rifles, an unreliable Colt revolving
rifle, and Martini-Henry rifles. Those rifles were in .45 calibre
(0.45-inch diameter). Handguns used were the Colt revolver in .38
calibre and a six-shot Navy Colt revolver in .36 calibre. My research
does not show that they used a Colt .45 revolver.

Peter Whelan, Glenorie

Daily Telegraph (Surry Hills, Australia) April 30, 2004, Letters to
Editor---

Q What sort of guns were used by Ned Kelly and his gang, particularly at
the time of the siege of Glenrowan in 1880? Did they have Colt .45s?
Ed Thomas, Lewisham

Further to several previous responses, information on this is clearly
available in the archives. The only firearms they had at Glenrowan were:
.450-calibre double-action centre-fire breech-loading revolvers stolen
from the murdered police at Stringybark Creek; one 1856 model American
Colt .56 calibre, single-action five-shot percussion revolving carbine;
while Ned Kelly (as well as the carbine) also had one 1851 model
American Colt .36 calibre, six-shot single-action percussion revolver.
This had the production number 555846 (proving it was made in 1856-57)
and engraved on the backstrap was ``NSWG No 94'´ (The ``G´´ stood
for either Government or Gaol). It was undoubtedly stolen during the
raid on Jerilderie. On a packhorse was an old, cut-down .577-calibre
Enfield muzzle-loading carbine. At no time did the Kelly gang use
Winchester rifles, or the Martini-Henry rifles and carbines that were
issued to the Victoria Police.

Edgar Penzig, Blackheath

Edgar is well known as a Colonial Bushranging expert.
He is also an anti-Kelly exponent.

Daily Telegraph, April 29, 2004--

Q. What sort of guns were used by Ned Kelly and his gang, particularly
at the time of the siege of Glenrowan in 1880? Did they have Colt .45s?
Ed Thomas, Lewisham

Further to previous responses, at Glenrowan Ned Kelly was using a Colt
Model 1851 Navy revolver in .36 calibre, a stolen Webley RIC police
revolver possibly in .476 calibre and also possibly a Colt Model 1849
Pocket revolver in .31 calibre. He was also trying to use a Colt Model
1856 revolving rifle in .56 calibre. The other gang members were using
stolen Webley police revolvers and at least two Winchester Model 1873
rifles, probably in .44 calibre. Previous Kelly weapons included a
cut-down Enfield Pattern 1853 rifle in .577 calibre, a Snider rifle
(calibre unknown) and a Spencer repeating rifle that Kelly took from the
police after Stringybark Creek. He later threw it away because he didn't
understand how it worked. The police were using a variety of weapons,
including the Webley revolvers, .577 calibre Martini Henry rifles and
shotguns. The only Colt .45 was a Colt Model 1873 Peacemaker revolver
issued by the Victorian Railways to the guard of the Police Special,
Jesse Dowsett, and with which he engaged Kelly at point-blank range,
permitting Sergeant Steele to get in and bring Kelly down with a
shotgun. The Colt was most likely a .45 or .455 Boxer. Dowsett is the
unsung hero of the siege.
Andrew Stackpool, Dunlop, ACT

Andrew Stackpool is the resident ‘expert’ on the SCS UNE Bushrangers website.
He is also somewhat anti Kelly.

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Sources: Passey Kevin In search of Ned.

Smith Peter Tracking down the bushrangers.

Corfield Ned Kelly Encyl

Newspapers………..

Jones Ian Ned the Exhibition.