Did "Pocket Pistol" have a different meaning back then, or did people have much bigger pockets?

[H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619]

From a historical standpoint, the term "Pocket Pistol" is maddeningly confusing.    Today, we think of the term as referring to a small pistol that can be carried concealed by dropping it into your pocket.   

But when you look at some of the revolvers that were made back in the day, while there were some very small revolvers that you could do that with, there were also more than a few models that this would have been impossible for.

I posit, that there are three ways that this can be understood.

 

1.  Pocket Pistol or Pocket Revolver was just a generic term for a smaller framed pistol.   It had nothing to do with if the pistol could be carried concealed.

2.  These pistols were intended to be carried in your pocket, not a holster, and again, concealability was not a factor.

3.  People had much larger pockets back in the day.

Now, here are some factors to consider.   In many places, "carrying a concealed weapon" was a crime.  There was no prohibition on open carry, but deliberately hiding it could get you in trouble.   Also, when you look at a gun such as the Colt "1849 Pocket" revolver, with a 6" barrel, this is not a gun made to be hidden.  It's smaller frame would allow for it to be carried in a pocket, with the grip sticking out.   In other words, it was small enough to not require a holster to be carried, but was still not really concealable.   Other guns of the era of approximately the same size were also marketed as "pocket" guns.  Some were smaller, some were larger but they all had the "pocket" designation.   Compare that to a 4-3/4" Colt Peacemaker or something of similar size.  You can stick it in your pocket, but it is likely to fall out.  It's just too big to fit.   I don't have any old west vintage pants, or replicas, so I don't know if they had larger pockets back then.   On the other hand, Levi's did exist back in the day, and they have not changed that much, especially with regard to pocket size.  

On a related note, in the SASS World, Pocket Pistol is clearly defined, but there are guns made back then that were marketed as pocket pistols that would not be pocket pistol side match legal, mostly due to the barrel being too long.   And there are probably some pistols that could arguably be either pocket pistols or main match pistols.   Yes, the handbook says pocket pistols may not be converted to main match pistols, and that is logical, especially since most pocket pistols in our game are double action.   But there are a few single action pistols that could go either way.   That being said, I am not trying to get into that nebulous area of is it a large pocket pistol or a small main match pistol.    I bring all this up because I want to be clear that the contents of this specific paragraph are not what I am talking about.   

Instead, I am wondering what the term pocket pistol meant from roughly 1840 to 1940, when production of the last vestiges of old west "pocket" guns finally ceased.

Edited October 23, 2025 by H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619

[Rip Snorter]

Issue is what men wore.  Look into period clothing - resources are plentiful.

[Abilene, SASS # 27489]

Coat pockets.

[watab kid]

big heavy coats - long coats - shoulder holsters? 

[Colorado Coffinmaker]

 

Alpoesque question??  Doesn't really have/require an accurate answer (I don't think).  But, regardless, I don't have a Clue.  It's Friday morning and I are bored so this is the best I could come up with.

[watab kid]

im missing the question exactly , 

[H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619]

6 hours ago, watab kid said:

im missing the question exactly , 

See title of thread.

[Cholla]

If you read accounts, some gunmen had specially lined pockets for smaller pistols. Small could be a full-sized Colt SAA with a 1 1/2" barrel or a Colt M1877 with a 3 1/2" barrel. In some cases, the public didn't trust the local city law enforcement officers and didn't want them to carry firearms. In such cases, the officers had a hidden Colt M1877. Chicago during the Haymarket riots was one occasion. The officers used their coat pockets. If you bought the entire run of GUN REPORTS from 1955 to the early 2000s, the contributors covered much of this over the decades.

[Gunner, SASS #1940]

My S&W pocket pistols fit in my waistcoat/vest pockets.....

[Tom Bullweed]

Dallas Stoumamire had leather sewn in his pants pocket to make a holster for his Colt 1860 Army modified to a 2-1/2" barrel .44, so I have read in several sources.

[Dapper Dave]

This one will fit in a vest pocket, but I'd hate to depend on it to save my life! That's a 9mm cartridge there next to the .32SW for size comparison. 

 

[Savvy Jack]

Considering Colt's Dragoon to be a "Saddle Pistol", I can only assume Colt's single action revolvers could be a "pocket pistol".