Research Inquiry: Early A-Grade 12ga (Serial #730)

[huang]

Dear AHFCA Members and Researchers,

I am seeking any historical or anecdotal information regarding a recently cataloged A.H. Fox 12-gauge shotgun, Serial #730.
I have reached out to the Cody Firearms Museum, but as many of you know, their records for the 12-gauge "Philly Foxes" do not begin until serial #1738. As this is a "Wayne & Bristol" era gun, I am hoping the community might have "observed" data for nearby serial numbers to help narrow down a production or shipping date.
Specifications of Gun #730:
• Grade: A-Grade (Engraved with "FOX" in oval, sunbursts on hinge pin).
• Barrels: 30-inch Krupp Fluid Steel – Essen. Weight 1635 grams
• Integrity: 5-Way Matching Serial Numbers. The number 730 is clearly stamped on the Water Table, Barrel Lug, Forend Iron, Trigger Guard, and Extractor Face.
• Patent Dates: Water table is marked with the August 16, 1904 patent.
• History: I have owned this gun for over 30 years and have used it for trap in the past. It remains in excellent mechanical condition.

I am also a Parker collector (owning a factory-lettered 1900 two-barrel set), but this Fox is a special piece of my collection due to its very early production.

If anyone has records of guns #720–#740 or can provide insight into the specific craftsman marks common for this serial range, I would be very grateful.
Thank you for your time and expertise!

[eightbore]

Your gun is not an Ansley H. Fox shotgun. It is a Philadelphia Arms Co. shotgun. The AHFCA does not have any Philadelphia Arms Co. records, not does Cody, as far as I know. The McIntosh Fox book has at least a chapter on Philadelphia Arms and their guns.

[Researcher]

Nice Philadelphia Arms Co. A-Grade.

As this is a "Wayne & Bristol" era gun, I am hoping the community might have "observed" data for nearby serial numbers to help narrow down a production or shipping date.

The corner of Wayne & Bristol Streets was the original location of the A.H. Fox Gun Co.

An outline of the history of the Philadelphia Arms Co. is on our home page -- https://foxcollectors.com/pre-fox-guns/ ... lphia-arms

Philadelphia Arms Company barely got going in 1904. On December 28, 1904, Ansley H. Fox sent a letter to various trade and sporting magazines in which he stated:

GENTLEMEN: -- Please announce through your columns that I am no longer
connected in any way with the Philadelphia Arms Company, of this city. I
have resigned my position as president and general manager of that
company, and have equipped a factory of my own, where I will manufacture
a new double barrel, hammerless shotgun. This new gun embodies many
valuable improvements and samples will be ready for the trade in January
next.

Yours respectfully,
Ansley H. Fox

All the advertising for Philadelphia Arms Co. I've found was from January to July 1905. The ads show either the A- or C-grade --

Sporting Life, April 22, 1905.png (561.68 KiB) Viewed 6867 times

Philadelphia Arms Co. went into receivership in March 1906 and was sold at a Sheriff's sale on July 3, 1906.

Sheriff's Sale Tuesday July 3, 1906.jpg (52.05 KiB) Viewed 6867 times

The purchaser was Philadelphia lawyer William MacGeorge Jr. On October 2, 1906, MacGeorge sold the plant to Ansley H. Fox and Ansley moved the A.H. Fox Gun Co. into it by the end of the year.

I did an article on Philadelphia Arms Co. that was published in The Double Gun Journal, Volume Thirteen, Issue 4, pages 47 to 55.

I've been recording observed Philadelphia Arms Co. guns for years and have over a hundred on my list ranging from 16 to 1846 all with plain extractor and an out layer with ejectors with a serial number in the 2xxx range.

The guns nearest your gun I've recorded are a 30-inch B-Grade 733 and a 28-inch A-Grade 738. Unlike Parker Bros. guns I don't know of interesting marks on the barrel flats or watertable.

[huang]

Thank you both for the quick and insightful replies—much appreciated.

I agree completely on the corporate distinction, and “Philadelphia Arms Co.” is the correct manufacturer attribution for this gun. My intent in using “A.H. Fox” was in the design and commercial sense, as reflected in the period advertising, but your clarification is well taken and helpful for proper cataloging.

Researcher, thank you especially for sharing the broader Philadelphia Arms Co. context, the advertising timeline, and the observed serial data. Knowing that you’ve recorded a 30” B-Grade at 733 and a 28” A-Grade at 738 is extremely useful and helps bracket #730 much more tightly than I could on my own. I also appreciate the reference to your Double Gun Journal article—I’ll be sure to track that down. As you noted, there are no special marks on the flats or watertable, but the guns remains a proud "five-way" survivor. Thanks again for helping me document this piece of history.

I’m grateful for the knowledge shared here. This is exactly why I reached out to the community.

[Upland Hunter]

Clear photographs and description in the original post. Excellent detailed replies. Great to know a database is being compiled for the Philadelphia survivors, such as the quality one shown, in the absence of the original individual records.

[Researcher]

The earliest A.H. Fox Gun Co. magazine ad I've found is in the October 7, 1905, issue of Sporting Life --

Note in the "Not connected with Phila. Arms Co." in lower left corner of the ad.

Several times during 1906 we see ads like this from the March 17, 1906, Sporting Life --

or this --