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I have a modern 1874 Sharps ( C. Sharps ) chambered in .50 -3.25".  It's been waiting at the gunsmith's for several years to be reborn as a .45-2.4"

Chris.

Historically, the term "big 50" referred to the 50-90 Sharps and the borrowed rifle that Billy Dixon used the morning after the major action of the battle of Adobe Walls in 1874 during the Red River (Buffalo) war.  Quanah Parker was conferring with his Shaman Ishi Tani and several other braves when with a young buffalo skinner named Bat Masterson spotted for Dixon where walking the third shot up, he knocked an indian off of his horse at 1,538 yards beside Quanah Parker breaking the indians rib(s).  Senseing this was a bad omen Parker then withdrew leaving the buffalo hunters alone.  Most cases found at a recent archeological dig at the site were 44-77, 50-70, and 44 RF Henry.  Haveing visited the Adobe Walls site, I could better apreciate the feat.

I suspect that the very long 45 and 50 cal rounds were developed for Remington long range shooters.  This may also be the origin of the 44-90.

Dixon earned the Medal of Honor a couple of months later at the Buffalo Wallow fight as a contract scout for the Army.

James

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But as noted, Sharps didn't cut chambers for all of the rounds listed
A few years back on the Shiloh forum, there was a very long thread discussing Sharps chambers vs the rounds that were produced.  Kenny Wasserburger has a large reference library about Sharps and provide interesting facts of what and when and who

If the jpg is printed to 8 1/2 x 11 - the calibers are able to be identified better

Gentlemen,

Thank you all for your input, it was very informative. John Boy, the picture you show is the very same as that on my computer. I tried to post it but my Photoshop programme hasn't worked correctly for several weeks, and I couldn't reduce it enough in size to post it here. 

Joe, it's only recoil, you have to learn to live with it.  I started with a .22 LR and apart from a dozen or two shots from a .303 British SMLE my next gun was a .577 3 1/4" Express. Not advisable to shoot that from the prone or sitting bench rest.  A standing rest is the only way to shoot that rifle a lot without loosening all your teeth. 

Harry
 

Trying to stay positive, Frank. Will be testing loads in my newly re-bored Sharps tomorrow. 

Just remembered, have some pain pills stuck away in a drawer somewhere here.   

Have a Rand recoil pad on the way. Have a bunch of bubble wrap in the shop, hmmmm.......

         Joe.

I seem to recall that Win chambered some of those oversize "sharps" cartridges in the '85 ss.   I think Campbell discusses them in his 2 vol. set on the 1885 win. 
  My admittedly patchy memory is that it was part of their English office's not-too-successful effort to make a inroad into the english tropical hunting market. So they made a few in the big-bore high-capacity cartridges and tried to capitalize on the "Sharps" name and reputation.

Wasn't "big 50" also used by the commercial buffalo hunters to describe the 50 gvmt cartridge in the "trapdoors";  "trapdoors"  probably being the most common single shot in that area at that time?