Hawes Firearms Co. imported firearms between the 1950s and late 1960s and into the early 1970s. They were a major American importer of European firearms during the late 1950s and 1960s and were the first importer of JP Sauer & Sohn firearms into America. JP Sauer & Sohn are the oldest firearms manufacturer still active in Germany, now known as Sig Sauer! Hawes contracted with manufacturer JP Sauer & Sohn in Germany, to produce a series of single action guns in several calibers known as their Marshall series.

These were mid range quality firearms made cheaply in Germany while the German market was undervalued, and sold on to Americans under an American brand. These were all centerfire. They also contracted with Italian manufacturer Dominelli, Grassi and Gazzola: carrying the mark DGG or GDG, contained in a circle or without the circle and RIGARMI.  They are likely to have imported guns from several other European manufacturers and sold them under the Hawes name to the American market.

Hawes SAA revolvers did not have a hammer block, and therefore often fired unintentionally if the chamber beneath the hammer was loaded and the hammer suffered an impact. They were sued for this lack of a safety feature many times, and stopped importing firearms into America as a result, shutting down in 1980.