try:proofhouse.com/colt/index.html
Try proofhouse.com
Published books.
In books that have been published on the company.
"Ithaca Featherlight Repeaters" by Walter Claude Snyder
proofhouse.com
Does not exist AFAIK. You will have to call Colt
There are no published date guides, you can contact kinght directly to find out dates of manufacture. Address in the related links below.
Buy a copy of the Standard Catalog of Smith and Wesson by Supica and Nahas.
You should be able to contact Winchester and see if you may find the year of production by serial number thru there archives.If not I do have the manufacture dates of the first 250,000 made.You will need to have your serial number available to research the date of manufacture.
There is a web site called "marlin manufacture dates", but it will only give you the year of manufacture, not an actual month and day. Seeings as you already know that it is an 1883 rifle, then you probably know as much as you are going to find out about the rifle.
If information has been published on the company, buy the book(s). Try Proofhouse.com.
sorry- no public database, and the company is closed.