]The .38 Special was designed and produced in 1898 to be a higher velocity round, with better penetration properties than the .38 Long Colt that was in Government Service in the Philippines during the Spanish–American War. The .38 Long Colt revolver round would not penetrate the shields of the insurgent Philippine Moro warriors, and the Government contracted with Smith & Wesson for a new revolver round. The .38 Special held a minimum of 21 grains of black powder, 3 grains more than the then-current .38 Long Colt, and muzzle velocity (with a 158 grain bullet) was 100–150 feet per second greater.
During the late 1920s, in response to demands for a more effective law-enforcement version of the cartridge, a new standard-velocity loading for the .38 Special was developed by Western Cartridge Company. This .38 Special variant, which incorporated a 200 grains round-nosed lead 'Lubaloy' bullet, and was then named the .38 Super Police. Remington-Peters also introduced a similar loading.
Testing revealed that the longer, heavier 200 grains .357-calibre bullet fired at low velocity tended to 'keyhole' or tumble upon impact, providing more shock effect against unprotected personnel. At the same time, authorities in Great Britain, who had decided to adopt the .38 caliber revolver as a replacement for their existing .455 service cartridge, also tested the same 200 grains bullet in the smaller .38 S&W cartridge. This cartridge was called the .38 S&W Super Police or the 38/200. Britain later adopted the 38/200 as its standard military handgun Air Force issue Smith & Wesson Model 15-4 in .38 Special
In 1930, Smith & Wesson introduced a large frame 38 Special revolver with a 5-inch barrel and fixed sights intended for police use, the Smith & Wesson 38/44 Heavy Duty. The following year, a new high-power loading called the .38 Special Hi-Speed with a 158 grains metal-tip bullet was developed for these revolvers in response to requests from law enforcement agencies for a handgun bullet that could penetrate auto bodies and body armor.
That same year, Colt Firearms announced that their Colt Official Police would also handle 'high-speed' .38 Special loadings. The 38/44 high-speed cartridge came in three bullet weights: 158 grains, 150 grains, and 110 grains, with either coated lead or steel jacket, metal-piercing bullets. The media attention gathered by the 38/44 and its ammunition eventually led Smith & Wesson to develop a completely new cartridge with a longer case length, in 1934. This was the .357 Magnum.
During World War II, some U.S. aircrew (primarily Navy and Marine Corps) were issued .38 Special S&W Victory revolvers as side-arms, for use in the event of a forced landing. In May 1943, a new .38 Special cartridge with a 158 grains, full-steel-jacketed, copper flash-coated bullet meeting the requirements of the Hague Convention was developed at Springfield Armory and adopted for the Smith & Wesson revolvers.
The new military .38 Special loading propelled its 158 grains bullet at a standard 850 ft/s from a 4-inch revolver barrel. During the war, many U.S. naval and Marine aircrew were also issued red-tipped 38 Special tracer ammunition using either a 120 or 158 gr bullet for emergency signaling purposes.