Rare 1873 Springfield
Trapdoor carbine fired in the historic battle which brought
$96,000.
Battle of
Little Bighorn Items Top Julia Firearms Auction
FAIRFIELD, ME. - In an October firearms auction conducted by
James D. Julia - one that grossed nearly $1.7 million - a Custer
battlefield specimen forensically proven to have been fired at
the Battle of Little Bighorn was the top lot. The rare 1873
Springfield Trapdoor Carbine came on the block with a dark, "as
found" patina and documentation. The Springfield was also
believed to have been used at the Battle of the Rosebud eight
days prior to Little Bighorn, but was one of only fifteen
carbines forensically identified with the Custer Battlefield and
one of five in private hands. It was offered with a colorful
print of a painting by Custer historian Ralph Heinz and a book
entitled Archaeological Insights into the Custer
Battlefield and fetched $96,000.
Also pertaining to the Little Bighorn battlefield and offered at
the sale was a Sioux engraved pictograph excavated from Sitting
Bull's camp on the Little Bighorn River. This pictograph,
executed on a flattened brass plate by Sioux warrior, depicted
mounted braves routing Cook's U.S. Calvary at the Battle of the
Rosebud. It is the only known Indian pictograph on metal,
according to the firm, and brought $37,375.
The gallery's sale last spring of a Model 1866 Winchester Saddle
Ring Carbine hit a world record for an historical American
firearm at auction when it went out at $684,500. This Winchester,
together with other Little Bighorn relics sold by the firm in its
last four auctions, now total over $1,000,000. As a result,
consignors have come forth with an array of guns, including some
associated with the historic battle that marked the turning point
in the struggle for the American West.
Other lots offered in this most recent sale included a Colt Army
revolver used by Pvt. Joseph N. Hawkins of Company D of Custer's
7th Michigan Calvary, which brought $20,700. The Colt was
documented and was believed to have been used by Private Hawkins
at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863. There Custer shouted
his famous phrase, "Come on You Wolverines!" Private Hawkins died
within weeks of that battle after contracting typhoid fever but
the Colt revolver, serial #77460, remained in service and was
sent West with the 7th Michigan Calvary.
Also recovered from the Battle of Little Bighorn area was an 1873
Trap Door Springfield Carbine that was pulled from the Little
Bighorn River in 1954. The original piece came on the block with
no estimate, relic condition, and sold for $7,475, while a
well-documented lot of cartridge casings from the Reno battle
site brought $4,600. A Remington revolver excavated from Rosebud
Creek went out at $20,700. For those with an interest in the War
of 1812 and the Mexican Wars, an ivory presentation cane given to
General Winfield Scott reached $10,925.
A rare Seventeenth Century rifle made by the Maucher family of
Schwabisch Gmund, Germany, is believed to be the fourth in a
series of firearms made by the father and son of this family of
carvers. The Maucher Wheelock rifle, once in the collection of
the late William Simon, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, came to
the block in original condition and sold for $51,750.
The late Oliver Messenger's collection included some early
firearms like the Dublin Castle Second Model Brown Bess Flintlock
Musket with regimental markings, dating to the American
Revolution, which sold for $16,387. This collection also included
a Harper's Ferry 1806 Flintlock pistol, which brought $4,600, and
a rare, Seventeenth Century American Flintlock pistol with a
six-inch round barrel, which realized $4,025.
In addition to firearms and weapons such as a 13-inch Confederate
Bowie knife and tin scabbard ($3,450), and a 14-inch Confederate
"D" Guard-type fighting knife ($2,875), Messenger also collected
objects that conveyed the human atmosphere of the Civil War
period. A painted American military infantry regimental eagle
drum, with the label "Manufactured by A. Rogers Flushing, L.I."
and a hand-written date of 1863, sold for $11,500.
Rifle made by the Maucher family of Germany, $51,750.
Three Civil War-era percussion revolvers sold for $862, and two
Civil War-era swords in need of a a good cleaning were a nice buy
at $690. Some of the best Civil War lots drew on a portion of the
collection of the late Hank Truslow: A Rogers & Spence Civil
War percussion revolver with full inspection marks and provenance
sold for $5,175; an unfired Allen & Wheelock Army revolver
(caliber .44) including a provenance card from the Sam Smith
Collection brought $6,900; and a Remington New model Navy
revolver garnered $7,475.
The Truslow Collection included a cased engraved presentation
Colt revolver with the backstrap engraved, "Saml. G. Colt Esqr. /
Compliments of / Col Colt," which sold for $19,550, and a cased
London Colt Navy revolver with canteen shoulder stock, which
featured all matching serial numbers (#42962) and reached
$10,350. An engraved Colt with a four-inch octagonal barrel came
with accessories and exceeded the estimated $¾,000 at $8,050. A
cased Model 7 Colt Root revolver brought $4,025, while a cased
engraved London Brevette exhibition revolver dating to the
Crystal Palace Exhibition in 1851 sold for $2,875.
An extremely rare Remington Second Model Beals revolver in the
original cardboard box brought $9,775, while a Blunt & Syms
Percussion Pepper Box in a unique original box went out at
$6,900. A Moore Titfire revolver doubled the estimate at $4,600,
and a Hammond Bulldog pistol shot through the $1,5/2,500 estimate
to reach $3,450. Both included the original box.
The sale also offered two Henry rifles. A Model 1860 King's
Improvement Model (Ser. 3555) featured a 24 inch octagonal
barrel, from the Messenger Collection, sold for $15,525. A few
minutes later, another Henry from the Messenger Collection (Ser.
7671) brought $11,500. Early rifles included an unused Hall Model
1819 breech-loading rifle ($4,772), a Club Butt Flintlock fowling
piece by J. Wright ($4,600), and a Harper's Ferry 1795 musket
from the Messenger Collection ($4,600).
The late Roland "Ronnie" Wiggins of Philadelphia, Penn.,
collected with an accent on Civil War and Navy firearms. A
Sharp's New Model 1859 Army/Navy musket sold for $3,450. A
selection of Colt Slide Action Magazine rifles included an 1887
piece featuring a 28 inch barrel, which brought $8,050, and
Winchester collectors vied for a nice Model 1873 Lever Action
musket, which reached $5,750, and a custom grade Model 21
double-barrel shotgun, which rang up $6,325.
A 1911 Colt commercial pistol belonging to the notorious
bootlegger and gangster, Dutch Schultz, in good condition with
sharp checkering and over 90 percent of the original blue, soared
to a final price of $15,525. A four-inch Colt Single Action
pistol in unfired condition that had been issued to actor James
Cagney in 1971 brought $1,380.
A rare Morse centerfire alteration of M1816 Springfield musket
sold for $20,700. This was the first breech loading U.S.
cartridge log arm ever produced and only 54 were known to have
been completed at the Springfield Armor. A number of large framed
Smith & Wesson's were also sold, many from the Posner
Collection of California. A First Model America S.A. went out at
$5,462, and a Presentation LeFever double rifle (Cal. 50-110),
engraved "Built expressly for Alfred Ames Howlett" (president of
LeFever Firearms), sold for $8,050.
Swords included a Louis and Bissonait Confederate presentation
piece taking top honors at $23,000. A large iron-mounted Potter
Saber dating to the American Revolution reached $11,500. A rare
College Hill or B. Douglas Confederate sword garnered $5,750; and
a high-grade Ames Militia Officer's sword brought $3,450.
Prices quoted include a buyers premium.
