Guns of the Great Shooters from Buffalo Bill's Wild West

Reunions with old friends can be a time filled with nostalgia, laughs, and more than a few old yarns to tell. In our business, the phrase, "if this old gun could talk," is a desire commonly expressed. Firearms with rich histories find their way through our doors on a regular basis, and I've had questions on more than one occasion that I would've like to have posed to one or two of them as they passed through our hallways as part of their grand journey. The grouping of items in this article is no exception. The reunion of these trusty arms would undoubtedly result in a whirlwind of stories, knowing nods, and a list of accomplishments that require no exaggeration in their retelling. These arms all have ties to members of Buffalo Bill's Wild West show, and even the ol' scout himself, William F. Cody. Their backgrounds are as varied as the people they belong to, but time and circumstance have brought them back together at Rock Island Auction Company's 2016 September Premiere Firearms Auction for one last reunion. If only they could talk.

Buffalo Bill

Lot 1036: Historic and Well Documented John Ulrich Signed Factory Engraved Deluxe Winchester Model 1873 Lever Action Short Rifle with Factory Exhibition Special Order Finish and Features Presented by Buffalo Bill (William F. Cody) to Robbie Campbell Adams Twelve Year Old Son of Wild West Show Pamphlets Publisher for the Wild West Shows Performance at Madison Square Garden

In this case, the headline for our item is so long it almost tells the story itself. Medal of Honor recipient William F. Cody began his own wild west show in 1883, which toured annually in the United States and Europe. He had already earned a solid reputation as a prolific bison hunter, as well as a scout and Indian fighter in the Army, and his reputation continued to grow. However, it was an encounter with author Captain Edward Zane Carroll Judson that began Buffalo Bill's road to stardom. Capt. Judson often wrote under many pseudonyms, but his best known was Ned Buntline. It was a combination of Buntline's dime novels about Buffalo Bill's adventures, as well as Cody's proficiency he displayed in front of top men, such as General Sheridan, Grand Duke Alexis of Russia, and New York Herald publisher James Gordon Bennett, that resulted his star's continued rise.

In that first year, Buffalo Bill's Wild West was such a popular attraction that it was able to take its act indoors to the first iteration of Madison Square Garden, built in 1879. It had no roof since P.T. Barnum converted it into an open-air "Great Roman Hippodrome" in 1873. It was a large oval-shaped arena where he presented circuses (naturally) and other forms of entertainment and performance. It was a fantastic space that traded hands several times, and each owner had a new vision for what the space should offer: events catering to high brow clientele, illegal boxing matches, indoor track and field, dog shows, concerts, religious revivals, and one of the first indoor ice rinks in the nation. Most importantly, people knew of the venue and its attractions. The boxing matches had long drawn crowds over the venue's capacity, and an elephant purchased by P.T. Barnum from the London Zoo in 1881 readily drew enough onlookers to earn back its purchase price of $10,000. So when Buffalo Bill took his show there in 1883, he had no trouble finding crowds willing to fill its seats. Having names such as James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok, Buck Taylor, Captain Adam Bogartus, Doc Carver, and Texas Jack Omohundro on his payroll couldn't hurt either. it was a time of transition for Buffalo Bill from small exhibitions and reenactment performer to an arena-filling showman and master entertainer.

He no doubt gave partial credit for the fine attendance to the man producing the publicity pamphlets for his shows at Madison Square Garden. This same man was also a partner in the Beadle and Adams publishing house, well known for producing the "yellow-back" dime novels of the day. Not to be confused with the publisher Street & Smith, also located in New York, that had published "The Buffalo Bill Stories" which led to a large part of his fame. To thank Mr. Adams for his support in several areas, Buffalo Bill presented this Winchester Model 1873 to his son 12-year old Robbie Campbell Adams. Rock Island Auction President Kevin Hogan says it best, "This is akin to receiving Michael Jordan's sneakers." It was a prized gift from one of the finest performers of the day.

The gun is a remarkable presentation grade gun with a grocery list of special order features:

- Gold plated frame, tip, and buttplate
- Nickel finish
- Ulrich engraved
- checkered, fancy walnut stocks
- short rifle
- shotgun butt
- pistol grip

On the right side of the frame is a panel scene depicting a hunter peering out from behind a tree to shoot a bull elk. The left side also bears masterfully done floral scrollwork along with the inscription that reads, "Presented by Buffalo Bill (W. F. Cody) to Robbie Campbell Adams ~1883~"

Besides being lavished with presentation grade features, the gun was clearly chosen for the boy to be able to use it if he so chose.  It's a short rifle for easier handling by a lad, it is chambered in the relatively mild yet still effective 32 WCF, and the 22-inch barrel would also not have been unwieldy for a 12-year old. Obviously, the gun never saw the typical boyhood use and it remains in very fine condition.

This remarkable rifle's provenance is extensively documented, as it has been in the public eye for quite some time, appearing in numerous books and magazines. Rock Island Auction Company is proud to offer this rifle to the public, taking this oft dreamt-about gun and making the possibility of owning it a reality.

Frank Butler and Annie Oakley

Lot 1770: Documented Historic Factory Engraved Remington Model 12-B Gallery Special Model Slide Action Rifle Sold to Frank Butler Husband of Famed Exhibition Shooter Annie Oakley

Phoebe Ann Moses, better known as Annie Oakley, is a woman that needs no introduction to most Americans, let alone those interested in shooting. However, much fewer folks know about her husband, Frank Butler, or the story of how they met. First things first, there is much debate over the exact significant dates of the young couple. That in mind, precise dates will be avoided as much as possible in an effort to stick to the story.

Frank Butler was a dog trainer and exhibition shooter who, like many others, toured the country taking on challengers in shooting competitions for money, bragging rights, and an increase in reputation. On one of those trips he placed a $100 wager with Jack Frost (yes, that's his real name) who owned a Cincinnati hotel. Butler stated that he could best any local who dared to challenge him. When a challenger was found and the match was set, imagine Butler's surprise when out from the crowd walked a young lady. "The last thing Butler expected was a five-foot-tall... girl named Annie," recalled Frost. As was customary at the time, they would shoot live birds, and both sides agreed to a best-of-25 contest. Frank Butler lost that contest by a single bird, but both lives would be changed forever. Frank had fallen for the then-shy young lady, while Annie seemed more interested in his French poodle named George. Frank courted Annie by sending her postcards and letters signed by George. The two would be wed within a year.

It was 1885 when Annie Oakley and her husband, Mr. Frank Butler, became part of Buffalo Bill's Wild West. Annie's stature earned her the nickname "Little Sure Shot" in  Cody's publicity flyers and ads, a name given to her by Lakota leader Sitting Bull, himself a participant in the early years of Buffalo Bill's Wild West. There is no need to recount her numerous feats and popularity. However, she is an intriguing personality, known for fierce independence, an advocate for suffrage (as was William Cody), as well as a kind heart, a gentle word, a strong desire to maintain her sterling reputation, and to always portray herself as a lady despite her involvement in what was then a very masculine sport.

The first time Annie and Frank tried to settle down was in 1901, an attempt to alleviate Annie's terrible back pain suffered during a train accident, but such joie de vivre could not be tamed for long. Defeating an early diagnosis of paralysis after five spinal operations, Annie left the Buffalo Bill show in 1902 and began a less travel-intensive career in stage acting. She would return again to another show in 1911, "The Young Buffalo Show," while consecutively serving as a representative for Union Metallic Cartridge Co. Annie never lost a step as she aged, with one reporter quoted as saying, "Annie Oakley looks as though she had discovered the secret that Ponce De Leon sought so long in vain...She is as bright and alert, as when I saw her a slip of a girl with long braids 25 years ago when I was a kid." However, it didn't last long and the couple "retired" once again in 1912, even though Annie toured sporadically with another show.

For the most part, the Butlers were finished with life as performers (until Annie attempted a comeback in 1922). Perhaps as a retirement gift for his wife, Frank purchased this Remington Model 12-B on February 28, 1912. Designed by J.D. Pedersen, the model had been introduced three years prior and Annie would have already been familiar with it. Later she became quite prolific with the model using it to shoot apples off of the head of their beloved dog, Dave, and another Model 12 of Annie's (SN 600125) still resides in the Buffalo Bill Museum in Cody, Wyoming.

The example in Cody, while in excellent condition, is relatively plain compared to the Model 12-B currently offered by Rock Island Auction Company. The example purchased by Frank Butler has a highly grained, fancy stock, checkered forearm, half octagon-half round barrel, a folding peep sight, and is finely factory engraved with panel scenes of rabbits and squirrels.

The rifle may have been a perfect retirement gift for Annie, but it didn't help her desire to settle down. Annie often gave pointers on shooting to those around her, be it at trapshooting tournaments, impromptu exhibitions, or even fellow guests at the Caroline Hotel of Pinehurst, NC. "The lessons [at the hotel] began by accident when the shooting star had overheard a wealthy New Yorker comment to another in the hotel's ballroom, 'My, how I wish I were a man so that I could shoot.' Oakley replied, 'Your sex does not prevent you from learning to shoot.'"  It is documented in numerous sources that her skills had not faded in the slightest even into her fifties and sixties. In 1922, in a shooting contest in Pinehurst, the 62-year old hit 100 clays in a row at 16 yards. Unfortunately, her sixties was as long as Annie would live. She passed on November 3, 1926, at the age of 66, of what the doctor termed "pernicious anemia." Frank Butler went into intense mourning and refused to eat. He followed Annie in death 18 days later.

This is not only an incredible rifle with numerous special order features, but it remains an incredible piece of memorabilia tied to arguably the greatest American exhibition shooter from the sport's Golden Age. Opportunities like this may never arise again, and any collector or museum would be extremely fortunate to acquire this little rifle.

Buck Taylor

This remarkable Colt Single Auction Army owned by Buck Taylor, the true "King of the Cowboys" has already been covered in depth in a previous article. If you'd like to find out more about this incredible cowpuncher, his history with Buffalo Bill's Wild West, and how the important provenance of this beautiful revolver was almost lost forever to history, please read our story "Buck Taylor: The True King of the Cowboys."

Memorabilia of William F. Cody

There is also a fascinating lot in this auction that contains two items with intimate ties to Buffalo Bill.  Frankly, with all the items shown above, also with ties to the man, it could not have arrived at a better time. These items were consigned to us by someone who purchased them from an estate sale 25 years ago. The sale was being held by the niece of a man who had worked for Cody in Wheaton, Illinois. With the birthplace of Buffalo Bill a short drive away from Rock Island Auction Company, it is not surprising to hear of artifacts of the man in nearby areas. The first item is a briefcase with his name clearly printed on the closing flap. It is likely no coincidence at all that the case is designed to resemble a saddle bag. The second item is a tri-fold mirror that, according to its inscription, was a Christmas gift from Cody to "my darling wife Louisa."

Both items are a simple reminder of the wonderfully ordinary life of a man more known for his spectacle, crowds, and showmanship. They would be welcome in any accomplished collection of the man or his storied show.

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These marvelous items revolving around the America legend that is Buffalo Bill's Wild West, are only the beginning of the historic and presentation grade items available in the 2016 September Premiere Firearms Auction. With items from celebrated figures such as President Teddy Roosevelt, to infamous Nazi leaders, the selection has never been better. Two juggernaut groupings among several other accomplished collections lead the way, but they are accompanied by hundreds of single gun consignments from around the country. They all combine to make a sale that collectors will be talking about for years to come. Visit www.rockislandauction.com today to browse the items and see for yourself.




-Written by Joel R. Kolander






SOURCES:

http://www.annieoakleycenterfoundation.com/faq.html

https://centerofthewest.org/explore/buffalo-bill/research/annie-oakley/

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/primary-resources/oakley-new-york/

Sorg, Eric V. "Annie Oakley." Wild West Feb. 2001: n. pag. Historynet.com. Web.

Buck Taylor: The True King of the Cowboys

If you run a quick online search for "King of the Cowboys" the results are packed with websites featuring Roy Rogers. This is helped, of course, by a film that Rogers made entitled "King of the Cowboys." Capitalizing on World War II, the 1943 film features saboteurs blowing up government warehouses in the United States, with Roy and some associates hot on their trail to foil them. Unfortunately, Rogers was not the first to bear this royal moniker. While Roy is worthy of a lot of praise, he hadn't even been born yet by the time the original King of the Cowboys was living the winter years of his life. That man was William Levi "Buck" Taylor, a Texas-born, real live ridin' ropin' cowpuncher who grew up in the life, and whose talents were so prodigious they pushed him to the very heights of stardom and helped forever change how the public would perceive the very word "cowboy."

Buck Taylor, as he is better known to history, was born in a small east Texas town called Fredericksburgh, located in Gillespie County, in 1857. They moved around Texas some, and his father fought several times to protect his homeland. William Cody in his book "Buffalo Bill's Wild West" wrote that Taylor's family "fought for its [Texas] independence with Crockett and Col Travis at the Alamo, where a grandfather and uncle fell" and "under Sam Houston at San Jacinto..." By the time Buck was born, only he, his father, and a younger brother were the sole surviving males of the family. He was still a child when his dad joined the newly-formed Texas Cavalry and died in one of its early engagements in the Civil War, almost certainly in 1863. Two years later Buck endured the worst tragedy possible for a child, when he was orphaned after losing his mother as well. He then fell under the protective wing of an uncle who owned a large ranch on the rolling Texas plains.

There Buck grew up in the hard life of a cowpuncher. He learned the tricks, the trades, the hard work, all the while growing stronger and more accomplished. Millions of boys growing up decades later would have given almost anything to find themselves in the exact position in which Taylor was thriving. He could ride like the wind, throw a lasso with uncanny precision, understood how to manage a herd, could bust nearly any bronco, and possessed what Cody describes as "general cow-sense." That may sound like a funny word, but it is no small compliment. Buck himself is quoted as saying,

"I was dependent on myself at an age when ordinary children are still in the nursery... There was only one thing to do; which was to be a cowpuncher... By the time I was 14 I was able to ride and rope with some of the best of them and was known around our section as the best cowpuncher of my age that had ever been seen."

He would soon take supervisory roles such as "boss of the outfit" and lead herds along the Chisholm Trail with his brother James Baxter "Bax" Taylor, to the cattle yards and slaughterhouses up north. Those trips would also take him to Nebraska where his skills and "remarkable dexterity earned the attention of Major [Frank] North and Buffalo Bill and they secured his services for several seasons on their ranch by the Dismal River." Cody Ranch (also referred to as "Scout's Rest Ranch") is located about 65 miles north of North Platte and was founded in 1877 when Cody reached out to Major North, then the leader of the Pawneee Scouts for the U.S. Army. The scouts were disbanded that year and Cody proposed a partnership with Frank North and his brother Luther to become cattlemen. Cody's first encounter with the Taylor brothers was when they brought a herd up the trail for Luther, who swore up and down that Bax, not Buck, was the best bronco buster he had ever encountered. Turns out good horsemanship ran in the family. Even their older sister Mary is written about in a local newspaper as apt to "ride the worst bronco, or rope the most refracting old sow in the county." Buck continued to impress Cody with "his feats of strength, easily throwing a steer by the horns or tail, lassoing and tying single-handed," and "his mastery of wild horses," The last of which earned him his nickname, "Buck." It was on the Cody Ranch he also learned to read and write and earned a infamous reputation to down large amounts of biscuits. Once having ate 24 in one sitting, he was enduring some ribbing by his mess mates before finally being sufficiently annoyed and threatening to eat 24 more.

When the Buffalo Bill Wild West show opened on May 19, 1883, Buck was a shoe-in to appear in the show. He had already been auditioning for Cody for several years by way of his performance, but his talents and skills on the range were only part of his appeal. Buck Taylor stood between 6' 3" and 6' 5" depending on what source you read, and was an imposing figure when the average cowboy stood but a scant 5' 8". In addition to skills he had honed nearly his entire life, Taylor was well known to pick up his hat off the ground at a full gallop. If that wasn't enough to impress the crowd, he would often follow it up by retrieving his handkerchief or glove in the same manner. Handsome and with long, curly hair, Buck played a perfect lead in Buffalo Bill's staged recreation of The Battle of Little Big Horn. Buck was also well-liked by his colleagues and those he met. He had a personality that Cody describes as "...a fine representative of his class. Amiable as a child," features Cody never failed to publicize, billing him as the "King of the Cowboys." It was this combination of talent, good looks, and a kind nature that set the stage for the Buffalo Bill Wild West show to rewrite history.

At that point in American history, cowboys were viewed quite differently than they are today. They were considered dirty, gritty, unmannered, uncultured, dangerous, hard men who lived hard lives in the dust, mud and rain with livestock. Even worse, they were sometimes synonymous with outlaws. In his 1881 message to Congress, President Chester Arthur describes a band of "armed desperadoes known as 'cowboys," as a violent faction disturbing the peace in the Arizona Territory. There were some writers who were making heroes of scouts and cavalry men at that time, but the cowboy remained the depraved prairie drifter. Period author Frederick Whittaker even went so far as to write damning articles about cowboys depicting them as unrefined, ruffians and barbarians, violent to all they encountered.

Thankfully, Cody's show was already doing its part to counter the unfavorable image of the cowboy. The Staten Island venue for Buffalo Bill's Wild West show held 35,000 souls with two performances a day. In later years, it would also play prominently outside the 1893 Columbian Exposition (after being denied a place inside the show) on the Midway where he would skim from the over 26 million visitors the World's Fair would attract during its six month run. Cody, ever the marketer, had seen his own stories enjoy immense popularity. What if he took the new-found popularity of the cowboys in his show and gave the people what they wanted? He had already increased their role in his shows with positive results, so why not take the next step? That role fell to the most likely choice: Buck Taylor.

In 1887 Cody's promoter and friend Prentiss Ingraham, who had produced a nearly ceaseless stream of stories on Buffalo Bill, published the first of several dime novels about Buck which was grandly entitled Buck Taylor, King of the Cowboys, or, the Raiders and the Rangers: A Story of the Wild and Thrilling Life of William L Taylor. He would go on to write six more on the King of the Cowboys, and 1887 was arguably the peak of Taylor's career. His dime novel had been released and he was currently on tour with the Wild West show in Europe, performing in front of various heads of state and even royalty. In fact, Queen Victoria herself came to enjoy a show with the public during her Jubilee of that year. It marked the first time she had attended a show in public since the death of Prince Albert twenty-five years earlier. Author and historian R. L. Wilson adds, "Further, the Queen paid homage to the American flag during the performance, the first time a British sovereign had done so since the beginning of the Republic." Unfortunately, Buck Taylor broke a leg or hip during a performance that year, allegedly during a quadrille when a horse collided with his leg while on horseback. The popularity of the show and of Taylor was so great that his recovery was frequently covered in the local newspapers.

Buck Taylor shown at far right. Photo copyright to the Buffalo Bill Museum & Grave

If this were a more tragic story, that might be the end of Buck's career, but it would take more than a busted leg to stop a real cowboy. He would reappear in the show and stayed with it until about 1890 when he would leave for reasons that appear to be undocumented to history. Whatever his reasons, Taylor moved to Wyoming, and worked on a ranch with his brother Bax before the two broke off and started one of their own in the town of Rongis near Long Creek. Even there he never stepped completely away from show business, serving as the superintendent for Denver's Cowboy Tournament and Wild West in 1890. In an unusual twist to any biography, while living in Rongis his death was incorrectly reported by the Ft. Worth Gazette on March 23, 1892. It was said he had been shot in a fight and that two other men had been stabbed, none of which was true. What was truly newsworthy that year was that Buck had started appearing in shows again.  He also found some time to meet a young lady that would eventually become his wife. On September 12, 1893 Buck married Emely Reynolds Allibone Laugton in Carbon, WY.

One of the shows Buck joined was the Wyoming Wild West, a curious name for a show located on the East Coast. The show had a nasty habit of allowing shell-game operators to follow their show and operate outside of it which caused no shortage of problems. In New Jersey swindled college students disrupted and eventually broke up the show. "Fire crackers and other fireworks were thrown under the orator's stand just as Buck was to make his appearance. The buffalo was set loose, steers were freed. Spectators fled the tent." Similar complaints arose from a show in Maine, and in Quebec the show folded so fast that many of the Native Americans working the show were left behind, causing a international question of who was going to pay to get them back home.

Little is known of any other shows, but they must not have been up to snuff for Buck because by 1894 he had started his own western show. Unfortunately, "Buck Taylor's Wild West" was one of no fewer than 242 other western shows that would ultimately attempt to replicate the success of Cody's legendary show. Buck's foray into the business would be a flop, and by 1897 he found himself briefly working in California before moving to Valley Forge, Pennsylvania to assume duties as the superintendent  at the Betzwood Stock Farm. That same year, Buck's brother Baxter was killed when he was thrown from a wagon at their ranch in Rongis. For a man with little remaining family and who had partnered with his brother so frequently, the news must have been a tremendous blow.

The rest of Buck's life was surprisingly quiet, given how storied and exciting it had been to that point. The sole other occurrence in Buck's life that is documented is that he had his identity stolen by an impostor named Barry F. Tatum. A former actor, Tatum pretended to be Buck to the point where he gave a political speech endorsing Teddy Roosevelt, and even made some money by endorsing a 75 proof snake oil medicine called Peruna that claimed to help "catarrh, coughs, influenza, la grippe." Peruna withdrew Tatum's endorsements after he died in 1900 from tuberculosis. Of course, Tatum's death resulted in yet another false death report for the real Buck Taylor. In hindsight, all the identify theft and impersonation Buck endured in life seems an eerie foreshadowing of that which he would endure even after his death, thanks to the number of performers who not only assumed the title of "King of the Cowboys" but even used the Buck Taylor name for their own gains.

Buck Taylor would not pass away for another 24 years at 67 years of age. He died in Downington, Pennsylvania, still living on a ranch, albeit far from the American West he loved so dearly. While never taking part in the cowboy's rise to fame in the movies, Buck was one of the earliest faces of cowboys that the public could admire and embrace as a hero. He was the right man who came along at the right time. Hopefully he took some sort of personal satisfaction in that, though there is no way he could have anticipated the heights the Western genre would finally attain.

The Revolver

In September 2016, Rock Island Auction Company will be offering a Colt Single Action Army that has never left the descendants of Buck Taylor. The legendary cowboy acquired this revolver when he was 39-years of age. That puts it shipping date in 1896 - after his most colorful days in the western shows, but while he still had plenty of ranching and work to do.

The Colt letter for this beautiful sixgun confirms this shipment date and lists its original configuration, which it retains to this day: nickel plated, 5 1/2 in. barrel, and firing .45 caliber hunks of lead. While a true cowboy in every sense of the word, the flashy nature of the revolver likely appealed to Buck thanks to his time spent in the limelight. Judging by the condition of the revolver, it is likely not one that spent a lot of time bouncing around in a holster, but one that he treasured and saved for when the occasion called for some glitz.

Lot 3078: Documented Historic First Generation Colt Single Action Army Revolver Owned by the "King of the Cowboys" and Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Performer Buck Taylor

The provenance of this gun was nearly lost forever. When Buck passed away in 1924, this Single Action Army came into the possession of his niece, Francis Taylor Hoffmeister, who was given the gun at Buck's funeral as part of her inheritance. She clearly was familiar with her famous uncle because she had kept many newspaper clippings about Buck's life events. Whether the two had any personal relationship is unknown. Francis Taylor had a twin sister, Ruth, who passed in 1926. When Francis passed away in 1984, just a year short of becoming a centenarian, the gun was not passed down her family, but down her twin sister's. Ruth's granddaughter has retained the pistol to this day. Francis was the last remaining relative who knew of the gun's remarkable provenance.  Had she not relayed this history to her grandniece, this might just be any other high condition Colt in our auction, its story permanently erased from memory.


History buffs and any number of knowledgeable Western enthusiasts owe these two ladies a debt for preserving the remarkable provenance behind this piece of irreplaceable Americana. The only other firearm in existence tied directly to Buck currently resides in the Autry Museum of the American West. The revolver at RIAC represents a once-in-a-lifetime chance to own a classic piece of a bygone era and a connection to a man who forever changed the reputation of the American cowboy. It will be auctioned in Rock Island Auction Company's 2016 September Premiere Auction held September 9 - 11.

- Written by Joel R. Kolander







SOURCES:

Harris, Charles W., and Buck Rainey. The Cowboy: Six-Shooters, Songs, and Sex. Norman: U of Oklahoma, 1976. Print.
http://codyarchive.org/memorabilia/wfc.prog.1884.html

http://www.wyomingtalesandtrails.com/cody4taylor.html

Murdoch, David Hamilton. The American West: The Invention of a Myth. N.p.: U of Nevada, 2001. Print.

Slatta, Richard W. The Cowboy Encyclopedia. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 1994. Print.

The Self-Made Cattle Baron

If there is one man that better symbolizes the American West and the American Dream simultaneously than A. B. Robertson, I have yet to read about them. From rags to riches, this man learned the ways of the cowboy before blazing a trail in Texas history as one of the preeminent cattlemen of the era. Yes, "Sug" Robertson, as he is more commonly called, lead a charmed and exciting life, but it didn't begin that way.

A. B. "Sug" Robertson

A.B. (Andrew Briggs) was born on January 14, 1855 as the sixth of eight children.  He was known to
his friends and family as "Sug" because as an infant that had yet to cut any teeth, he allegedly bore a close resemblance to a superannuated country doctor also lacking his pearly whites known as "Dr. Sug." His father, also named A.B., was a doctor who moved the family frequently, leaving A. B's birthplace of Indiana for Mississippi and eventually Arkansas just prior to the Civil War. A native Virginian, Dr. A.B. enlisted in 1863 as a Confederate surgeon in that great conflict.  Arkansas in the early 1860's saw a great deal of chaos as a slow-moving Union Army crossed the state foraging and requisitioning supplies along the way. A channel of devastation lay behind them that quickly filled with bushwackers, bandits, and citizens reeling from the total war policy implemented by the Union troops. In a time the state was already seeing a mass exodus of citizens, Dr. A. B. sent word to have his family moved to live with relatives in Texas until his return. Leaving their home yet again, the family traveled southwest in a covered spring wagon to Hood County, TX on the Brazos River.

The war would end two years later, and accounts vary on the fate of Dr. A. B. Some have him returning home and continuing his practice after the war before moving to Louisiana.  However, more reliable sources (and genealogical records) point to him never returning home from the Civil War. His family had not received word from him from several years, nor did they receive any notification that he had died in service. It was some time before Dr. A. B. would surface in Louisiana with a new wife and family.

Regardless of what happened to A.B. Sr, it still leaves Sug in Texas at the tender age of 10 by the end of the Civil War. Thousands of returning and displaced soldiers flowed into Texas and brought about the birth of the cattle industry in the state. The demand for beef had increased back East thanks to a growing economy - courtesy of an Industrial boom and the beginning of a huge influx of immigrants that would continue through the turn of the century. Until it busted in the 1880s cattle was king and it gave rise to much of the romantic imagery we have today of cowboys, cattle drives, and life on the prairie. Sug was at the heart of it when it all started.

He took his first job in 1865 as a cowhand for R.K. Wylie at a wage sources cite as anywhere from $7.50 to $10/month. He was given a cow pony and learned how to operate a ranch by seeing and doing it firsthand. The boy was a natural. Sug was no stranger to learning on his own volition. With only 6 months of school under his belt, he taught himself to read using newspapers by the light of the campfires, and practiced his writing on his own boots with only the ranch's bills of sale as models. It was a life that few grown men undertook, let alone a young man, but Sug was no ordinary boy and his life was full of adventure.

His aptitude was noticed quickly by Mr. Wylie and within a year Sug had been sent to neighboring Coleman county to assist in starting another ranch. With knowledge and skills that continued to grow, by 1873 at the age of 18, he was considered by many to be a "top hand." This reputation afforded him an opportunity to lead his own trail drive of 1,000 head from Coleman County up the Chisholm trail to Coffeyville, KS with a crew of eight men. The drive went off without a hitch and the young man's star continued to rise. Sources differ on the exact year, but give or take a year from his 18th birthday, Sug took his first step from cowhand to cattleman. He purchased a heard of 5,000 head of cattle from Wylie. The partnership lasted for five years before Sug would sell that ranch back to Wylie, and begin a long chain of acquisitions and sales, that by 1882 would result in the sale of the Robertson TX Ranch for $50,000. Just several years earlier he had married Emma Lenora Smith, and one can be certain that she was extremely pleased with her husband's business savvy.

The boldness he displayed in his business dealings were matched perhaps only by his exploits on the plains. As a hand, interactions with Native Americans were frequent, though his final  experiences with them date to 1875. One story states that he was out with an acquaintance hunting for bison. Now bison were an even larger problem than Native Americans for ranchers. While the Native Americans could steal horses and threaten lives, the bison could scatter an entire herd and destroy grazing lands for miles in any direction. Sug and his friend had hitched their horses in a creek bed, crept slowly up a ravine, and silently came within range of some bison grazing on a ridge. As they closed on their quarry, Sug looked back and saw five Native Americans beyond the creek bed riding on a beeline for their horses. Undetected, both the hunters rushed back to their mounts and charged the would-be horse thieves. The pursuit continued for two miles before the chased men dismounted their rides and escaped into a thicket. With that the two men took the newly riderless horses back to their ranch, found they had once belonged to their neighbors, and returned them.

Undoubtedly still stinging from their last experience, the Native Americans visited the ranch four or five days later and raided it of every last horse. In a risky and dangerous gamble, Sug and another hand set off on foot to track the band and recover their horses. It was only several miles before they encountered a pair of jaded horses that had been left behind. They snatched the unlikely opportunity, and now pursued the thieves on bare horseback. The culprits again eluded capture, but the two young men did come across five horses that had escaped and so led them back to the ranch. The bareback ride being quite uncomfortable, Sug had a mind to fix that situation as well. It wasn't long before the men and their regained horses came across a herd of bison. Sug dismounted, "hitched" his horse by standing on the end of a rope he had tied to it, and shot a bison. Right there the two skinned and dressed the beast and used its hide to improvise a saddle and saddle blanket that the two then used to return home.

Though perhaps both of those accounts pale in comparison to the way Sug dealt with cattle rustlers. White thieves were much more prevalent than the Native Americans, so in 1874 after Sug had purchased a herd of 3,000 at Horse Head Crossing of the Pecos, he quickly set in his mind to nip the problem in the bud. He set out on his own to confront the leader of the rustling ring that was the source of a headache for many a rancher in the territory. He would wait until nightfall to approach their camp, and the story is best recounted as such,

"Soon after arriving (at the ranch) he located the headquarters of the rustlers in a secluded spot in a bend of the Pecos River. Mounting his horse and armed with a rifle and revolver he rode into the camp (where) half a dozen of the ugliest men as one would meet in a year on the frontier, sprang to their feet and threw their rifles down on him."

He then dismounted his horse "with no haste whatsoever."

"Robertson was not long in making known the object of his call. He sat down on his haunches before the fire and delivered himself of two sentences:  'I'm telling you boys,' he said, 'that there'll be no mavericking of calves out of my herd. Anybody that cares to try, I'll guarantee will go to hell on a shutter, pronto.'

The astonished leader of the gang invited Robertson to stay the night and share some beef.  The invitation was accepted and in the morning when Robertson rode away he had a pledge that was never broken that his animals would be as safe as babes in cribs."

One may have questioned Sug's wisdom in such an action, but no one ever questioned his grit. Stories such as these surround the young man. He met John S. Chisholm in 1871, founder of the legendary Chisholm Trail, and once helped him prevent a disastrous stampede, forging a lifelong friendship. He has documented correspondence with Theodore Roosevelt.  By age 21 he was foreman of one of the largest ranches in Texas.  In 1882 he moved to Colorado City, and by 1889 he was the President of the bank there (and also a silent partner of the local saloon). Once there he continued to conduct business with cattle and shipping, with one source stating that, "within the last ten or twelve years has bought and shipped more cattle to Northern markets than any other man, in the same time, in Texas."

The move to Colorado City is far from the pinnacle of Robertson's career, in fact, it could be argued as the beginning of its next level. It was in that fine city that he met Mr. Winfield Scott of Fort Worth and the two became partners in many business ventures. Scott provided much of the capitol, especially in the earliest ventures, while Sug provided the knowledge and experience. Their first venture was a ranch in New Mexico renamed by them as the Hat Ranch due to its brand of a semicircle with a bar underneath it that closely resembled a bowler hat. It was 100,000 acres, employed nearly 100 men, spanned two states, and after several expansions and acquisitions, gave the Hat Ranch brand instant recognition in every significant cattle market in the country.

After the pair sold their interest in New Mexico, Sug bought 35,000 acres from the St. Louis Cattle Company in Yellow House Canyon. Known as the RH Ranch, Robertson again set his powers of reorganization to work, just as he had done at the Hat Ranch. He renamed it the "V" and stocked it with Hereford cattle, a breed he vigorously advocated. The ranch specialized in the breed and eventually the bloodlines from his ranch were considered a premium.  The ranch and his newly constructed 2-story brick house known as "Stockland" were run with the most up-to-date methods and modern conveniences.

Sug set up the V to be the land he would settle down on. After establishing it, it received almost his entire attention, though he did continue his work and lifelong friendship with Winfield Scott until Scott's passing in 1911. The two were so close that Sug was named to head his three million dollar estate without any bond.

Sug was the face and pioneer of the West Texas cattle industry. He was leader that served on the boards of numerous organizations including banks, the Texas Cattleman's Association, the Cattle Raisers Association of Texas, and even the National Livestock Association.  He was asked numerous times to run for public office such as the state senate and governor. The man was also an interesting personality. Characterized as: honest, quick to criticism & praise, a fantastic storyteller, shrewd, and generous. His forthright nature and strong will may have turned some people off, but largely the man was respected and admired.  He was not social outside of his family, but his reputation of generosity still lives.

"In one case a man bought a quarter section of land from him and could not make good on it, so instead of just reclaiming the land as was his legal right, Sug returned the man's $600 to help him get by until he could get situated elsewhere."

He had also donated to found a local church, donated land to developers to help build up his city of Slaton, and helped establish its first bank, literally helping found the town. The V Ranch would be the last home Sug would own. After falling ill in early 1921, doctors recommended he move to a "lower climate" so he moved to Abilene and continued to run his business. Unfortunately, one evening after dinner with his wife at one of his children's house, he moved to the parlor to sit and read the paper when he suffered an attack of "acute indigestion."  Medical staff were summoned, but by the time they arrived the pioneering cattleman had passed.

Sug Robertson lived the American Dream. He wrote his own story through hard work, determination, honed skill, bravery, a love for education, and a fire inside him that wouldn't be extinguished. From a 10-year old cowboy to a business mogul, he worked hard to get the results he wanted. He had chased Indians on foot his entire life. Both he and the industry experienced their early years, growth, and incredible success as if they were one and the same.

The photos of the revolver that have permeated this story are those of a Colt Single Action Army that once belonged to Sug. It was a single gun shipment in 1917, factory engraved by none other than Cuno Helfricht in a Colt's "Style 2." The master engraver's work remains crisp and deep. The revolver is in all original condition, including its 99% nickel finish. The pearl grips glow and glint attractive iridescent hues of pink and teal. It has only been fired during its factory test, and has remained in the family its entire life. They have lovingly referred to as the "Unicorn" thanks to its one-of-a-kind nature. The beauty of this Colt alone would be enough to send collectors scrambling, but its rich Texas history and direct provenance to one of the 19th century's most prominent cattleman only sweetens its appeal.

Sug would approve of the determination that will be required to own his stunning six shooter.

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-Written by Joel R. Kolander








Sources:

Cox, James. Historical and Biographical Record of the Cattle Industry and the Cattlemen of Texas and Adjacent Territory. Saint Louis: Woodward & Tiernan Print., 1895. Print.

Farber, James, Those, Texans, Unidentified Newspaper Clipping. Collection of Martha Robertson

http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth316709/m1/1/zoom/

https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fro22

Incomparable Cartridge Colts

For those not familiar, Rock Island Auction Company sent out a series of emails containing some of the highlights in our May 2014 Premiere Firearms Auction. These messages covered a number of popular genres and gave a first look at some firearms that are bound to attract the attention of some of the world's foremost collectors and investors. This blog, and the ones to follow, are a reprint of those emails for those who do not receive that type of communication. As an added bonus, these blogs will also include many photos that did not appear in the original emails in order to keep them at a reasonable size. We hope you enjoy these collectible firearms and their multitude of photos!

If you like what you see below, be sure to check out our auction highlights in the Photo Preview, 4-page Sneak Preview, or our full 16-page mailer. To search our entire auction listing please visit www.rockislandauction.com/search. 

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Our last article about two particularly famous Colt revolvers was enough to get Colt collectors' hearts pumping. We can't promise that today's will be any gentler. This article, the sixth in our series, will take a look inside our May 2014 Premiere Firearms Auction at some of our superb cartridge Colts. We hope you enjoy these great photos and appreciate you taking the time to view all these great collector firearms.

Our first firearm is the rare and historic, Colt factory cased, engraved, and inscribed, presentation Government Model 1911 semi automatic pistol with ivory grips.

Lot 1602: Rare and Unique Colt Factory Presentation Inscribed Factory Cased and Engraved Government Model Semi Automatic Pistol with Ivory Grips

Approximately 140 Model 1911/1911A1 pistols were factory engraved prior to World War II and around 160 of the production were factory inscribed or monogrammed. Add a case to that, uncommon for a Government model pistol, and the result is a supremely rare version of not only a popular U.S. military sidearm, but one of the most beloved and long-lived firearms in the history of the United States of America.

This pistol is inscribed to a "Col. L.T. Fisher" and was likely a gift from Colt to Col. Fisher to "encourage" his endorsement of the Colt M1911 to the British Government, a tactic of Samuel Colt's dating even back to his Walker revolvers. It must have been effective; the British military purchased around 13,300 M1911 pistols between 1915 and 1919.

The pistol would be quite a gift in Fisher's day or today! Arriving in a fitted, maroon leather case with his gold embossed name on the lid, the pistol rested comfortably on a cream-colored chamois leather. A fitting setting for a pistol with such deeply cut, skillfully executed, and beautiful scroll engraving. It covers the sides and top of the frame, underside of the trigger guard, bottom of the grip, the mainspring housing, and even has a single leaf on the magazine release lever. The engraving coverage is a least Colt "B" with a high polish blue finish and biscuit colored ivory grips. The rarity, condition, known origin, and upscale embellishments make this a world-class collector piece for dedicated Colt and U.S. military aficionados. Our writer, familiar with the finest Colts in existence, has never seen a finer presentation Colt Government Model.

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The second cartridge Colt we couldn't wait to show you is this stunning Colt First Generation Single Action Army with Glahn factory engraving and carved mother-of-pearl grips. Made in 1927, this pistol is as beautiful for its standard features as its special ones. The bluing on the barrel is near new, the case hardening color of the frame, hammer, and loading gate is gorgeous, and the bright nitre blue of the trigger and screws draw the eyes even from a distance. The condition of this revolver would be enough to endear it to any number of collectors, but when one also considers the special order features the gun becomes a much more significant investment grade firearm.

Lot 1174: Documented Superb Factory Engraved Colt Single Action Army Revolver with Carved Pearl Grips and Factory Letter

The mother of pearl grips provide an iridescent shine that can be seen deep underneath their immediate surface. The carved American eagle they depict is a perfect touch of period art and the only embellishment on the grips aside from the nickel Colt medallions. Both the grips and the engraving were created by Colt Master Engraver Wilbur A Glahn. The engraving runs from the back strap, up to the frame and loading gate, around the cylinder, and down the barrel. If the condition and knock out special features weren't enough for collectors, the Parsons list states that there are only nine standard frame Colt Single Action Army revolvers in this .38 caliber, making it even more rare than it is beautiful.

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So far we've shown some of the finely embellished handguns from our May Premiere Auction, but we know there are a lot of you who appreciate firearms that look just like those used by the ordinary people who performed extraordinary actions as the nation stretched westward. Rest assured, we have plenty of firearms for you too! Case in point, the revolver below: an astonishing Rinaldo A. Carr sub-inspected Colt Single Action Army Cavalry Model revolver.

Lot 3164: Astonishing U.S. Rinaldo A. Carr Sub-inspected Colt Single Action Cavalry Model Revolver

Manufactured in 1890, Colt's 4,000 Cavalry SAA revolvers made to satisfy an 1890 government contract were the last purchased by the U.S. Army. This wondrously high condition example was sub-inspected by Rinaldo A. Carr, giving it the R.A.C. cartouche, and inspected by Captain Stanhope E. Blunt (S.E.B.). The complete matching serial number is stamped on the frame, trigger guard, and back strap with the partial serial number on the barrel (under the second-style oval ejector) as well as the cylinder.

It goes without saying that many SAA cavalry models saw hard, everyday use and that finding them in good condition is no easy task. Military life or life on the prairie was not very forgiving, making this gun all the more spectacular. Abundant blueing, a case hardened frame, loading gate, and hammer, a fiery nitre blue trigger, and beautiful wood grips still bearing their crisp cartouches all make for a gun that would improve any collection lucky enough to have it.

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Our final cartridge Colt is the most historic of the group. It is a Colt New Service double action revolver that bears a factory gold inlaid name on the flat top of its frame. The name is that of its former owner, the Presidential Secretary to Theodore Roosevelt, Mr. William Loeb, Jr.

Lot 1205: Documented Historic Colt New Service Target Double Action Revolver Gold Inlaid Inscribed to Influential U.S. Presidential Secretary (to President Theodore Roosevelt) William Loeb Jr. with Factory Letter

Loeb started as Roosevelt's sternographer when Teddy was the Governor of New York, but so impressed the future president that he appointed Loeb as his personal secretary. When Roosevelt became president after the assassination of William McKinley, Loeb was Roosevelt's assistant secretary and eventually, Secretary to the President. Loeb was incredibly influential for Roosevelt and a key advisor, helping to shape policy and even acting as a media barricade for the president, earning him the moniker "Stonewall Loeb." His 24 hour accessibility to reporters and ability to speak on behalf of the president essentially made him the first unofficial presidential press secretary.

The gun is chambered in the desirable 44 Russian caliber, which was an excellent target round in its day. The blue finish still covers the revolver and it is accented with the niter blue hammer and trigger as well as the diamond pattern checkered grips. The gun accompanied by a signed period political cartoon personalized to Mrs. William Loeb, the wife of William Loeb Jr. It was drawn by Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist Clifford Kennedy Berryman, who is perhaps best known for depicting President Roosevelt showing sympathy for a small bear cub, later inspiring the creation of the Teddy bear.

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As you can see, there are no shortage of Colts in this auction. From yesterday's glimpse at our percussion pieces to today's peek into the cartridge Colts, anyone can see that the selection is outstanding. There are over 500 Colts already in our facility just waiting to be added to a new collection. We have every manufacturer of the M1911/A1 pistol, as well as DAs, Armys, Navys, Pockets, Patersons, SAA revolvers, special finishes, carved grips, engravings, inscribings, inlays, historical pieces, Tiffany grips, revolving rifles and shotguns, Lightnings (rifle and revolver), Thunderers, Dragoons, Aces, AR-15s, early semi autos, snake guns, cloverleafs, derringers, a sidehammer, and even an 1897 Gatling gun. Colt collectors everywhere will be marking this event on their calendars.

Stay tuned for more picture and history filled articles highlighting the exciting world-class firearms that will be appearing in our May 2014 Premiere Firearms Auction. It's going to be an event to remember!

Check out some of our most popular categories of Colts by clicking one of the genres below!

Colt - 1849

Colt - 1851

Colt - 1855

Colt - 1860

Colt - 1877

Colt - 1878

Colt - 1903

Colt - Cased

Colt - Dragoon

Colt - Long Arms

Colt - Paterson

Colt - SAA 1st Gen.

Colt - SAA 2nd/3rd Gen.

Colt - Snakes

Colt - Woodsman

Company K Colt: An Attic Treasure

On January 23, 1873 an order was placed by the U.S. Government to Colt Manufacturing for 8,000 revolvers "of the new model."  The first 1,000 would only take Colt 41 days to complete, but before a single one could leave the factory they would of course need to be inspected.  Enter one Orville W. Ainsworth, the civilian "Principle Sub-Inspector" for the Ordnance Office of the War Department, who would perform the physical inspections of revolvers numbered #202 - 14,343.  He took ill before he could finish inspecting the subsequent contract renewal, but his stamp was still used until that renewal was finished.  According to A Study of the Colt Single Action Army Revolver, that means that the actual dates of service for Ainsworth (and not his stamp) were from mid-October 1873 until November 7, 1874.  If you're wondering why any of this matters, there are two major reasons.

1. This limited use of Ainsworth's "A" inspector stamp makes revolvers bearing them rare, collectable, and valuable items.
2. It was these two large orders of arms that supplied much of the U.S. Cavalry and therefore they saw heavy use in the Indian Wars, including the Battle of Little Big Horn.

When the aforementioned book, an essential resource for Colt SAA Collectors, was originally printed in 1976, only 375 of the original 12,500 Ainsworth inspected revolvers were known to exist in collections, a humbling 3% of the total.  As of the 1994 printing of Kopec and Fenn's Cavalry & Artillery Revolvers: A Continuing Study, that number had shot to 1,655 or 13.2%.  One can only hope the number has improved in the almost ten years since that book was published.

Lot 3163: Extraordinary Ainsworth Inspected Company K 4th Cavalry Marked Colt Single Action Army Cavalry Model Revolver

Of these 1,655 known Ainsworth inspected revolvers only 16 of them are known to be stamped on their frame with the text, "CO. K. 4. CAV"  When latter of the two books mentioned was published in 1994, there were only 15 known to exist.  The example that will be sold in Rock Island Auction Company's 2013 December Premiere Auction, serial number 3576, is the 16th.  The known serial number range spans from 2902 - 4596.  This range has perplexed Colt scholars for years, for the following reason.  All of the Company K, 4th Cavalry revolvers were ordered on January 15th, 1874 and shipped to the San Antonio Arsenal.  Thanks to letters sent at the time, we know that the 6th and 10th Cavalries were each to receive 1,000 of the "new Colt's revolver," but that "upon recommendation of the General of the Army, the Secretary of War designates the 4th Cavalry, as the next regiment to receive the Carbines and Revolvers of the new model."  A note on that letter states that the arms to be shipped to the San Antonio Arsenal for the 4th Cavalry, but the specific number shipped is not mentioned.  One can assume that a shipment of 1,000 (1,000 per Regiment) was shipped to San Antonio that January.  So while existing historic documents would imply that 1,000 items were shipped to San Antonio, the known serial number range spans over 1,700 guns.  Were 2,000 revolvers diverted to San Antonio?  Have enough not been uncovered to show us the full serial range? Were the serial numbers sent simply non-sequential?  Furthermore, if there were so many, where are the remaining examples?  These are all questions that persist regarding these coveted revolvers.

Some credence is given to the "non-sequential" theory by another firearm present in this auction.  In lot #1181 is what our headline describes as a "Rare Second Year Production Ainsworth Sub-Inspected Colt Single Action Army Cavalry Revolver with Period Holster."  It has all the early production features, the "A" sub-inspection stamp of Ainsworth, and most importantly, a serial number of 3316.  This serial number puts it in the same serial range as the CO. K. 4. CAV revolvers, yet it lacks that rare and desirable marking!

Lot 1181: Rare Second Year Production Ainsworth Sub-Inspected Colt Single Action Army Revolver with Period Holster.  While not marked to a designated unit on its frame, this unaltered, Ainsworth stamped Colt, which falls in the Company K, 4th Cavalry serial range, is still expected to sell for between $10,000 - $20,000.

History of Co. K. of the 4th Cavalry
In 1848, after the Mexican War, the U.S. Army slowly came to realize that it needed additional mounted soldiers as the young country spread westward.  The 4th Cavalry Regiment has its origins in the year 1855, when it was known as the 1st Cavalry, having been formed to alleviate the government's self-assessed lack of horse borne troops.   However, on August 3, 1861 all cavalries were to be renumbered according to seniority.  Having been preceded in formation by the 1st Dragoons, 2nd Dragoons, and the "Regiment of Mounted Rifleman," the 1st Cavalry was re-designated as the 4th Cavalry Regiment.

Immediately after their formation, they spent a great deal of time in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas to help protect settlers from Cheyenne Indians and to help quell any disturbances that would arise from a population heavily divided on the issue of slavery.  This newly-formed group possessed the seeds of greatness by having 22 of its 28 officers become general officers serving on both sides of the Civil War including such historic names as Maj. Gen. George B McClellan and Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart.  In fact, then Colonel Robert E. Lee commanded the 1st Cavalry for a month before resigning to join the Confederacy.

Prior to the Civil War the 1st Cavalry found themselves split-up with half at Fort Riley, Kansas and the rest spread around the state.  During the Civil War, the newly-renamed 4th Cavalry found itself in places stretching from the mighty Mississippi River to the Atlantic Ocean.  The earliest Civil War mention (that could be found by this writer) of Company K of the 4th Cavalry is on May 9-14, 1862 where the action of Co. K, as well as Companies B, C, D, G, & I were "present at Corinth, Miss... a detachment under Lieut. Gordon took part in an affair near Farmington, Miss.: no casualties."

The second earliest mention of Company K occurs at Murfreesboro, TN, during the Stone River campaign (1862-1863) on December 31, 1862, when a two-company brigade of the 4th U.S. Cavalry charged "an entire brigade of cavalry and routed them to such an extent that they disappeared from the field altogether."  Company K also saw action at Middleton, TN (May 20-23, 1863), and Okalong, MS in February of 1864.  After the Civil War, Co. K. of the 4th Cavalry is most noted for its campaigns against the Comanche and Kiowa during the early 1870s under Col. Ranald Slidell "Bad Hand" Mackenzie, one of the seven colonels honored by the 4th for their distinction in service.  Mackenzie's fascinating history, stretching from the Battle of Second Bull Run and well into the Indian Wars, is vast, heroic, and documented enough that it could easily fill its own column.

The 4th Cavalry in 1909

Condition
The condition of this revolver cannot be overstated.  The amount of finish is unprecedented and the mature case hardening provides it a striking ghostly grayed contrast.  Lest one think that we are biased in our enthusiasm for this firearm, here are two evaluations from noted industry experts.

"Regarding Subject Revolver; Colt Single Action Army, serial # 3576.  In my opinion, This revolver is the finest Ainsworth inspected, U.S. Army marked, Single Action known to exist.  It was my pleasure to examine it..."

-A letter dated July 6, 1998 from

Ronald A Ogan, President

Ogan Antiques, Ltd.

"Considering the low survival rate of early US-marked Single Action Army revolvers  and considering the exciting and important times in which these revolvers were used, this scare and desirable Colt is an object of considerable significance.  The author will be pleased to illustrate number 3376 in the forthcoming revised edition of THE BOOK OF COLT FIREARMS, which will be issued in a two-volume book.

In condition and originality, no revolver equals, or surpasses, number 3376.  The color of the blue, the patina of the steel and wood, the old grease from years' past, and the clouded color the case-hardening (excepting on the relatively bright hammer) are all indicative of the attic-condition, unused survival of this remarkable and rare Single Action Army Colt revolver."

- R. L. Wilson

Author and Expert

The fact that this gun came to light after so many years of only having 15 examples, in addition to its remarkable condition must have made quite a stir in the Colt collecting community.  Its existence alone would be a noteworthy find, but its "finest known" quality truly makes it a special story.

A rarity within a rarity that also possesses a fascinating history and some persistent, unanswered questions that have stumped Colt scholars for decades, the Ainsworth inspected, Co. K 4 CAV Colt Cavalry Model revolver is a simply fantastic piece that Rock Island Auction Company is proud to have in its 2013 December Premiere Auction.  The 4th Cavalry has served this country since before the Civil War and continues to serve through the current wars in the Middle East.  Their history of brilliant and illustrious service is forever noted in the annals of U.S. history and even earned them their own march in 1926 written by the "March King," John Phillip Sousa, himself a dedicated horseman.  That history, combined with an exquisite condition, make this a revolver that will have Colt collectors' hearts racing.  This is one example of the over 600 Colts available in our December 2013 Premiere Firearms Auction, which will contain everything from a near-pristine Colt Model 1851 Navy to a Model 1874 Gatling gun, and SIX different Paterson revolvers!  Click here to search our catalog or use one of our previously created Colt categories such as 1st Generation Single Action Army or Colt - Auto Early.  You're bound to find something you love!



-Written by Joel Kolander





SOURCES:

Graham, Ron, John A. Kopec, and C. Kenneth Moore. A Study of the Colt Single Action Army Revolver. S.l.: S.n., 1976. Print.


Kopec, John A., and H. Sterling. Fenn. Colt Cavalry & Artillery Revolvers: A Continuing Study. 1st ed. Vol. 2nd. Whitmore, CA: J.A. Kopec Publications, 1994. Print.

http://www.25thida.org/4thcav.html

http://www.history.army.mil/books/R&H/R&H-4CV.htm