EXTRAORDINARILY RARE CASED SHARPS MODEL 1874 HEAVY BUFFALO RIFLE WITH ORIGINAL SCOPE.

EXTRAORDINARILY RARE CASED SHARPS MODEL 1874 HEAVY BUFFALO RIFLE WITH ORIGINAL SCOPE. SN C53900. Cal. 44-77 Sharps. Magnificent buffalo rifle with 30″ heavy oct bbl mounted with an extraordinarily rare “SHARPS” marked full length 34-1/2″ telescope that has very fine spider web cross hairs and a brass eye piece aperture. Top flat of bbl has the Hartford address and the cal. marking diagonally over chamber area. Scope is marked “SHARPS RIFLE MANUFG CO HARTFORD CONN”. It has dbl set triggers and is mounted with very nicely figured, uncheckered American walnut with standard, rnd Sharps forearm that has pewter tip and a straight stock with smooth steel buttplate. Accompanied by its orig green felt lined full length leather case that measures about 48-1/2″ x 7-3/4″ x 3-1/2″ and is compartmented in bottom for the rifle with three leather retaining straps and a wood muzzle block. Front center of the case is a cartridge block for 42 cartridges containing 16 rds, 3 of which are misfires and one rd of empty brass. Rear corners have open compartments with one containing an orig Sharps bullet mold with sprue cutter that has the company name & Hartford address on one arm and the number “40”, a wood & brass handled expander plug, a wood & brass handled primer pick, a Berdan decapping tool, a tin of Berdan primers, a cardboard box of paper patch bullets and a set of orig Sharps front sight and Lawrence Patent rear sights. There is also a leather case strap. Also accompanied by a Sharps records letter which identifies this rifle as having been invoiced Aug. 3, 1874 to Schuyler, Hartley & Graham. It is noted as a Model 1874 sporting rifle with 30″ oct bbl, cal 44, fitted with telescopic sight, dbl set triggers and oil finished stocks. The weight is not noted but the cost was $82.00. Since the case is not mentioned in the factory records it is likely that it was supplied by Schuyler, Hartley & Graham, Sharps’ largest agent of New York City. Weight: 13.3 lbs. This rifle for many years was in the collection of noted collector, Frank N. Graves, Jr., who, in a letter dated Nov. 1981, states that he had recently acquired a Sharps buffalo rifle that had belonged to Jay Gould, one of the world’s wealthiest men and railroad magnates, who reportedly bought this rifle to try his hand at buffalo hunting. The story was related that he and several friends had a flat car attached to a private train and headed west. It is related that when Mr. Gould fired this rifle the first time it kicked him off the rail car and he never fired it again, returning it to its case and back to New York. This rifle, in its case, was allegedly discovered in 1946 in the attic of the Gould Foundation School in Spring Valley, New York. It was then given to Louis R. Barrett by Mr. Gould’s son-in-law when Mr. Barrett was head of the Gould Foundation School, and so attested by a short letter over the signature of Lt. Col., USAF, Louis R. Barrett, Jr. A hand-written note on the same letter, over the signature of Donald M. Yena, states he paid $5,000 cash and art for this rifle, identified by SN, in March 1967 and that it was with its orig scope, case & some accessories. This rifle has been the subject of numerous articles in various publications including the Spring 1982 & Fall 1999 The Texas Gun Collector; Jan-Feb, 1983 Man at Arms; May 1982 Gun Report and Vol. 13 No. 3 SCA Report (Sharps Collectors Association magazine). Jay Gould, in his day and even today, was one of the world’s richest men. Coming from fairly humble beginnings, born in 1836, he amassed an enormous fortune in company with the likes of John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, Cornelius Vanderbilt, John Jacob Aster and others, being referred to as one of the “robber barons”. Mr. Gould was apparently no more ruthless than any of the others of his ilk, just possibly a little more successful, quicker. He controlled several national rail lines including the Union Pacific and later also Western Union. An article from the Oct. 12, 1998 Forbes 400 magazine lists him at #9 on the all time list of wealthiest Americans with an adjusted worth of $42 billion. Also accompanying is a stock certificate for 100 shares of the Missouri-Kansas & Texas Railway Co., one of Jay Gould’s railroads, signed by Jay Gould’s son, George, and dated 1887. There are several other accompanying related papers & documents. PROVENANCE: John Dutcher Collection. CONDITION: Extraordinarily fine, nearly new, no disassembly was effected to check for matching SNs. Bbl retains 98-99% strong orig blue with only faint sharp edge wear; telescope retains 97-98% strong orig blue with a lightly thinned area near the front end; brass eye piece retains a dark mustard patina; receiver, lockplate, hammer & lever retain about all of their brilliant orig case colors, lightly faded on left side and on the lever; top tang retains faint case colors as does the buttplate. Wood is sound with a few minor nicks & scratches and retains virtually all of its brilliant orig hand rubbed oil finish. Mechanics are crisp, brilliant shiny bore. Optics are clear; crosshairs are intact. Case shows heavy wear with some edge losses from the top and heavy losses of finish on the leather; interior is moderately faded & soiled with heavy moth damage inside the lid with lesser moth damage in the bottom; tools, accessories & ammunition are fine. 4-46080 JR310 (85,000-135,000)

Auction: Firearms - Fall 2012

Please Note: All prices include the hammer price plus the buyer’s premium, which is paid by the buyer as part of the purchase price. The prices noted here after the auction are considered unofficial and do not become official until after the 46th day.

Image	Lot	Price	Description
	1345	$103,500.00	EXTRAORDINARILY RARE CASED SHARPS MODEL 1874 HEAVY BUFFALO RIFLE WITH ORIGINAL SCOPE. SN C53900. Cal. 44-77 Sharps. Magnificent buffalo rifle with 30″ heavy oct bbl mounted with an extraordinarily rare “SHARPS” marked full length 34-1/2″ telescope that has very fine spider web cross hairs and a brass eye piece aperture. Top flat of bbl has the Hartford address and the cal. marking diagonally over chamber area. Scope is marked “SHARPS RIFLE MANUFG CO HARTFORD CONN”. It has dbl set triggers and is mounted with very nicely figured, uncheckered American walnut with standard, rnd Sharps forearm that has pewter tip and a straight stock with smooth steel buttplate. Accompanied by its orig green felt lined full length leather case that measures about 48-1/2″ x 7-3/4″ x 3-1/2″ and is compartmented in bottom for the rifle with three leather retaining straps and a wood muzzle block. Front center of the case is a cartridge block for 42 cartridges containing 16 rds, 3 of which are misfires and one rd of empty brass. Rear corners have open compartments with one containing an orig Sharps bullet mold with sprue cutter that has the company name & Hartford address on one arm and the number “40”, a wood & brass handled expander plug, a wood & brass handled primer pick, a Berdan decapping tool, a tin of Berdan primers, a cardboard box of paper patch bullets and a set of orig Sharps front sight and Lawrence Patent rear sights. There is also a leather case strap. Also accompanied by a Sharps records letter which identifies this rifle as having been invoiced Aug. 3, 1874 to Schuyler, Hartley & Graham. It is noted as a Model 1874 sporting rifle with 30″ oct bbl, cal 44, fitted with telescopic sight, dbl set triggers and oil finished stocks. The weight is not noted but the cost was $82.00. Since the case is not mentioned in the factory records it is likely that it was supplied by Schuyler, Hartley & Graham, Sharps’ largest agent of New York City. Weight: 13.3 lbs. This rifle for many years was in the collection of noted collector, Frank N. Graves, Jr., who, in a letter dated Nov. 1981, states that he had recently acquired a Sharps buffalo rifle that had belonged to Jay Gould, one of the world’s wealthiest men and railroad magnates, who reportedly bought this rifle to try his hand at buffalo hunting. The story was related that he and several friends had a flat car attached to a private train and headed west. It is related that when Mr. Gould fired this rifle the first time it kicked him off the rail car and he never fired it again, returning it to its case and back to New York. This rifle, in its case, was allegedly discovered in 1946 in the attic of the Gould Foundation School in Spring Valley, New York. It was then given to Louis R. Barrett by Mr. Gould’s son-in-law when Mr. Barrett was head of the Gould Foundation School, and so attested by a short letter over the signature of Lt. Col., USAF, Louis R. Barrett, Jr. A hand-written note on the same letter, over the signature of Donald M. Yena, states he paid $5,000 cash and art for this rifle, identified by SN, in March 1967 and that it was with its orig scope, case & some accessories. This rifle has been the subject of numerous articles in various publications including the Spring 1982 & Fall 1999 The Texas Gun Collector; Jan-Feb, 1983 Man at Arms; May 1982 Gun Report and Vol. 13 No. 3 SCA Report (Sharps Collectors Association magazine). Jay Gould, in his day and even today, was one of the world’s richest men. Coming from fairly humble beginnings, born in 1836, he amassed an enormous fortune in company with the likes of John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, Cornelius Vanderbilt, John Jacob Aster and others, being referred to as one of the “robber barons”. Mr. Gould was apparently no more ruthless than any of the others of his ilk, just possibly a little more successful, quicker. He controlled several national rail lines including the Union Pacific and later also Western Union. An article from the Oct. 12, 1998 Forbes 400 magazine lists him at #9 on the all time list of wealthiest Americans with an adjusted worth of $42 billion. Also accompanying is a stock certificate for 100 shares of the Missouri-Kansas & Texas Railway Co., one of Jay Gould’s railroads, signed by Jay Gould’s son, George, and dated 1887. There are several other accompanying related papers & documents. PROVENANCE: John Dutcher Collection. CONDITION: Extraordinarily fine, nearly new, no disassembly was effected to check for matching SNs. Bbl retains 98-99% strong orig blue with only faint sharp edge wear; telescope retains 97-98% strong orig blue with a lightly thinned area near the front end; brass eye piece retains a dark mustard patina; receiver, lockplate, hammer & lever retain about all of their brilliant orig case colors, lightly faded on left side and on the lever; top tang retains faint case colors as does the buttplate. Wood is sound with a few minor nicks & scratches and retains virtually all of its brilliant orig hand rubbed oil finish. Mechanics are crisp, brilliant shiny bore. Optics are clear; crosshairs are intact. Case shows heavy wear with some edge losses from the top and heavy losses of finish on the leather; interior is moderately faded & soiled with heavy moth damage inside the lid with lesser moth damage in the bottom; tools, accessories & ammunition are fine. 4-46080 JR310 (85,000-135,000) Auction: Firearms - Fall 2012 Please Note: All prices include the hammer price plus the buyer’s premium, which is paid by the buyer as part of the purchase price. The prices noted here after the auction are considered unofficial and do not become official until after the 46th day.

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