*RARE SPECIAL ORDER WINCHESTER MODEL 1873 LEVER ACTION RIFLE THAT BELONGED TO FAMOUS WILD WEST SHOW PERFORMER SAMUEL F. CODY.

*RARE SPECIAL ORDER WINCHESTER MODEL 1873 LEVER ACTION RIFLE THAT BELONGED TO FAMOUS WILD WEST SHOW PERFORMER SAMUEL F. CODY. SN 563362. Cal. 22 Short. Blue finish with 24-1/4″ oct to rnd bbl, full magazine with half nickel front sight with screw and semi-buckhorn rear sight. Mounted with uncheckered, nicely figured American walnut with straight stock and crescent buttplate with trap. Top left flat of the bbl and left front side of the frame has British proofs. This rifle was owned & used by Wild West performer, the late Samuel Franklin Cody (1867-1913), also known as Samuel Franklin Cowdery, who changed his name to Cody sometime around 1889. Mr. Cody was born in Davenport, Iowa where he attended school until about age 12. He claims to have left school at that point to become a cowboy, train horses, hunt buffalo and other wild west occupations. He later prospected for gold in the area of what is now Dawson City in the famous Klondike Gold Rush era. In 1888 at age 21, Cody began touring the U.S. with a Wild West show starring as “Capt. Cody, King of the Cowboys”. In 1889 when he married Maud Maria Lee, his name on the marriage certificate is Samuel Franklin Cody. Later he & his wife were touring Europe with the Wild West show giving rifle shooting and horse riding exhibitions. They met a lady named Elizabeth Mary King who was apparently also on the tour. Cody’s wife taught Mrs. King and her two children to ride & shoot on horseback. Later Mrs. Cody returned to the U.S. alone and Mr. Cody began living with Mrs. King and her children, a relationship which lasted until his death. While touring England with Mrs. King, they gave demonstrations of riding & shooting and other cowboy skills. They apparently formed their own show named The Klondyke Nugget which became very successful and involved Mrs. King’s son. All the while Cody was still living with Mrs. King, who assumed the name Lela Marie Cody, although neither she nor Cody had ever divorced. Sometime around the turn of the 20th century, Cody patented a large kite design capable of lifting a human being and made demonstration flights of up to 2,000 feet. From 1901 to 1908 Cody had several successful man-lifter war kite flights for the British military. Cody’s exploits impressed the British Army who hired him as “Chief Instructor in Kiting” at the balloon school in Aldershot in 1906 and was charged with the formation of two kite sections of the Royal Engineers which later evolved into the royal flying corps and finally into the number one squadron Royal Air Force. During this time he also built a motorized kite capable of carrying a man and in 1907 helped the Army develop Dirigible No. 1, England’s first powered air ship. Later in 1907 the Army funded the completion of his airplane design which became British Army Aeroplane No. 1 which was tested in Sept. 1908. In October when the plane was damaged, the war office decided “there was no future in aeroplanes” and Cody’s contract was canceled. Cody continued developing his airplane and built a new machine and carried the first passengers for the first time in the world on 14 August 1909. His second passenger was his common law wife. He continued developing his airplanes and in 1910 won the prestigious Michelin Cup for a flight of 4 hours 47 minutes and in 1911 was the only British plane to complete the Daily Mail’s Circuit of Britain race for which he won a silver medal in 1912. He won a $5,000 prize at the military trials in 1912. He continued aircraft development with his own funds and on 7 August 1913 was flying in his latest design, a float plane, which broke up at 500 feet, killing both him and his passenger. He was buried with full military honors in the Aldershot Military Cemetery. A full size replica of his “British Army Aeroplane No. 1” is on exhibit at the Farnborough Air Sciences Trust Museum in Farnborough, England which commemorates the first powered flight in the UK. Accompanied by a Cody Firearms Museum fact sheet which identifies this rifle in caliber 22 Short with half oct bbl, plain trigger, shotgun butt & express sights, received in the warehouse April 6, 1903 and shipped April 11, 1903 to Order #12898. Obviously during the period of use the previous owner changed the stock & sights. Also accompanying this lot is a copy of Sotheby’s Auction catalog of 24 January 1996, which is the sale of “The S.F. Cody Archive”. Lot #58 on p. 30 is this exact rifle which is illustrated in color on p. 28 along with several other Cody rifles & handguns. The entire catalog is devoted to Cody’s life, primarily in the field of avionics. CONDITION: Very fine. Bbl & magazine tube retain 95-96% strong orig blue with only faint muzzle edge wear and a few scattered spots of light rust. Receiver & sideplates retain about 90% strong orig blue with a few spots of light surface rust, one small cleaned area and a heavy coating of old dried oil. Top tang and part of the bottom tang have turned plum. Lever & hammer retain strong case colors under a coating of old dried oil. Wood is sound with usual light handling & use nicks & scratches with the forearm retaining about 75% orig varnish and the buttstock about 95% orig finish. Safety notch is missing from the hammer, otherwise mechanics are fine, strong bright bore, frosty in the grooves. 4-42146 JR257 (8,000-15,000)

Auction: Firearms - Spring 2011

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
	2052	$0.00	RARE SPECIAL ORDER WINCHESTER MODEL 1873 LEVER ACTION RIFLE THAT BELONGED TO FAMOUS WILD WEST SHOW PERFORMER SAMUEL F. CODY. SN 563362. Cal. 22 Short. Blue finish with 24-1/4″ oct to rnd bbl, full magazine with half nickel front sight with screw and semi-buckhorn rear sight. Mounted with uncheckered, nicely figured American walnut with straight stock and crescent buttplate with trap. Top left flat of the bbl and left front side of the frame has British proofs. This rifle was owned & used by Wild West performer, the late Samuel Franklin Cody (1867-1913), also known as Samuel Franklin Cowdery, who changed his name to Cody sometime around 1889. Mr. Cody was born in Davenport, Iowa where he attended school until about age 12. He claims to have left school at that point to become a cowboy, train horses, hunt buffalo and other wild west occupations. He later prospected for gold in the area of what is now Dawson City in the famous Klondike Gold Rush era. In 1888 at age 21, Cody began touring the U.S. with a Wild West show starring as “Capt. Cody, King of the Cowboys”. In 1889 when he married Maud Maria Lee, his name on the marriage certificate is Samuel Franklin Cody. Later he & his wife were touring Europe with the Wild West show giving rifle shooting and horse riding exhibitions. They met a lady named Elizabeth Mary King who was apparently also on the tour. Cody’s wife taught Mrs. King and her two children to ride & shoot on horseback. Later Mrs. Cody returned to the U.S. alone and Mr. Cody began living with Mrs. King and her children, a relationship which lasted until his death. While touring England with Mrs. King, they gave demonstrations of riding & shooting and other cowboy skills. They apparently formed their own show named The Klondyke Nugget* which became very successful and involved Mrs. King’s son. All the while Cody was still living with Mrs. King, who assumed the name Lela Marie Cody, although neither she nor Cody had ever divorced. Sometime around the turn of the 20th century, Cody patented a large kite design capable of lifting a human being and made demonstration flights of up to 2,000 feet. From 1901 to 1908 Cody had several successful man-lifter war kite flights for the British military. Cody’s exploits impressed the British Army who hired him as “Chief Instructor in Kiting” at the balloon school in Aldershot in 1906 and was charged with the formation of two kite sections of the Royal Engineers which later evolved into the royal flying corps and finally into the number one squadron Royal Air Force. During this time he also built a motorized kite capable of carrying a man and in 1907 helped the Army develop Dirigible No. 1, England’s first powered air ship. Later in 1907 the Army funded the completion of his airplane design which became British Army Aeroplane No. 1 which was tested in Sept. 1908. In October when the plane was damaged, the war office decided “there was no future in aeroplanes” and Cody’s contract was canceled. Cody continued developing his airplane and built a new machine and carried the first passengers for the first time in the world on 14 August 1909. His second passenger was his common law wife. He continued developing his airplanes and in 1910 won the prestigious Michelin Cup for a flight of 4 hours 47 minutes and in 1911 was the only British plane to complete the Daily Mail’s Circuit of Britain race for which he won a silver medal in 1912. He won a $5,000 prize at the military trials in 1912. He continued aircraft development with his own funds and on 7 August 1913 was flying in his latest design, a float plane, which broke up at 500 feet, killing both him and his passenger. He was buried with full military honors in the Aldershot Military Cemetery. A full size replica of his “British Army Aeroplane No. 1” is on exhibit at the Farnborough Air Sciences Trust Museum in Farnborough, England which commemorates the first powered flight in the UK. Accompanied by a Cody Firearms Museum fact sheet which identifies this rifle in caliber 22 Short with half oct bbl, plain trigger, shotgun butt & express sights, received in the warehouse April 6, 1903 and shipped April 11, 1903 to Order #12898. Obviously during the period of use the previous owner changed the stock & sights. Also accompanying this lot is a copy of Sotheby’s Auction catalog of 24 January 1996, which is the sale of “The S.F. Cody Archive”. Lot #58 on p. 30 is this exact rifle which is illustrated in color on p. 28 along with several other Cody rifles & handguns. The entire catalog is devoted to Cody’s life, primarily in the field of avionics. CONDITION: Very fine. Bbl & magazine tube retain 95-96% strong orig blue with only faint muzzle edge wear and a few scattered spots of light rust. Receiver & sideplates retain about 90% strong orig blue with a few spots of light surface rust, one small cleaned area and a heavy coating of old dried oil. Top tang and part of the bottom tang have turned plum. Lever & hammer retain strong case colors under a coating of old dried oil. Wood is sound with usual light handling & use nicks & scratches with the forearm retaining about 75% orig varnish and the buttstock about 95% orig finish. Safety notch is missing from the hammer, otherwise mechanics are fine, strong bright bore, frosty in the grooves. 4-42146 JR257 (8,000-15,000) Auction: Firearms - Spring 2011 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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