COLT MODEL 1878 DOUBLE BARREL COACH GUN THAT PURPORTEDLY HAVING BELONGED TO FAMOUS STAGE ROBBER BLACK BART.

COLT MODEL 1878 DOUBLE BARREL COACH GUN THAT PURPORTEDLY HAVING BELONGED TO FAMOUS STAGE ROBBER BLACK BART. SN 2539. Cal. 12 ga. Fine Colt hammer gun with 19″ Damascus bbls, very old copper bead front sight and usual Colt name & address on the rib. Each lockplate is marked “COLT’S PT. F.A. MFG. CO.”. Mounted with very nicely figured checkered American walnut with semi-schnable tip splinter forearm and rnd knob pistol grip stock with smooth steel buttplate. There is a silver oval initial plate on bottom of stock. This shotgun was purchased from the well known collection of Don Toppel, famous collector of western heritage firearms & memorabilia, through his widow, Mrs. Eleanor Toppel, by the late Val Forgette as having belonged to the infamous stage robber Black Bart, AKA C.E. Bolton. Consignor purchased this shotgun directly from Val Forgette. Mr. Bolton, over his career in the 1870’s & 1880’s, is alleged to have robbed some 28 stagecoaches of the Butterfield Overland Co. and Wells Fargo. He was always armed with a shotgun, wore a white duster and a hood made from a flour sack. He always left a trademark poem at the scene of each of his robberies, one of which is quoted in the book The Colorful Story of the American West, Hassrick, a copy of which accompanies the gun”Here I lay me down to sleep, to wait the coming morrow, perhaps success perhaps defeat, and everlasting sorrow. I’ve labored long and hard for my bread, for honor and for riches, but my corns too long you’ve tread, you find haired sons of bitches. Let come what will I’ll try it on, my condition but be worse, and if there’s money in that box, tis munny in my purse.”. It is signed “Black Bart / the. P08”. After frustrating the stage lines for so long the Wells Fargo Co. established an $800 reward for his capture to no avail for a long time. Finally, near the scene of one of his holdups a Wells Fargo investigator by the name of J.B. Hume discovered a couple of bags of dirty linen, stale crackers and a crumpled handkerchief. The handkerchief bore a laundry mark “FX07” which Det. Hume was able to track to a San Francisco laundry and tie it to a “well-dressed miner named C.E. Bolton”. Black Bart, AKA Bolton, was sentenced to San Quentin and served 4 years, 2 months. He died in 1917 at age 82. Also accompanied by a small cold cast figurine of Black Bart dressed in his duster, hat & mask and carrying his shotgun. PROVENANCE: Dr. Leonard Goldfarb Collection; Val Forgette, Don Toppel Collection. CONDITION: Good to very good. Bbls retain about 85% thin Damascus pattern. Receiver & lockplates retain very dark case colors. Stock has a repair on left side of top tang, otherwise wood is sound showing moderate to heavy wear and retains a fine hand worn patina. Mechanics are fine, bright shiny bores. Book & figurine area fine. 4-41201 JR131 (4,000-6,000)

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
	2237	$4,025.00	COLT MODEL 1878 DOUBLE BARREL COACH GUN THAT PURPORTEDLY HAVING BELONGED TO FAMOUS STAGE ROBBER BLACK BART. SN 2539. Cal. 12 ga. Fine Colt hammer gun with 19″ Damascus bbls, very old copper bead front sight and usual Colt name & address on the rib. Each lockplate is marked “COLT’S PT. F.A. MFG. CO.”. Mounted with very nicely figured checkered American walnut with semi-schnable tip splinter forearm and rnd knob pistol grip stock with smooth steel buttplate. There is a silver oval initial plate on bottom of stock. This shotgun was purchased from the well known collection of Don Toppel, famous collector of western heritage firearms & memorabilia, through his widow, Mrs. Eleanor Toppel, by the late Val Forgette as having belonged to the infamous stage robber Black Bart, AKA C.E. Bolton. Consignor purchased this shotgun directly from Val Forgette. Mr. Bolton, over his career in the 1870’s & 1880’s, is alleged to have robbed some 28 stagecoaches of the Butterfield Overland Co. and Wells Fargo. He was always armed with a shotgun, wore a white duster and a hood made from a flour sack. He always left a trademark poem at the scene of each of his robberies, one of which is quoted in the book The Colorful Story of the American West, Hassrick, a copy of which accompanies the gun”Here I lay me down to sleep, to wait the coming morrow, perhaps success perhaps defeat, and everlasting sorrow. I’ve labored long and hard for my bread, for honor and for riches, but my corns too long you’ve tread, you find haired sons of bitches. Let come what will I’ll try it on, my condition but be worse, and if there’s money in that box, tis munny in my purse.”. It is signed “Black Bart / the. P08”. After frustrating the stage lines for so long the Wells Fargo Co. established an $800 reward for his capture to no avail for a long time. Finally, near the scene of one of his holdups a Wells Fargo investigator by the name of J.B. Hume discovered a couple of bags of dirty linen, stale crackers and a crumpled handkerchief. The handkerchief bore a laundry mark “FX07” which Det. Hume was able to track to a San Francisco laundry and tie it to a “well-dressed miner named C.E. Bolton”. Black Bart, AKA Bolton, was sentenced to San Quentin and served 4 years, 2 months. He died in 1917 at age 82. Also accompanied by a small cold cast figurine of Black Bart dressed in his duster, hat & mask and carrying his shotgun. PROVENANCE: Dr. Leonard Goldfarb Collection; Val Forgette, Don Toppel Collection. CONDITION: Good to very good. Bbls retain about 85% thin Damascus pattern. Receiver & lockplates retain very dark case colors. Stock has a repair on left side of top tang, otherwise wood is sound showing moderate to heavy wear and retains a fine hand worn patina. Mechanics are fine, bright shiny bores. Book & figurine area fine. 4-41201 JR131 (4,000-6,000) 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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