EXTRAORDINARY ENGRAVED FAMILY DOCUMENTED MEIGS REPEATING SLIDE ACTION RIFLE.

EXTRAORDINARY ENGRAVED FAMILY DOCUMENTED MEIGS REPEATING SLIDE ACTION RIFLE. SN None visible.. Cal. 50 Meigs. This unusual rifle was invented and produced by Joe Vincent Meigs (1840-1907). Mr. Meigs was born in Nashville, TN and attended public schools and later the Lawrence Scientific School at Cambridge, MA but was unable to complete his education there due to his mother’s illness. The Civil War further intervened and due to the staunch union support of his father the family was moved to Staten Island, New York in 1861. Meigs worked in the war office in Washington, D.C. as a clerk in the office of Secretary of War Stanton and later in 1861 he resigned and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant and authorized to raise a company of artillery. He did so, raising a “colored” artillery unit which he commanded until 1865, just before the Battle of Nashville when his lungs were ruptured and he was forced to resign his commission. Meigs was a prolific inventor and was issued patents for breech loading and repeating rifles in 1862, 1866 and 1868 and later for this magazine rifle which holds fifty cartridges. It was claimed by the inventor that a trained soldier could fire all fifty shots in 19 seconds and a new loaded magazine quickly installed to continue firing. He demonstrated that an infantryman can advance at a rate of 109 yards per minute at double quick time and that a soldier in a defensive position, armed with this rifle, could aim and fire one shot for every two steps, thus firing fifty shots before an advancing enemy could arrive to within nine yards of his front. This was truly a revolutionary design for its time but unfortunately was not adopted by the U.S. military as the archaic military thinking of that day postulated that a soldier thus armed would simply waste ammunition and so refused to consider repeating firearms. This rifle was tested over a period of four years during which time 38,000 rds were fired without a failure. The rifle is described as having nickel finish, with a 32-3/4″ tapered rnd bbl with decorative cast brass front sight ring that has an integral globe at the top with a pin sight. Receiver is nickeled brass with decorative relief engraved foliate, floral & geometric patterns with fine stippled background. The slide mechanism and attached large foliate shaped trigger guard are of nickeled steel all attached to a brass tube stock with integral crescent buttplate that has the hinged trapdoor which allows removal and replacing the 50-rd magazine. The top of the central tube/stock is mounted with a very nicely figured rosewood or walnut cheekpiece with raised carved foliate patterns around the heel. Top of the wrist of the tube/stock has an integral sight base containing a proprietary style tang sight with friction elevation adjustment only. Rifle has a full length forestock with incise carved border patterns and a 11-3/4″ handguard which is wrapped with varnished braided cording as are all Meigs rifles observed to date by this cataloger. The heel of the buttplate has a sling eye in an integral base. Rifle functions by depressing the small front trigger inside the trigger guard which allows the mechanism to be retracted which ejects the empty casing and loads a new round on the forward stroke. The long bar at the rear of the trigger guard is the actual trigger. The long lever on side of receiver when pressed forward acts as a cocking mechanism. Consignor states that this rifle has descended down through his family through his grandfather, Return Jonathan Meigs, the inventor’s youngest son (1878-1931), who was a doctor in Lowell, MA. Consignor states that other members of the his great-grandfather’s family were also famous, with another of the inventor’s sons elected as the Governor of Ohio and another was the fourth Postmaster General of the United States. In addition to Joe V. Meigs’ firearms patents he also received a patent in 1879 for an experimental, full size elevated railway which he successfully put into operation in East Cambridge, MA on 1,114 feet of track but his lack of financing doomed the project to failure. CONDITION: Extremely fine plus, as new. May have been fired but if so, very little. Overall retains virtually all of its orig nickel finish that has turned milky. The finish on the exposed part of bbl is somewhat thinned with some freckling to metal underneath. The central stock tube/magazine has a few small dents on right side that does not seem to affect operation. The wood cheekpiece/comb has a few minor handling & storage marks with all of the wood being sound and retaining most of its orig varnish. The cordage wrapped handguard retains virtually all of its orig varnish. Mechanism is fine and functional, bright shiny bore with some minor pitting. A truly rare & exceptional find. 4-39324 JR40 (10,000-20,000)

Auction: Firearms - Spring 2010

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
	2449	$10,925.00	EXTRAORDINARY ENGRAVED FAMILY DOCUMENTED MEIGS REPEATING SLIDE ACTION RIFLE. SN None visible.. Cal. 50 Meigs. This unusual rifle was invented and produced by Joe Vincent Meigs (1840-1907). Mr. Meigs was born in Nashville, TN and attended public schools and later the Lawrence Scientific School at Cambridge, MA but was unable to complete his education there due to his mother’s illness. The Civil War further intervened and due to the staunch union support of his father the family was moved to Staten Island, New York in 1861. Meigs worked in the war office in Washington, D.C. as a clerk in the office of Secretary of War Stanton and later in 1861 he resigned and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant and authorized to raise a company of artillery. He did so, raising a “colored” artillery unit which he commanded until 1865, just before the Battle of Nashville when his lungs were ruptured and he was forced to resign his commission. Meigs was a prolific inventor and was issued patents for breech loading and repeating rifles in 1862, 1866 and 1868 and later for this magazine rifle which holds fifty cartridges. It was claimed by the inventor that a trained soldier could fire all fifty shots in 19 seconds and a new loaded magazine quickly installed to continue firing. He demonstrated that an infantryman can advance at a rate of 109 yards per minute at double quick time and that a soldier in a defensive position, armed with this rifle, could aim and fire one shot for every two steps, thus firing fifty shots before an advancing enemy could arrive to within nine yards of his front. This was truly a revolutionary design for its time but unfortunately was not adopted by the U.S. military as the archaic military thinking of that day postulated that a soldier thus armed would simply waste ammunition and so refused to consider repeating firearms. This rifle was tested over a period of four years during which time 38,000 rds were fired without a failure. The rifle is described as having nickel finish, with a 32-3/4″ tapered rnd bbl with decorative cast brass front sight ring that has an integral globe at the top with a pin sight. Receiver is nickeled brass with decorative relief engraved foliate, floral & geometric patterns with fine stippled background. The slide mechanism and attached large foliate shaped trigger guard are of nickeled steel all attached to a brass tube stock with integral crescent buttplate that has the hinged trapdoor which allows removal and replacing the 50-rd magazine. The top of the central tube/stock is mounted with a very nicely figured rosewood or walnut cheekpiece with raised carved foliate patterns around the heel. Top of the wrist of the tube/stock has an integral sight base containing a proprietary style tang sight with friction elevation adjustment only. Rifle has a full length forestock with incise carved border patterns and a 11-3/4″ handguard which is wrapped with varnished braided cording as are all Meigs rifles observed to date by this cataloger. The heel of the buttplate has a sling eye in an integral base. Rifle functions by depressing the small front trigger inside the trigger guard which allows the mechanism to be retracted which ejects the empty casing and loads a new round on the forward stroke. The long bar at the rear of the trigger guard is the actual trigger. The long lever on side of receiver when pressed forward acts as a cocking mechanism. Consignor states that this rifle has descended down through his family through his grandfather, Return Jonathan Meigs, the inventor’s youngest son (1878-1931), who was a doctor in Lowell, MA. Consignor states that other members of the his great-grandfather’s family were also famous, with another of the inventor’s sons elected as the Governor of Ohio and another was the fourth Postmaster General of the United States. In addition to Joe V. Meigs’ firearms patents he also received a patent in 1879 for an experimental, full size elevated railway which he successfully put into operation in East Cambridge, MA on 1,114 feet of track but his lack of financing doomed the project to failure. CONDITION: Extremely fine plus, as new. May have been fired but if so, very little. Overall retains virtually all of its orig nickel finish that has turned milky. The finish on the exposed part of bbl is somewhat thinned with some freckling to metal underneath. The central stock tube/magazine has a few small dents on right side that does not seem to affect operation. The wood cheekpiece/comb has a few minor handling & storage marks with all of the wood being sound and retaining most of its orig varnish. The cordage wrapped handguard retains virtually all of its orig varnish. Mechanism is fine and functional, bright shiny bore with some minor pitting. A truly rare & exceptional find. 4-39324 JR40 (10,000-20,000) Auction: Firearms - Spring 2010 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.

.red{fill:#B50938;} .white{fill:#FFFFFF;} .blue{fill:#005596;}