May 7, 2024 The Paul Friedrich Collection of Firearms & Gold Rush
The live portion of this session begins on Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
Shipped from the factory on May 5th, 1883, in soft finish to Hartley and Graham in New York, New York, in a shipment of 10 guns of the same type. According to the note on the accompanying factory letter, "soft finish" indicates that the subject revolver was shipped without final finishing for engraving outside the Colt factory. Hartley and Graham would then outsource the revolver for engraving and finishing before shipment to the end user. Currently New York engraved with scroll on a punchdot background in about half coverage. After engraving, the gun was nickel-plated. Mounted with interesting ivory grips hand carved with a T that becomes an Anchor with the letters "T" and "G" on either side of the centerline (initials?), which appears to be the cattlebrand for the T Anchor Ranch. Leigh R. Dyer, a brother-in-law of Charles Goodnight, founded the T Anchor Ranch. Goodnight was a former Texas Ranger who later fought in the Civil War. After the War the "Father of the Texas Panhandle" invented the chuckwagon and became a famous cattle rancher in the latter half of the 19th century, basing himself in the Texas Panhandle and doing cattle drives throughout the area and as far as Wyoming. Dyer, along with his brother, Walter, built what would become the T Anchor ranch headquarters in 1877 and sold their claim to the surveying firm of Gunter, Munson, and Summerfield in 1878. These cattle from this firm would have a brand that resembled a crescent G brand. In 1881, they would drop this for the T Anchor brand. The men from the T Anchor Ranch would go on cattledrives that included up to Dodge City, Kansas, from 1882-1885, when Munson sold to an English company that continued to operate the ranch under the brand until 1895. The state of Texas bought the original headquarters in 1975 and it is still viewable near the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum as fully restored. It is the oldest surviving Anglo structure in the Panhandle. CONDITION: Good, with an average of about 95% of the nickel plating worn to an appropriately weathered brown patina. About 5-10% of nickel plating remains on frame and as much as 20% remains on barrel. Grips have yellowed with age and have a small stabilized crack on right grip panel. Action is loose, but retains all 4 hammer stops. Bore is dark with visible rifling. An opportunity to own a Colt Single Action Revolver with Texas Panhandle attribution and a shipping destination appropriate for further shipment out West by a large retailer.
Paperwork
Texas T Anchor Ranch article, Factory Letter