GUN FALL 2015
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 10/5/2015
VERY RARE CONFEDERATE LEECH & RIGDON REVOLVER SN 25.LEECH & RIGDONREVOLVER2536This rare Confederate revolver with small die stamped "LEECH & RIGDON" only is first noted on this particular gun SN 25 with the highest small die stamps proceeding to about SN 375 as 377 first appears with larger dies. These earliest guns probably total only 75 revolvers made in Columbus, Mississippi (per document cited in text by Bill Gary, Confederate Revolvers) due to the factory being forced to move their manufacturing operation in December 1862 due to Union threat. A great detail of production notes and opinion concerning these rare pistols can be found in William Gary Confederate Revolvers and American Society of Arms Collectors articles published by Ted Meredith and Kent Wall. (Kent Wall & Bruce Kusrow, leading Leech scholars opine and reason in these articles that possibly all 375 “small die” guns were made in Columbus). Regardless, there are only 10 known Columbus, Mississippi surviving guns SN under 75 that show the dramatic physical changes as the company improved their product. This is among the best provenanced and well known of Columbus, Mississippi produced guns by Leech & Rigdon and this is a fine complete example. PROVENANCE: Cecil Anderson Collection pictured on pages 16-18 North South Trader magazine, July/August 1985; Kent Wall Collection pictured on the cover and page 27 of North South Trader Civil War magazine, Spring 1997; an article by Kent Wall and William Beard, Hendershott Catalog #111, December 2000; Collection of Jim Maconkey 2004. CONDITION: Metal with old cleaning, grey with white pitting overall. SNs and markings discernible though only about half of the letters in Leech & Rigdon are complete as can be seen in photographs. Gun appears orig and complete. SN 25 found on bbl, frame, trigger guard, backstrap, loading arm, wedge, cylinder, cylinder pin and bottom of right stock (though worn and barely discernible as two indiscernible numbers). Stocks are sound and solid with edge wear, hand worn patina well fit to gun. The loading lever catch is unserialized but over half these earliest models are not serialized and latch has matching patina, tooling and surface matching rest of gun. The loading arm screw is also SNd "36". This is only the 3rd Leech & Rigdon known with SNd screws all in the earliest production; the other two examples are 15 which is being sold as the previous lot (the rare and unique "NOVELTY WORKS" marked pistol) and SN 52. Gun is a bit loose, frame pins can be seen through worn thin walls of bbl housing and a small shim was added to cylinder pin slot to make it tighter. Mechanically gun is functional with crisp rifling in bore though pitted. 49442-3 JS (30,000-35,000)