3219 FAMOUS DOCUMENTED SAMUEL HAWKEN PLAINS RIFLE FROM

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[?]Live Online Auction Starts In 2026 Nov 08 @ 10:00 (UTC-04:00 : AST/EDT)
Category Firearms & Military
Auction Currency USD
Start Price 40,000.00 USD
Estimated at 80,000.00 - 150,000.00 USD
THE PERSONAL COLLECTION OF PRESIDENT THEODORE ROOSEVELT, EDWARD F. BEALE, & FAMOUS ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONTIERSMAN & GUIDE KIT CARSON. Cal. 56. NSN. This rifle is among the best researched and documented historic rifles known. The "CARSON-BEALE HAWKEN" rifle was awarded a silver medal at the 2006 NRA national show for 1 of the 10 best weapons and holds regard as one of the most historic rifle lineages to come to auction. The famous Hawken rifles were developed by the brothers Jacob & Samuel Hawken in their shop in St. Louis, MO. The rifles were highly regarded amongst frontiersman and fur traders including Kit Carson. Carson is known to have owned a number of Hawken rifles. The rifles that he owned are highly sought after due to the legends and fame surrounding this iconic figure. Kit Carson began his career on the Sante Fe trail where he rose in notoriety before eventually guiding famous expeditions across the western frontier including the First (1842), Second (1843-44), & Third (1845-46) Fremont Expeditions. He was the primary scout and guide during the third military focused campaign which contributed to the conquest of California.General Edward Beale served in the US Navy from 1837-51. After sailing with the Navy as a midshipman until 1845 he was assigned under Captain Robert F. Stockton. They sailed to Texas to coordinate the annexation of Texas with the Texas Congress. Beale was then promoted to acting master and private secretary to Stockton. Shortly thereafter Stockton tasked Beale with disguising himself and travelling to England to measure the British sentiment on the Oregon boundary. In 1846, Beale revealed directly to President Polk that war preparations were being discussed amongst the British. After returning to Stockton they made landfall in Monterey, CA in July of 1846 where Beale was assigned by Stockton to serve with land forces. Beale eventually joined General Stephen Kearny shortly before the Battle of San Pasqual in 1846. The US forces were surrounded by the Mexican Army. With doom in sight, Beale and Carson, who was serving as guide for Kearny, snuck past enemy lines to find reinforcements from Stockton 30 miles away near San Diego. Reports indicate that they traveled bare foot and without water canteens to avoid detection. As a result, the reinforcements were able to drive the Mexican forces back and rescue Kearny & his men. Stockton then tasked Beale with traveling to Washington "without delay" with Carsons party in the most expeditious route overland to personally deliver the dispatches to the Sec. of the Navy. Stockton gave Carson ten picked marksmen and the expedition traveled south to the Gila, a tributary of the lower Colorado. When they reached the Gila Carson detected a group of hostile Indians trailing them, staying out of sight in an attempt to ambush the party. Carson determined that the Indians would ambush when the party made camp in the wide open prairie. The party made camp early and pretended to bed for the night. Once darkness set the party moved to another area and set up defenses approx. 1 mile away where they received inaccurate fire from the Indians who were unable to pin point their location. The party would go on to be tracked and harassed by a large band of Indians for eight hundred miles day and night. The band charged the party numerous times and when that failed they attempted to drive the horses and mules into stampeding away. Carson spoke of Beales bravery during the expedition as recounted in Beales 1912 biography by Stephen Bonsal. "THINGS WHIRRING LIKE BIRDS ON THE FLIGHT WUZ FLYING OVER US AS I WUZ TRYING TO SLEEP BY THE CAMPFIRE [SAID CARSON], AND NED WAS SLEEPIN OR LEASTWISE HE WUZ SNORIN. THEN SUDDENLY HE SITS UP AND SAYS "WHAT'S THAT DON KIT?' AND I SAYS, "THEM'S ARRERS" AND THEY WUZ AND COULD YOU BELIEVE IT BEFORE I COULD HOLD HIM DOWN NED WAS WRAPPING HIS BUFFALO ROBE ABOUT HIM AND STANDING IN THE FIRE KICKING OUT THE EMBERS. "NOW," SEZ HE, AS THEM ARRERS CAME WHIZZIN ALONG LIKE A RAFT OF GEESE GOING SOUTH BEFORE ER NORTH WIND. "NOW," SEZ HE, "DON KIT, THEY WON'T BE ABLE TO GET OUR DIRECTIONS ANY MORE AND YOU KNOW THEY DON'T DARE RUSH US"; THEN HE TUMBLED DOWN ON THE GROUND AND WENT ON WITH HIS SLEEPIN."Beale would later recall Carson and the Hawken in a poem defending his friend from a poor characterization written about Carson by Joaquin Miller in the Harper's Weekley. "OH, KIT, I THINK AGAIN OF AFTERWARDS, ON BLOODY GILA, WHERE WE FOUGHT ALL DAY AND TRAVELLED ALL NIGHT, WITH EACH MAN HIS BIT OF MULE MEAT AND NO OTHER FOOD, AND WHEN WORN FROM A HURT VOULD GO NO FURTHER. I BEGGED YOU TO LEAVE ME AND SAVE YOURSELF. I SEE YOU LEANING ON THAT OLD LONG HAWKINS GUN OF YOURS (MINE NOW) AND LOOKING OUT OF THOSE CLEAR BLUE EYES AT ME THE A SURPRISED REPROACH AS ONE WHO TAKES AN INSULT FROM A FRIEND"The rifle is featured with a detailed image on pg 289 of the 1912 Beale biography with the caption "This gun was given by Kit Carson to General Beale, after a brush with the Indians in which Carson claimed that General Beale had saved his life. It was afterward presented by Truxton Beale to Theodore Roosevelt, who in turn gave it to the Boone & Crockett Club".Theodore Roosevelt in a letter concerning his donation of this rifle to the Boone & Crockett Club, July 23, 1907 "THIS IS KIT CARSON'S RIFLE, PRESENTED TO ME BY GENERAL EDWARD F. BEALE, WHO IN HIS YOUTH HAS BEEN A CLOSE FRIEND AND COMPANION OF KIT CARSON'S. GENERAL BEALE GAVE IT TO ME NOT VERY LONG BEFORE HIS DEATH, SAYING THAT THE RELIC POSSESSED SUCH VALUE IN HIS EYES THAT HE WISHT IT TO GO ONLY TO SOMEONE WHO WOULD APPRECIATE IT, AND THAT HE HAD PERSONALLY SEEN KIT CARSON USE IT."In 1972 Norm Flayderman was commissioned to sell the Boone & Crockett collection. In his description of the rifle, listed as gun number 11, he lists the repair in the wrist "clean crack completely through the wrist with very crude brass nut and bolt repair" that can be seen in the image from the 1912 Bonsal Beale biography. The repair was "remedied" with a more professional repair at a later date after the Boone and Crockett sale. The rifle has a small amount of wood loss visible in the 1912 Bonsal-Beale biography that Norm describes as a "narrow sliver lacking side of forend". The buttstock was described by Norm as "Number of line cracks and breaks on butt stock which will require repair". The repairs were performed after the Boone & Crockett sale with the line patterns of the original cracks visible in the 1912 Bonsal-Beale bio still visible. In a 1972 Boone & Crockett Clube members letter from Robert Ferguson, he indicates that the sale of the collection will be conducted by Norm Flayderman. The intention of the club indicated in the letter was that "the Club should not be a repository for miscellaneous firearms and we should retain in the Gun Room at Sagamore Hill only those guns having personal significance to Theodore Roosevelt and the Roosevelt family." The description provided by Norm made no mention of the connection to Roosevelt, Beale, or Carson and the likelihood is that the club did not indicate the provenance to him when he was selecting the items for retention by the Club. The rifle was offered for $1250.00. This rifle has been featured on the cover and in articles from the Gun Journal (Dec. 1996) & Man at Arms (Dec. 2014) and discussed in numerous other articles and conversations. Interested parties should read the extensive research & provenance documents associated with this historic rifle used by Kit Carson & Edward Beale two of the most famous American frontiersmen who played such a major role in westward expansion.Classic Hawken Plains Rifle is in standard configuration sold to buffalo hunters and plainsmen who wanted the best rugged no frills large bore gun to get the job done, iron mounted without patchbox, 53.5" overall, 30" octagonal barrel stamped on top flat: "S. HAWKEN ST. LOUIS", inset blade front sight and fixed notch rear sight, double set triggers, half stock attached with 2 keys. UNATTACHED ACCESSORIES: copy of several letters concerning this rifle from Theodore Roosevelt's retained letter book at the National Archives. A massive file of correspondence, research, and original materials & books relating to this rifle and lives of Kit Carson (1809-1868) & General Edward F. Beale (1822-1893). Silver NRA medal # 443 and award certificate. CONDITION: very good overall, professionally restored break at wrist and upper tang as described in large accompanying files, fine action, very good 7 land & groove rifled bore. PROVENANCE: Kit Carson; Edward F. Beale 1871; Truxton Beale 1893; Theodore Roosevelt from Truxton Beale; Boone & Crockett Club donated by Theodore Roosevelt; Norm Flayderman handled sale of the Boone & Crockett collection 1972; John H. Batten collection 1972; Estate collection of William Pirie Co-Author of "Variations of Colt's New Model Police & Pocket Breech Loading Pistols", from his uncle John H. Batten. (01-29345/JS). ANTIQUE. $80,000-150,000.