Henry Rifle --In Untouched Attic Condition--

This is one of the most undisturbed examples of the Henry Rifle that we've ever seen. This is a late Model Henry with the sharp buttplate. The serial number is in the 10,500 range and would have most likely been manufactured by the New Haven Arms Company during the summer of 1865. With the Civil War coming to an end, the market for repeating rifles shifted from the East to Western United States, Canada, and Mexico. As you can see from the photos, it's never been cleaned, with a heavy patina. While the origins of most Henry rifles remain a mystery, we do have a little history on this one. It was discovered in 1999 in western Canada just as you see it now...completely untouched. The previous owner found a piece an old piece of newspaper stuffed down in the stock...probably to keep its cleaning rods from rattling. The paper is tattered but you can read most of it. It's dated 1872 and appears to belong to a page of a newspaper printed somewhere in the vicinity of the Puget Sound. It makes mention of a town called Clinton, British Columbia and another mining town in which the only females were a mother and her daughter. So yes, this is one of the few Henry's we can confidently proclaim went WEST!

The brass has a heavy patina and is caked with decades of old dried grease and dirt...almost black in protected areas. The iron components display a dark brown patina. The barrel has a very good barrel address and you can see a "W" on the lower tang indicating that founder and owner Oliver Winchester was the inside general contractor when this batch of Henry's was produced...other times it will be "H" for Ben Tyler Henry (inventor), a "dot"...an "&" or simply nothing. Incidentally, if you look in The Winchester Book by George Madis, there is a photo of Oliver Winchester's personal Henry rifle which was only about fifty serial numbers from this rifle and was fitted with an experimental magazine cut-off device. The wood is in very good condition with no breaks or cracks but does show plenty of use. Best of all, it displays THE BEST Henry "BUMP" you will ever see on the left side just below the sling swivel. The reason(s) why this convex-shaped bump appears on the sides of so many Henry stocks has long been the topic of debate but it's clearly a manufacturing defect that occurred while the stock was being shaped. Unfortunately, not realizing the importance collectors would some day place upon this little blemish, many of these "Henry Bumps" have been removed over the years by previous caretakers. The action is in good working order although the tip of the extractor broke off long ago. The bolt still retains its original dual firing pins for .44 rimfire. Bore is in good shape with no rings or bulges. Complete with original sights and both original sling swivels intact. This is a real time capsule and one of a handful of Henry's left in the world that has never been spruced up.

Item# 1504

SOLD