Percussion Altered Northwest Trade Gun by Sargant Brothers
Item #: AA3391
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This is a black powder trade gun from the early 1800's manufactured by Sargant Brothers of Birmingham, England. Little is known of this firm other than they made trade guns for John Jacob Astor's American Fur Company and the Chouteau trading post that would eventually become St Louis, Missouri. This old trade gun was originally flint, but has been converted to percussion. It measures 57 3/4" overall, with a barrel length of 42". The barrel is the typical fowling piece design, with the first 7" being octagon at the breech terminating in baluster turned "wedding band" rings, then a 3 1/4 round section ending in baluster turned rings with the remainder of the barrel being round. The smooth bore barrel gauges out at .66 caliber. There is no rear sight on the barrel, the front sight is a small iron blade type. The barrel has an untouched mottled brown and steel patina and shows two Birmingham proofs marks on the left barrel flat at the breech end. There are no other visible stamps on the barrel. The lock plate and hammer have a matching patina of the barrel. The lock is stamped with the "Tombstone Fox over the initials IA", and SARGANT BROTHERS in two lines to the rear of the hammer. The hammer locks in the cocked position, there is not a half cock position. The ramrod thimbles and butt plate are brass, the trigger guard is iron. The side plate is made of brass, and is of the serpent or dragon design. This one has been together for a while, as all the brass has a matching soft golden patina, the butt plate is a little darker. The barrel pins look to be original to the gun, with the pin near the muzzle missing. The stock is a beautiful medium to dark chocolate brown and shows honest wear from use. The barrel channels are still amazingly crisp until you get up to the forward ramrod thimble. The right side shows very slight wood loss in this area. There are no major cracks in the wood anywhere, pretty amazing for a 179+ year old piece of wood. The wooden ramrod that came with the gun looks to be original to it. This is a good representative of an untouched, early 1800's trade gun made by the Sargant Brothers for export to America for the fur trade, and could have been used by trappers, mountain men or Native Americans. The gun dates to the 1820's - 1830's and was converted to percussion in the 1840's. It has all the characteristics you want to see in a North West Trade gun, from the extra large trigger bow, serpentine side plate, octagon to round barrel and of course the "Tombstone Fox" on the lock. It is a rare piece of history that will enhance any early American, fur trade or trapper collection.
Shipping Weight:
7 lbs
Item # AA3391
(Sold)
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