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Champion Hill Relics January 31, 2010

John Spicer

PO Box 2112

Brandon, MS 39043

(601) 420-3412

Jim Kannon

1153 Banbury Lane

Brentwood, TN 37027

Mr. Kannon:

Enclosed within this shipment is the beautiful, 100% all-original and FINE condition local Murfreesboro-area ensemble of Confederate belt rig equipment and weapons. Also enclosed with this letter is a copy of the original full description of the grouping as it appeared on the website.

Please feel free to contact me at any time for any reason that I may be of service to you. I pray this grouping bring you years of collecting pleasure.

God Bless.

Sincerely,

John E. Spicer

Champion Hill Relics

KILLER All-Confederate Rig of Weapons and Belt

All Murfreesboro-Area Family "Walk-Ins"

From the Land of Forrest, and Many Noble Southern Warriors !!!

Flayderman's FINE Condition, Pre-War, All-Original, All-Matching, Complete & Fully-Functional Hartford Colt M1851 Navy Revolver

Excellent Condition, Classic Confederate-Made Leather Holster (Made for Colt Navy style/framed Revolver)

Incredible Local-Made Confederate Side Knife & Scabbard (File-Blade Conversion & with Pewter or Lead Framing for the Wooden Handle)

Beautiful Pre-War (small-tongued), German-Silvered Applied Wreath Eagle Belt Plate on Original Belt

All of this entire ensemble were truly 100% "walk-ins" from local Murfreesboro-area descendents of Confederate soldiers, and BOY do they make for a KILLER CONFEDERATE RIG altogether! It's so fine, and so classically "Johnny" as "cornpone and molasses," that you can't help but stare and drool! Which is why I bought them! Knowing that they are right out of the area where so much Confederate history occurred, so much blood was literally spilt by the gallons, where many of Forrest's cavalrymen came out of, and so many other noble, stalwart, and ardent Southern defenders came from....this ensemble is screaming "history"--with a full "Southern accent"!

Oh...where to start! How about the superb, all-original, complete, fully-functional, all-matching pre-war serial numbered (including the wedge), Flayderman's/NRA FINE condition Hartford Colt? Stunning beauty, bearing all-matching serial number 87034 (1858 production). This one even has CRISP cylinder scene ("Naval Battle") on 50%+ of the cylinder!!! All of the markings are really CRISP AND CLEAR, from the Hartford address atop the barrel, to the sub-inspector markings, the "Colts Patent" on the side of the frame--you name it. Action is splendid! Great bore/rifling--though obviously was "fired in anger" in defense of her beloved Southland, but NO burnout, batted cones, cracks, broken or repaired, nor any replaced pieces. Over 30% original case-coloring remains (the Flayderman's threshold for "FINE" condition), giving a beautiful attic/just-toned-down blued patina to the entire piece. Gorgeous original, intact grips with excellent remaining original finish to them. The archetypical Confederate-made holster is almost equally stunning in appearance (given the hard, arduous service it rendered), being 100% complete and intact, from the simple brass finial, the small single belt-loop with simple one-rivet affixing tight and intact, to the unclosed/unsewed open bottom of the holster, with INTACT stitching everywhere, and the classic "Confederate-cut" thin leather design and form (rather "squared" and simplistic in form and design--conserve time, energy, and resources that the South needed to spread-out and use as much--but as sparingly as possible.)

On to the remarkable, local-made Confederate side-knife! On boy....this one puts a grin on my face from ear-to-ear! Classic, crude, simplistic construction, appears to be a file-blade that was converted for the blade of the knife (cross-hatching visible on both sides), made with either pewter or lead as the framework for the handle! And, of course, with the 100% tight, stitching-intact simple scabbard. Unsharpened blade, no nicks, NO damage, NO repairs, and NO "monkey-business"---100% untouched and "righteous" and "tight" piece! The overall total length is 11.5" long, and blade is 6.5" long.

The pre-war, small-tongued, German silver-applied wreath with Eagle plate is absolutely gorgeous. Just perfect. With the mold "cup" in the middle of the back of the plate, this is believed and accepted as an Ames production plate. Fit's snug and tight with the keeper. Leather belt is so pretty, perfectly supple, and no repairs or "worries" at all.

If you priced them out individually, you'd pay at least $5000+ to buy them individually [the FINE Hartford Colt $2200+, the killer CS side-knife $1400+, the CS holster $950+, and pre-war belt and buckle $550+]...and that is without the 100% legit Williamson County/Murfreesboro Confederate provenance! Sure wish I had someone's ID for this stuff, but they don't need it! It's just all Johnny Reb...

$4250 Sale Pending

All-too young, but sternly ready to kill "20 Yankees", this stalwart Tennessean was ready...complete with Eagle-plate rig, side-knife, Colt Navy, and M1855 Rifle...

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Arguably The MOST Iconic CS Revolver of ALL!!!

JS/Anchor CS-Imported, British Kerr .44 Cal. Revolver

VIVID JS/Anchor-Marked Specimen, Matching Patent/Serial Numbered 9012, CRISP MARKINGS

100% GORGEOUS, Complete, & Fully-Functional!

She is truly a MOST GORGEOUS and "iconic" Confederate sidearm in the entire collecting world, being THE original BRITISH and CONFEDERATE-IMPORTED and ISSUED, KERR .44 cal. Revolver. The matching serial/patent number 9012 is upon the cylinder and frame, and the crisp London and British proofs ABOUND EVERYWHERE, as does the "KERR'S PATENT" and the London Armoury marking, as well as the "L.A.C." (London Armoury Company) stamping on the side of the barrel, with the British/London proofs there as well. FULLY-FUNCTIONAL and COMPLETE. It bears the now KNOWN marking of that of John Southgate of the London Armoury (their Chief Arms Proof/Inspector) that was then employed by the Confederacy in 1861 for Caleb Huse, and used his "JS/Anchor" stamping. It was Caleb Huse who acquired the FULL LONDON ARMOURY CONTRACT in April, 1861, that ALL KERR REVOLVER PRODUCTION would be EXCLUSIVELY for the CONFEDERACY ALONE. This .44 caliber (54 Bore in English gauging) beauty is 100% complete, BEAUTIFUL, and FULLY-FUNCTIONAL in EVERY way. Just look at the pics and see for yourself! And NO...EVERY SINGLE ORIGINAL NIPPLE is CRISP and un-batted. It is FREE from ANY active oxidation. It actually has some decent amount of faded original bluing to the weapon, especially the "LONDON ARMOURY" lockplate, which has that CLASSIC British opaque skin bluing--just SWEET! The really "cool" facet and "surprise" to this piece is that--and I didn't even see notice it until I was taking pictures of it--is that there is some kind of "spacer" ring in front of the cylinder on the cylinder pin/shaft. It appears to be iron (it matches the patina of the rest of the weapon) and it is my belief that it is a period addition (again, patina matches). I think this "spacer" was added because of use/wear, or poor craftsmanship by the London Armoury--that either the "teeth" on the back of the cylinder that the loading hand part that comes-up to PUSH UP and AGAINST the "teeth" of the back of the cylinder to cycle/rotate it, got WORN to where it was getting "sloppy" to cycle. OR, it was the loading hand part that was wearing-down/was made just a little too short, thus not allowing it to cycle/rotate the cylinder properly and crisply. Thus, by adding the "spacer" in FRONT of the cylinder, it MADE SURE that the cylinder was as CLOSE to the loading hand part, so as to ensure it would rotate the cylinder when cocking. "Johnny Reb" was ECSTATIC to get such a FINE WEAPON, and it is so thoroughly documented (thanks to such reference books like those of Dr. Murphy & Madaus) how the "Johnnies" would get their weapons REPAIRED and BACK IN THE FIELD to kill more "yankees"!

WE KNOW FOR A FACT--thanks to the ever-famous "Pratt List", the original hand-written handgun accounting of Company H, 18th Virginia Cavalry in July of 1864 by their commander, Pratt--that the Kerr Revolvers within Company H, 18th VA Cavalry in July, 1864 were all within the 9240 to 9974 range of patent/serial numbers. THIS TELLS US that THIS SPECIMEN--patent/serial #9012, EASILY must have been an 1863 PRODUCTION piece from the London Armoury. Why??? Let us use a little logical deduction: SINCE WE KNOW that in July of 1864, that Kerr's in the 99XX range were ALREADY in the FIELD of ACTION, we look at the TIME in which it takes a weapon produced in Europe...which has to GO THROUGH INSPECTION (getting that SWEET "JS/ANCHOR" marking!!!), get LOADED into a ship....make (at best) a multi-month trek across the "Big Pond" (Atlantic)....THEN AT BEST, make a STRAIGHT SHOT into North Carolina....but they typically went to BERMUDA or CUBA, to where they were loaded into SMALLER and FASTER "Blockade-RUNNING" vessels...and THEN make the "run" through the blockade to ANY PORT they could get into, from the North Carolina coast, all the way to Texas. THEN, get UNLOADED....get SENT by wagon/train to some army/arsenal/depot collection point....THEN get sent into the FIELD...and THEN get ISSUED to a specific unit/man. You can read ALL ABOUT IT in the all-important "Firearms from Europe" Civil War reference book! It's all there! We also KNOW for FACT, thanks to the seminal collecting, studying, and then publishing of his KNOWLEDGE by Mr. Forgett--the undisputed "guru" of Kerr Revolvers-- that he wrote in his publication, "In checking my serial records for Kerr's I have either owned or observed and taken notes on, out of 66 guns in the serial number range of 1,050 to 10,164--those being the lowest and highest numbered guns with the J. S. Anchor markings I have ever seen...", we KNOW that 10, XXX is as FAR as the Kerr serial Numbered specimens that MADE IT INTO THE FIELD were. So again, if Kerr 9974 was already IN THE FIELD in July of 1864....it is in my humble (and I think irrefutable!) opinion that Kerr 9012 WAS MADE in 1863, given the amount of LOGISTICAL TIME it took for a finished Kerr at London Armoury to get ALL THE WAY from the London Armoury, into the HANDS of an awaiting cavalryman/officer, took so many months...especially towards the end of the war, as the ever-tightening "Anaconda" stranglehold of the Federal Blockade grew, and thus the ever shrinking number of "safe ports" and shipments that actually made it through to Southern shores.

All the real "experts" ain't talking anymore...for they are LONG DEAD! We can only use what DOCUMENTED FACTS, and logical conclusions inferred from them, to make any other assertions.

Thankfully...this BEAUTY did NOT see TOO MUCH FIGHTING, and probably wasn't issued into the field for service until early 1864. That's why these LATE serial/patent numbered specimens usually are SOOOO NICE!

$3999 Sale Pending/Layaway

You can see this "JS/ANCHOR" marking from ACROSS THE ROOM!!!

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THE "ICONIC" US Model 1841 "Mississippi" Rifle

Made FAMOUS By Colonel Jefferson Davis' Mississippi Regiment's Stand Against Overwhelming Mexican Attacker's in Battle Armed with These Rifles

And a Harper's Ferry Produced Specimen (Most Desirable of ALL the maker's/sub-contractor's)

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RARE M1861 Remington "Old Model Army" .44 Revolver

Only about 6,000 EVER MADE !!!

100% Original, 100% Complete, 100% Fully-Functional

OH YEAH! You know I like 'em RARE!!! This little beauty is not only your ICONIC firearm of the Civil War and mid-19th Century firearm from the still ever-famous Remington Firearms Company, but this baby is an ULTRA-RARE Remington Model 1861 "Old Model Army" .44 Caliber specimen---being only made for one year (1862) and only around 6,000 ever made. Flayderman's Guide to American Antique Firearms explains how the weapon's serial numbering commenced at the end of the Beals Army production, and thus you find the some 6,000 of these rare beauties going between 9000 and 15000 in serial numbering. This specimen is serial # 11866, so an early production piece in early 1862. Flayderman's also describes that these were almost entirely shipped to fulfill government contracts to be immediately sent into service in the field, and notes that, because of their rarity in terms of small production run, coupled with their HEAVY USAGE from 1862 until the very end of the war, that "better condition specimens are scarce...". When Flayderman's even uses the word "scarce"--it's like the old "E. F Hutton" slogan: PEOPLE LISTEN!!! This is INDEED ONE OF THOSE VERY GOOD CONDITION SCARCE SPECIMENS!!! The weapon is actually quite beautiful, being 100% complete, 100% original, 100% fully-functional, having the most wonderful, intact walnut grips with NO CRACKING or CHIPPING whatsoever. The metal has the classic toned-down blued/frosty hue to all the metal surfaces. Only the most minor and expected combat and in-the-field service wear to be found anywhere on this one, and even the Remington patent mark and address-- "PATENTED DEC. 17, 1861 / MANUFACTURED BY REMINGTON'S, ILION, N.Y." are still visible. NO DAMAGE...NO REPAIRS....and NO APOLOGIES for this rare/scarce beauty. Even better yet, not only does the 11866 serial number under the barrel match with the serial number on the inside of the pistol grip frame, the original brass trigger guard has a serial number in the 7X,XXX range, so it has all the "Johnny Reb make-do" flavor to it! How many DUG Remington's have you seen without the trigger guard? Well, obviously they got busted, bent, bullet-struck, or the screw stripped and trigger guard would be lost. In long-term Yankee camps is where you find LOTS of discarded weapons. In Confederate camps, you rarely find discarded weapons, because they couldn't afford to THROW THEM AWAY. So obviously, whoever had this weapon, made SURE he kept it, finding an 1863-production serial numbered trigger guard (heck, you could live without the trigger guard to fire it, but that trigger unprotected would get snagged into anything and everything, and eventually get broken--that's why they DESIGNED weapons with TRIGGER GUARDS!) I don't see Yankee weapons like this...but I sure do find Confederate-used ones that do!

Bet you don't have one of these elusive beauties in your collection! And you'll only get maybe one or two chances a year to SEE ONE FOR SALE...and good luck finding one in better condition, if you do find one at all!

$1598

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Price SLASHED DOWN!

Sweet & Supple CS Russet Leather Cartridge Box

Archetypical CS Arsenal-Made Specimen

NO DAMAGE or REPAIRS, Still One Original Tin Inside

A beautiful and still supple, 100% original and undamaged, no repairs, and with one original tin remaining, Confederate Arsenal-made russet leather cartridge box. [Note...some people debate on what "technically" you call "russet leather"....most people call any leather that is brown in finish/color to be "russet", so that's how I'm defining this cartridge box--it's definitely BROWN LEATHER!!!] It has all the leather intact, as well as all the stitching (except just around the small "moon" shape side protector...it's got a couple stitches loose...but THAT IS IT! Some simple re-stitching or leather glue, and you wouldn't even know the stitching was loose!) The long closure leather tab is also INTACT (typically, they are worn to death, or ripped-off from high wear and usage!) The EXCELLENT CS "pointy" brass original finial is fantastic--this was a higher-quality made specimen from a good arsenal with good construction. All inside flaps are equally supple, intact, and undamaged. The sides bear the simple, small, CS "punch-dot" inspector's trait found on CS specimens...though we're not 100% sure which CS Arsenal this was done by. Designed ONLY to be used with a shoulder sling, they conserved their leather and NEVER made it with belt loops---more classic "Johnny Reb" conservation of his raw materials. The inside leather surfaces are TOTALLY UNFINISHED...yet another CS trait of NOT wasting time to buff and finish the leather, but get it made as fast as possible, and out the door into the arms of the awaiting noble Southern men who needed to fill them with cartridges for the fight. The ONLY thing you can complain about this specimen is that one of the strap buckles is missing--the other is solidly present.

For the price, it's a MOST AFFORDABLE piece of 100% authentic and beautifully-displaying Confederate leather cartridge box...the accouterment that held the lead and powder that was the DEATH of THOUSANDS of Federal soldiers for 4 years.

I've actually seen some CS Cap Boxes priced at about this price--and they aren't maker-marked or anything special to warrant such outrageous pricing! This is a great price for the right CS collector on a budget!

Now Only $1898

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More Pictures with better lighting to show IT IS BROWN! After I applied "Her Majesty's Renaissance Micro-Crystalline Wax" on it for PROPER and REQUIRED preservation for the ages to come, the russet brown leather gets darker because of the wax protection against air, and the fluorescent photography lighting, coupled with a dark backdrop I took pictures of it with, doesn't show the "brown" of the russet leather very well. Sorry!

"MINTY" Condition, & SCARCE CS Classic!

CS Iconic, RARE .36 Caliber Model Adams Revolver

The English Revolver, Made under Contract w/Belgium

Common Practice by the British During the Heady Days of the Civil War, as English Gunmakers Rushed to Fill the "Cash-Cow" Demand/Orders for Weapons in our War, Contracting Revolvers AND Rifles to other Nations (Such As France and Belgium)

VERY SCARCE .36 cal. Model, as Noted in the "Firearms from Europe" Civil War Reference Book

LOADED with the ORIGINAL Blued/Opaque-Skin Finish!

Both US and CS Importation of the Adams Revolver WELL-DOCUMENTED (See "Firearms From Europe" Civil War reference book excerpts below)

But a SOUTHERN classic and coveted Revolver!

Boy, there are "NO APOLOGIES" to be made in THIS GORGEOUS and RARE, iconic Civil War beauty! As so WELL DOCUMENTED in the seminal European firearms Civil War reference book "Firearms From Europe", not only did both sides order and receive these Adams revolvers, but Caleb Huse (Chief CS Importation Agent in England, even BEFORE the War) with his existing "tight" connections with British gunmakers and other European weapons dealers, was able to acquire FAR MORE European weapons, FAR MORE easily! Entire regiments, as well as companies, of Confederate cavalry were armed SOLELY with Adams revolvers, let alone other FINE English revolvers (Kerr's, Webley's, & Tranter's) as noted in the "Firearms From Europe" book, and the now famous "Pratt list" of the 1864 inventory of the Confederate cavalrymen of Company H, 18th Virginia--ALL equipped SOLELY with British Kerr's, Webley's, LeMat's, etc.) CASED PRESENTATIONS specimens were given to the FAMOUS Confederate Generals, such as "Stonewall" Jackson and J. E. B. Stuart. Moreover, as the "Firearms from Europe" refernce book notes, the .36 calibered specimens were the SCARCEST-PRODUCED specimens, as they focused primarily on larger-calibered pieces (.44/.45 cal. "Army" revolvers, but these .36 calibered ones were to coincide with the over 100,000 already in existence in 1860, Colt .36 cal."Navy" revolvers--the Southern STAPLE sidearm at the beginning of the war.)

This specimen is indeed a SUPER-FINE condition, ALL-ORIGINAL, FULLY-FUNCTIONAL, and COMPLETE example! It is truly LOADED with the original blued finish upon the entire frame and loading lever--I'm talking about the original opaque FILM coating of the original bluing intact! The cylinder and bottom cap--with the bottom cap STILL HAVING the original sling/lanyard rig!--were not given the same bluing (as was common--usually the cylinder was CASE-HARDENED to protect against the gunpowder fouling and thus oxidation). The weapon is 100% COMPLETE, 100% FULLY-FUNCTIONAL in it's designed double-action mode (you pull the trigger to cycle the weapon to fire it--and it cycles, lines-up, and fires as PERFECT and CRISP as the DAY IT WAS MADE!) It has the classic Adams/British style "neckless" hammer (see "Firearms from Europe" excerpt below), and ALL the EXQUISITE classic English scrollwork/engraving. It bears the matching serial/patent numbers of "2276" both on the cylinder, and under the barrel. It bears virtually NO wear, and NO DAMAGE and NO REPAIRS whatsoever. The SUPER-FINE classic British checkered grips on their Adam's, Kerr's, Webley's, is as FINE and PERFECT as the DAY IT WAS MADE! The Belgium Liege marking is vividly seen upon the side of the frame--again, proof that of which we already know of England's utilization of trusted gunmakers outside of their country to "cash-in" on our War's seemingly insatiable demand for firearms! (Like the Belgian and French-made Enfield Rifles, so too were British revolvers contracted out for production by these countries, for they already were running at FULL CAPACITY! And they wanted to get EVERY DOLLAR, BOND, OR GOLD they could from us for these weapons!) And if you'll notice, there isn't any British retailer markings, or other British markings...so what does that HINT to? That it got PRODUCED and SOLD , and SHIPPED ASAP over HERE! We KNOW by FACT through CS cargo manifests of Blockade Runners, and Southern wartime newspapers that these were IMPORTED and being SOLD throughout the south, both through private Southern retailers and directly to the Confederate government (also WELL documented in the "Firearms from Europe" reference book!) Only minor "speckling" or "spangling" of where oxidations over the 150 +/- years have come through. Just look at the many fine pics below, and you'll see what I mean--it has NOT been cleaned or RE-FINISHED AT ALL! In fact, using some RB-17 gun cleaner, one could possibly clean the tiny flecks of oxidation poking through the couple of spots through that GORGEOUS original skin-blued finish (at least at the Flayderman's "80%" mark, which would classify as "EXCELLENT" condition, above the "FINE" threshold of "30%")--but I left it THERE to PROVE this ultra-fine condition piece and the original bluing is the REAL DEAL!

You will NOT find another SCARCE .36 caliber Adams Revolver--British-marked or otherwise--ANYWHERE near this condition or price. PERIOD.

And priced at much as an AVERAGE Colt .36 cal. NAVY Revolver, that they made over 200,000 of!!! Compared to this ULTRA-RARE, only a few thousand ever MADE beauty!

$2198

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