Perhaps over 100 years ago but not before 1882 someone perhaps a hunter or a miner left a prized Winchester 1873 rifle against a tree in what would become The Great Basin National Park.
Given that this particular firearm was considered the greatest rifle ever made it is highly unlikely that it own simply forgot where he put it and went on with the rest of his life.
According to Nichole Andler, Chief of Interpretation at Great Basin National Park, “The rifle, exposed for all those years to sun, wind, snow and rain, was found leaning against a tree in the park. The cracked wood stock, weathered to grey, and the brown rusted barrel blended into the colors of the old juniper tree in a remote rocky outcrop, keeping the rifle hidden for many years.”
“Engraved on the rifle is “Model 1873,” identifying it distinctly as a Winchester Model 1873 repeating rifle,” continued Andler. “The serial number on the lower tang corresponds in Winchester records held at the Center for the West at the Cody Firearms Museum in Cody, Wyoming, with a manufacture and shipping date of 1882. But the detailed history of this rifle is as yet unknown.”
While the specific history of the aged Winchester rifle is as yet unknown, the opportunities for speculation are rich. Perhaps it belonged to a lone cowboy riding the high range. Perhaps it was set aside by a sourdough prospector in his search for a vein of rich ore. Whatever the actual story, it has the makings of a great campfire tale.
After museum conservation to prevent further deterioration, the rifle will be returned to the park and displayed as part of the park’s 30th birthday and the NPS centennial celebration.
Winchester rifles were readily available on the frontier and became hugely popular, with over 720,000 produced. This popularity has led the Model 1873 to be credited as “The Gun that Won the West”, and inspired the 1950 Western film Winchester ’73 starring James Stewart and directed by Anthony Mann.
Winchester established a One of One Thousand grade in 1875. All barrels were test-fired for accuracy during the manufacturing process. Barrels producing unusually small groups were fitted to rifles with set triggers and special finish and marked One of One Thousand to be sold at a price of $100. A second grade of barrels producing above average accuracy were fitted to rifles marked One of One Hundred and sold for a price $20 higher than list. Approximately 136 One of One Thousand Model 1873 rifles were sold with only eight Model 1873s of the One of One Hundred grade.
Production of the latter movie included a search for One of One Thousand and One of One Hundred rifles by Universal Studios with advertisements in sporting magazines and posters in sporting goods stores.
In 2013 Winchester brought back this iconic rifle. The rifle is manufactured under license from the Olin company by FN/Browning in the Kochi Prefecture of Japan by the Miroku Corporation. This marks the third of the classic Winchester rifle models to be re-introduced, the previous models being the Model 1892 and the Model 1894. The new model is available with a 20″ round barrel and chambered in .357 Magnum/.38 Special only. It is nearly identical in design to the original Model 73s including the trigger disconnect safety, sliding dustcover, and crescent shaped buttplate, but with two notable exceptions. An additional safety mechanism, a firing pin block that prevents it from moving forward unless the trigger is pulled, was integrated and the cartridge carrier was changed to eject used casings away from the shooter. The fixed, tubular magazine has a maximum capacity of ten rounds.
