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After his service under Fremont and then in the Mexican-American War, Kit Carson became a household name and was soon the subject of
dime novels and other published accounts of
his escapades in the West, some true and some completely fictitious. In 1852, he arranged to go out on a beaver trapping expedition with many
of his old friends, and on their return to New Mexico, they participated in shooting matches.
He dictated a memoir in 1854 and also started
work as an Indian Agent. He continued to hunt
and During the Civil War, he remained loyal to the Union and became the lieutenant colonel of the First New Mexico Volunteer Regiment and faced the Confederates in the Southwest. He was also tasked with conducting brutal campaigns against the Mescalero Apaches by General J.H. Carleton. After the war, he was a brigadier general of volunteers. After leaving the army in 1867, Carson spent his remaining days ranching near Taos, New Mexico, and was also called upon to aid in affairs between the government and the Ute. When Carson died in 1868, Theodore Roosevelt was still a boy, but men like Carson were a lifelong inspiration for Roosevelt. He wrote extensively about American frontiersmen and their role in American history and society
in many of his books and sought the “strenuous life” himself in the West before embarking on his political career.
In 1887, Roosevelt founded the Boone & Crockett Club with George Bird Grinnell to help protect American wildlife and wild places to conserve game animals for future generations of American sportsmen and to establish ethical hunting practices. The name clearly reflects his respect for the frontiersmen of earlier generations. On July 23, 1907, Roosevelt wrote to Grinnell about loaning Carson’s rifle to the Boone & Crockett Club noting that the rifle had been given to Roosevelt shortly before Beale’s death and that Beale indicated he had personally seen Carson use it. Beale himself wrote about one of Carson’s Hawken rifles in a poem about his first harrowing adventure with Carson stating: “...I see you leaning on that old long Hawkins gun of yours, (mine now) and looking
out of those clear blue eyes at me with a surprised reproach, as one who takes an insult from a friend...” That rifle is now known as the “Carson-Beale” Hawken rifle. It is featured between pages 288
and 289 in “Edward Fitzgerald Beale” by Stephen Bonsal published in 1912 and is discussed in detail in The American Society of Arms Collectors article “The Carson-Beale Hawken: Its Identification and Recent History” by Lee Burke with the collaboration of Bill Pirie. That rifle was also sold at the same
time as this rifle in 1972 and was also featured in the American Rifleman article “A Celebration of Excellence” by Brian C. Sheetz in August 2003.
Unlike the other Kit Carson Hawken Roosevelt owned, this rifle is far from your typical Hawken
“Mountain” or “Plains” rifle even though it retains many of the more classic Hawken features. Given this rifle’s general configuration, and immense weight, it was clearly meant for highly accurate shooting from a rest such as a pair of cross-sticks. The large caliber is certainly not typical of target rifles of the period suggesting stopping power was a primary concern, and all of these characteristics taken together would certainly have made it a prime candidate for hunting bison on the plains. In the mid-19th century, millions of bison still roamed the plains, and Carson participated in hunting. The most obvious difference setting this rifle apart from most Hawken rifles is its immense weight. While noted as weighing 18 pounds above, we find that it actually weighs 19 lbs. 3.3 oz. on our scale. Much of that weight comes from its heavy barrel. The bore measure approximately .70 caliber (14 bore) which is significantly larger than the typical .54 caliber
(28 bore) found on many of the classic Hawken rifles. The browned barrel is cleanly marked with the “S. HAWKEN ST. LOUIS” marking used following Jacob Hawken’s death in 1849 and by the Hawken shop even after J.P. Gemmer had purchased the shop. The muzzle is cut round for using a bullet starter, and the barrel features seven-groove rifling, traditional dovetailed blade and U-notch sights, and a very nicely shaped breech plug. A very
rarely seen adjustable peep sight is fitted to an integral base on the upper tang. Rather than barrel wedges like a normal sized Hawken rifle, the heavy barrel is secured via a screw passing through an winged iron washer in the bottom of the forend. The casehardened lock has no visible markings.
The rifle is equipped with adjustable double set triggers and has iron furniture that matches the furniture on other classic S. Hawken rifles, including the distinctive finials on the trigger guard and toe plate. The walnut buttstock has a pewter forend cap, checkered wrist, and shadowline cheekpiece in keeping with the styling of the smaller Hawkens. CONDITION: Exceptionally fine. The rifle retains 75% original brown and casehardened finish blended with smooth brown patina, some minor oxidation, and generally fairly minor overall wear. The stock
is very fine and has some spots of wear in the otherwise crisp checkering, general mild scratches and dents, crack at the lock screw on the left, and the vast majority of the original finish. Mechanically excellent. This is an incredibly rare Hawken rifle variation, the largest caliber Hawken known, and
it is from Theodore Roosevelt’s personal collection at Sagamore Hill. All around, an outstanding and distinctive rifle with highly desirable provenance. Provenance: The Theodore Roosevelt Collection and Gun Room at Sagamore Hill;
The Boone & Crockett Club Collection;
Property of a Gentleman.
Estimate: 55,000 - 85,000