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The right side of the frame has “MAJOR GENERAL NELSON A. MILES.” in flush gold inlay, and the left
side of the buttstock has an inlaid silver plaque inscribed “MAJOR GENERAL NELSON A. MILES/FROM HIS FRIEND/CAPT. J.R. HEGEMAN.” In the documents, Assistant Curator Richard Rattenbury of the Winchester Collection at Cody explains that the ledger entries were abbreviated and the notation directly relates to both the gold inscription on the frame and the silver plaque in the stock. He also notes that Miles was a friend of the western artist Frederick Remington. The barrel is fitted with a pinned nickel silver blade front sight and
a military style notch and ladder rear sight graduated to 700 yards on the base and from “8” to “18” on the ladder. The frame has the caliber designation “30” on top at the breech, the three-line address and patent marking on the left, and a saddle ring on the left rear. The upper tang has the two-line model marking, and the serial number is on the lower tang. The carbine
The Model 1895 had been tested in trials to determine the standard rifle for the New York National Guard
in 1896. Hegeman was at that time in the New York National Guard, and considering he was the inspector of small arms practice or assistant of small arms practice for many years thereafter, he was likely familiar with the design and may have been a proponent
for its adoption. While New York did not order the Winchesters, the Colorado and Kentucky National Guard did use Model 1895s, and 10,000 Winchester Model 1895s were also ordered by the Ordnance Department for use during the Spanish-American War on May 3, 1898, for $207,000 and inspected by Ordnance Inspector Kelly S. Morse (his mark can be seen on Hegeman’s carbine), but these rifles were delivered too late to be used in the conflict. However, a few privately purchased Model 1895s in .30-40
Krag were used by the officers of the Rough Riders, including one owned by Theodore Roosevelt that he
is fitted with a deluxe walnut buttstock, forearm, and handguard complete with checkering on the forearm and wrist. The stock has an empty trapdoor compartment and particularly beautiful figure.
As discussed in the preceding section, this carbine
was manufactured towards the end of Miles’s career just following the American victory in the Spanish- American War and during the Philippine–American
War. Its presenter, Captain John Rogers Hegeman Jr. (1872-1923), was a wealthy New Yorker with a particular interest in firearms and marksmanship in the late 19th century and early 20th century and was a member of the New York National Guard at the time this carbine and the carbine he ordered for himself in Lot 1015 were made. His father was the president of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Co., and the younger Hegeman was
an assistant secretary and director of the company. Captain Hegeman was a member of the New York National Guard starting as a private in Company E of the 7th Regiment in 1892. He was a captain and the inspector of small arms practice in the 108th Regiment as of July 1, 1898, and was assigned to the 5th Brigade and acting aide-de-camp as of Christmas Eve that same year. While the 108th New York did not fight in the Spanish-American War, they did muster into service in May of 1898 and were stationed in Virginia and Pennsylvania and suffered from typhoid fever. Starting on Oct. 6, 1899, he was acting as assistant inspector
of small arms practice in the 5th Brigade. This would have been his role when the carbine was shipped in December 1899.
gave to one of his troopers during the Battle of San Juan Hill.
In September 1899, 100 of the Winchester Model 1895s were shipped for field testing in the Philippines by the 33rd Volunteer Infantry, but the report on December 25, 1899, indicated they were inferior to the Springfield Krag-Jorgensen for military service. The remaining 9,900 were sold as surplus through M. Hartley Company, mainly ending up in Cuba in 1906. While
the 1895 didn’t ultimately become a popular military rifle in the U.S., it was a popular rifle with wealthy and influential Americans, especially Theodore Roosevelt. Like Hegeman, Roosevelt presented a Model 1895 to an influential general in December 1899, his to General Leonard Wood. Hegeman and Roosevelt both also had ranches in the West which was somewhat fashionable for wealthy easterners at the time. Hegeman’s friend Edmund Seymour (1858-1949) of the banking firm Edmund Seymour & Co. also had a ranch in the West. Hegeman’s is noted as adjoining William F. Cody’s ranch in Montana, and the Brooklyn Daily Eagle on October 27, 1923, in their obituary for Hegeman, indicated
he actually rode in Cody’s show as a cowboy when it toured the East.
Precisely when and where Miles received the carbine is not known nor are the exact connections between the much younger Hegeman and senior officer Miles. However, Hegeman’s father and General Nelson Miles were part of some of the same elite social circles.
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