AT AUCTION: The Cordy Rich Collection

The Cordy Rich Collection of Antique American Firearms will be sold at auction, Friday, January 24, 2020 in Mesa, Arizona. Cordy was a well-loved collector from New York State with a keen eye and a voracious appetite for the collectibles that interested him (which were many). His collection of firearms and militaria begins in the 1700s, gets fuller during the Civil War period, moves into carbines, Colts and the West, then continues into the 1960s, with an emphasis on the Winchester lever action. His collection is impressive and uniquely American. Over 200 lots of Cordy’s fine American firearms will be auctioned on Friday night in Mesa; Cordy’s militaria and other collectibles will be included in the 30th Annual Mesa Old West Auction on Saturday night, January 25th.

Learn more about Cordy below.

Learn more about the 30th Annual Mesa Old West Show & Auction HERE.

Purchase your Auction Catalog HERE.

View the Auction Online HERE.

ABOUT CORDY RICH

by Ron Soodalter

Corydon Barr “Cordy” Rich was a hometown boy in upstate New York who achieved great things without ever straying far from home. In 1959 he married Louise, and they raised Philip, Tina and Sheryl, while going into business for themselves in 1971.

But it was in the realm of firearms that Cordy earned the dual reputation as a world-class collector of fine antique weapons and one of the nation’s finest pistol shots. He was New York State pistol champion for over 20 years, shooting both .22 and .45 calibers. He won several first prizes at the Camp Perry national competitions, and was selected to represent the United States at the 1972 Olympics. (When asked what his middle initial stood for, he would reply, “Bullseye.”).

Soon after he and Louise were married, Cordy came home with his first vintage gun. As Louise tells it, she immediately went out and bought a chair for the house. Shortly after, Cordy brought home another gun…and Louise bought another chair. “After that,” she says, “there were no more chairs…but the guns kept coming.”

Once the collecting bug bit him, Cordy initially dedicated himself to acquiring everything with the Winchester name on it. “Our house filled up with Winchester knives, hatchets, kiddie wagons, tennis rackets, calendars, posters, prints, pocket watches, baseball gloves, flashlights…. I couldn’t believe how many Winchester flashlights he found!” And once he satisfied himself that he had acquired at least one of everything bearing the Winchester logo, he devoted himself to the collection of fine Winchester rifles. In time, he acquired exceptional models ranging from the era of the Henry and ’66 Yellow Boy up to the present. When asked if he favored a particular gun, grandson Ian recalled, “There wasn’t a gun in his Winchester collection that he wasn’t proud of. He loved them all.”

Says Louise, “He lived for auctions, shows, flea markets, even lawn sales, looking for fine guns to add to his collection. I believe he read every auction catalog that ever came out. They filled the house! He researched a lot, and built a large library, but it seemed he was born with the ability to know what he was looking at. He had a world of knowledge in his head.”

Condition and rarity were everything. Cordy would sell or trade up if he found a model that overshadowed one he had. Ultimately, he became nationally known as an authority on Winchesters, and people would frequently bring quality weapons to him at his office. “It felt like there wasn’t a day at the shop,” recalls Louise, “when someone didn’t stop in with a Winchester. It’s how he built much of his collection.” Gregarious to a fault, Cordy would spend an entire day talking history – and guns - to strangers and friends alike.

The Cordy Rich Collection represents a lifetime of dedication and discernment, and contains some of the finest Winchester rifles available today. “Now,” says Louise, “The guns need to go to another owner who will love them as much as Cord did.”