S/N 15368, .45 Long Colt caliber, 5 inch barrel Colt Single Action Army. Nickel finish, factory 1-piece ivory grips. Colt letter states “shipped to Robert Strahorn”, 1876. Condition: bore is not a factor, retains 20% of its original nickel scattered over the surface areas, barrel was shortened to 5 inches during period of use. Grips have shrunk slightly and have a wonderful, mellow aged surface; metal surfaces show the results of hard use, mechanically very good.
Includes Colt Factory letter and copy of Strahorn’s book, "Crazy Horse; Robert Strahorn & the Rocky Mountain News.”
Robert E. Strahorn (1852-1944). At at the age of 24, Strahorn sought adventure and fame in the Great Sioux War of 1876-77 as a war correspondent for the New York Times, Chicago Tribune and the Rocky Mountain News. Strahorn was embedded with General George Crook’s Big Horn and Yellowstone Expedition for over a year and reported the people and events of the Great Sioux War to the public. “I insisted that I was going in to fight. It was my business as a correspondent to get the news, and I couldn’t think of getting it from the rear.” At the time, war correspondents rode into battle with the troops. General Cook said, “Strahorn worked as well with his rifle as with his pen.” Strahorn was commended by Secretary of War for distinguished bravery and gallantry in action against hostile Indians during the Great Sioux War. Strahorn fought and reported the Horsemeat March, Battle of Powder River, Battle of the Rosebud, Battle of Slim Buttes, Dull Knife Fight and Battle of Wolf Mountain. Strahorn also reported the Battle of the Little Big Horn and witnessed the surrender of Crazy Horse at Fort Robinson on May 6, 1877. Strahorn summarized the rigors of the Great Sioux War. --from military.wikia.org
Lot 346, Sold $23,600.
Brian Lebel's Mesa Old West Auction - January 23, 2021. Mesa, AZ.