Unique markings on a S&W DA 44 Russian

[dingus]

OK this is a strange one markings are JWH
John Wesley hardin perhaps LOL
There period correct stampings look like they were done when the gun was new, gun dates 1893 or 1894 he was killed in 1895.
What are the odds. the markings were covered in crud and dirt the frame barrel and barrel latch serial numbers all match.
The latch screw had never been undone for a 100+ years to take it off to get a look at the barrel serial number so the guns not been researched or that number would have been cleaned up like i had to so i could read it.

The guns a S&W DA model 3 in 44 russian with a 6.5 inch barrel came factory nickled.
Very intresting gun it needed a few parts replaced to get it working right again and shootin(i kept the orignals just in case)
Harding was said to have used a S&W DA .
Reading up on hardin the guy was a real bad ass killed more people than billy the kid.
Then again could be anyone not a easy thing to prove but it makes the gun more intresting.
Im researching the stamps to be sure they were 1800s type letters so far that looks good.

Looks like the gun had pearl handles on it before theses worn hard rubber ones.

Click on pic to enlarge.

 

[LomondK]

here are the original grips

 

[LomondK]

 

[gutinater]

Intersting piece on the 1877 Colt DA and JWH. Seems like he enjoyed his notoriety and it would be pretty damn cool (an extremely valuable) if you had one of his guns! Looks like it may be hard to prove though. Any way to trace back its history and was he known for marking his guns?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xcG2_I5Txw

EDIT: Pulled from another site:

I'll go you one better. I own a Hardin pistol, authenticated by none other than Leon C. Metz, Hardin's best biographer so far. It's a Smith & Wesson #2 with a 6" barrel, serial number from 1868 when Hardin made his first drive to Kansas with his cousin Emanuel 'Manny' Clements, Jr., & it has JWH carved on the inside of each grip, which is how Hardin marked his guns. It was found on a junk table in SW Georgia, about 60 miles from Pollard, Alabama, where Hardin was living when he was captured. Some knucklehead had taken a wire brush & knocked all the patina off it, but it was complete, so a friend of mine, who collected S&Ws but didn't have a #2 in his collection yet, bought it as a type-piece. He took it home & took the grips off to see if they were original--S&W stamped part of the serial# into the grips. Apparently the grips hadn't been off since just after the gun was purchased, because he said 'About a hundred years of grunge' fell out when he removed them. Carved on the inside of each grip were the letters JWH, which is how Hardin marked his guns. It's currently in our museum here in Seguin, Texas, together with an original copy of his autobiography, which was published by the forerunner of our local newspaper, the Seguin Gazette.

 

[dingus]

Intersting piece on the 1877 Colt DA and JWH. Seems like he enjoyed his notoriety and it would be pretty damn cool (an extremely valuable) if you had one of his guns! Looks like it may be hard to prove though. Any way to trace back its history and was he known for marking his guns?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xcG2_I5Txw

EDIT: Pulled from another site:

I'll go you one better. I own a Hardin pistol, authenticated by none other than Leon C. Metz, Hardin's best biographer so far. It's a Smith & Wesson #2 with a 6" barrel, serial number from 1868 when Hardin made his first drive to Kansas with his cousin Emanuel 'Manny' Clements, Jr., & it has JWH carved on the inside of each grip, which is how Hardin marked his guns. It was found on a junk table in SW Georgia, about 60 miles from Pollard, Alabama, where Hardin was living when he was captured. Some knucklehead had taken a wire brush & knocked all the patina off it, but it was complete, so a friend of mine, who collected S&Ws but didn't have a #2 in his collection yet, bought it as a type-piece. He took it home & took the grips off to see if they were original--S&W stamped part of the serial# into the grips. Apparently the grips hadn't been off since just after the gun was purchased, because he said 'About a hundred years of grunge' fell out when he removed them. Carved on the inside of each grip were the letters JWH, which is how Hardin marked his guns. It's currently in our museum here in Seguin, Texas, together with an original copy of his autobiography, which was published by the forerunner of our local newspaper, the Seguin Gazette.

thats great info Thanks for posting it .
Can you tell me which web site you got that from ?

 

[Shooting Bastard]

Holy $hit! How cool is that?

 

[Kewl]

Many unscrupulous dealers are known to fake this kind of thing. I would be very careful.

 

[gutinater]

Took that quote from here:

http:/ /truewest.ning.com/forum/topics/john-wesley-hardin-collection

Dingus maybe you can somehow get ahold of Leon C. Metz and see what he has to say?

 

[dingus]

I dont think its faked it was covered with crud and old grease that had been there along time the markings been there over 100+ years + the letter stamps are period correct, tho anything is posible just need to talk to the right people.

I contacted the heritage Texas museum. they have alot of stuff on hardin.
I will try and contact Leon c Metz but am not sure how to get ahold of him?

 

[gutinater]

No idea bud, just posted what I found through google. Good luck on your search! Kind of like a treasure hunt

 

[dingus]

That museum will know how to get ahold of Metz.

Edit:: i got Leon Metzs phone number in el paso texas.

 

[oldiron]

Maybe a Jinks letter would help a bit, see what part of the US it was shipped to originally. Very interesting gun.

 

[gutinater]

If he marked his earlier guns with his initials carved into the insides of the grips perhaps he got more sophisticated later on in life and had the inside of the grip frame stamped..