doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Dating a photo by gun

Yes, I suspect you are right about it being a cheap import gun. I have one myself, a W. Richards from about the same time period.

Blue Grouse, I contacted Stormy Komer. The first reaction was, not theirs. But they are going to look into a bit more. Thanks for the suggestion.

I have Filson on the line looking at the hat right now.

Sort of a fun project.

Dunno what the shotgun is. I recognize the bird though; I've seen a good many of them on their migration through the Saskatchewan prairie where I hunt. The Guv will close whole blocks of our hunting grounds when they're in the area. Good pic to show just how BIG the Whoopers are. Much larger than a Sandhill...Geo

The problem of dating photos by guns pictured is guys like us. Lots of my pictures are made with antique guns...Geo

Yup, that's why I am also focusing on the hat. It seems the most distinctive.

I'm going to wager a guess and say based on the button boots, the gun, the trousers and the over the mouth, western-style mustache, this picture hails from the 1880s. Could be a decade or so later, if he was not up on the fashions of his time.

I was thinking 1890-1900. I'll give you 10 yrs, however, rural Nebraska would easily be a decade+ behind the leading edge of "hunting fashion".

Geo..... are the antiques us, the guns, or both?

I too have a back action hammer sidelock bearing the W Richards name. It also has a left side lever opener & carries Birmingham proof marks which date it as a Pre-1887 gun. It very much resembles the gun in the picture, but of course, there were others which also looked similar. Several of the Higher Echelon British made side lever guns though had right side levers. They seem to be more common than left side levers.

The better way to date the photograph is by the paper and the type of processing. Very early prints were the size of the negative and the way the paper was processed took many forms. It wasn't till later that enlargers were used and the printing became a 2 stage chemical process using silver nitrate papers. As well the name of the company who produced the picture was usually stamped on the back of the picture. The following link may give you a better idea.

http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/features/photographicproject/photographicprocesses.html