doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Had a decent day at Gavin's this morning

Got 2 out of 3. #1. I got the Westley sidelever I posted earlier. WESTLEY RICHARDS A 12-BORE SIDE LEVER BOXLOCK EJECTOR GUN, NO. 14180 30-inch damascus barrels with 2 1/2-inch chambers, about 1/2 and 3/4 choke borings, doll's head extension, the frame and side lever with fine scroll engraving, the maker's name signed within a scrolling banner, the top surface with removable inspection port, 14 3/4-inch well figured stock with semi pistol grip with 1/4-inch extension and chequered butt plate, 6lb. 11oz., nitro re-proof

#2 E. & G. HIGHAM A .375 (2 1/2-INCH) HAMMER RIFLE, NO. 2940 26-inch sleeved barrels, the file-cut top surface with folding leaf sight, the rounded frame, rebounding back locks, bolted hammers and rotary underlever with scroll engraving, 14 1/2-inch figured stock with pistol grip, cheekpiece and steel butt plate, 9lb. 10oz., nitro proof

Very nice. I especially like that rifle.

I’ll 2nd that.

Wow!! Beautiful guns, Mike. 👌🏼

They're both very nice - but that WR sings to me.

Beautiful guns, I especially admire the rifle too!

What was the one that got away?

Best,
Ted

Ted the had a H&H 10 bore shot and ball island lock hammergun. The estimate was way low at 600 to 800 pounds. I went to 1900 pounds. It hammered at 2000 pounds. Which is still cheap but I'd already bought these two.

Geoff, most WR's sing to me. But, as you say this one is really singing. I'm going to have the barrels browned in the UK before I have it shipped.

The only other sidelever that I've ever seen.

Mike,

Glad you bought the WR. There certainly aren’t many sidelever WRs out there. Are you going to get a WR very expensive letter to see who ordered it?

Ken

I've emailed them today. We'll have to see what they say.

The 10 bore ball and shot was a Purdey, I won it.

... So did any of you bid on / purchase Lot 308, a 16 bore ejector retailed by (Captain!) James Kirk of Ayr???

HB

Mike - congrats on both lots...I had bookmarked both but ended up not bidding on anything at Gavin's this go round. Looking forward to seeing how that 375 shoots.

Steve - Neat looking Purdey. Missed that one somehow.

Chris

Chris,
It may have been a late addition, I didn't notice it until the last minute, Gavin didn't even confirm my bid and I thought someone else won it until I received my invoice. I like ball and shot guns, this one should be fun. I wonder if the load is engraved on it anywhere, soon to find out.
Steve

Conrats Steve. If I hadn't won the other two I'd have run it up quite a bit more. Enjoy.

I just received the following email from Westley Richards.

Dear Sir,

Thank you for your kind enquiry,

Your gun was completed for a Sir William Burdett on the 25th of November 1896 & must have had a second gun made later.
Our sidelever shotguns were a special order & we have only seen a handful of them over the years, sadly we cannot confirm how many were made.

With best regards,

Steve


Steven Harridence
Showroom Manager

So far google hasn't come up with anyone I can match that title/name/period to. Finally found this.
Based on records from the late 19th century, the prominent figure matching this description is likely William Burdett-Coutts (formerly Ashmead-Bartlett), who was knighted in 1897 and was a prominent British MP, philanthropist, and author. While he traveled to Turkey and Ireland, records emphasize his work in politics, charity, and fishery development rather than big-game hunting.
Identity: He was an American-born British politician who married the famous philanthropist Baroness Burdett-Coutts in 1881 and took her name.
1896 Activities: During the 1890s, he was deeply involved in London politics as the Member of Parliament for Westminster and managed major philanthropic initiatives.
Background: He was not a traditional landed English hunter-gentleman by birth, but rather a prolific writer and political figure.

Chaps,

From Kelly's "Handbook to the Titled, Landed and Official Classes 1905" the most likely family would be that of Sir Francis Burdett, 8th Baronet of Foremark (granted 1618), who was the only son of the 7th Baronet. He was born in 1869, and is listed as a Justice of the Peace for the counties of Derbyshire and Wiltshire [150 miles from each other]. As of 1905 he was unmarried.
He was an ADC to the Governor of Ceylon in 1901, and had addresses at Ramsbury Manor, Wiltshire and also Foremark Hall, Burton -on-Trent, Derbyshire.

So it could be his son (too young?) or a cousin from further back.

There is also an entry for Sir Henry Charles Burdett, (knighted in 1897) the son of Rev. Halford Robert Burdett, born in 1847 and married in 1875, who did lots of good works with various London hospitals, so could be a son of his??

Good hunting!

HB

Thanks HB. I figure if there's no standout candidates for Sir William Burdett it won't add much historic value to the gun. I'll keep at it when I have time.

Thanks Mike, seemed like a good buy to me. Enjoy the two you just acquired, and your new home in the lower 48.

You two gentleman both got gorgeous guns. They are all beautiful firearms. Best of luck and enjoy them!!

You did a job with those two guns. The Westley Richards sidelever is a classic. It has the things that collectors like, such as the damascus barrels and the sidelever action. The Higham hammer rifle sounds like an old rifle that is easy to handle.

The people who made guns back then were very skilled.

It is getting harder to find guns that're in good shape and the right size. So I think getting two, out of three is a result. The Westley Richards sidelever and the Higham hammer rifle are examples of old guns. I like the Westley Richards sidelever and the Higham hammer rifle because they are old and well made.