The Hawken Rifle: Its Place in History

The Fur Press, Published 1980. Paperback, 104 pp.; 26 cm; second printing (October 1980) of the 1979 edition; illustrated with 31 figures (photographs of rifles, map of St. Louis about 1826, facsimile documents, signatures and tables). Publisher's preface by James A. Hanson. In Very Good condition. Tan illustrated paper covers with black lettering on front and spine, front cover with Jacob and Samuel Hawken signatures over a drawing of a rider and wagon train; mild shelf and edge wear. Binding tight. Pages clean and unmarked. Documentary history of the St. Louis Hawken rifle by the director of the Museum of the Fur Trade in Chadron, Nebraska. Working from the Chouteau accounts, American Fur Company papers, estate inventories and St. Louis directories, Hanson argues that the Hawken was a scarce and expensive gun among the beaver trappers of 1820-1840, made probably never more than 120 a year, and that its fame came later with scouts, emigrants and gold seekers. Includes tabulations of known Hawken purchasers and of Lancaster and English pattern trade rifles shipped west, the 1849 inventory of the Hawken shop, and rifles associated with Kit Carson, Jim Bridger and others. Appendices on Jake, Sam and William Hawken and the gunsmith James Lakenan. Contents: List of Illustrations; Acknowledgements; Publisher's Preface; Introduction; How It Really Began; Guns for Ashley; Hawken Rifle Production; Repairs and Sundries; Who Used Hawken Rifles?; How It Really Ended; Observations on Gun Characteristics; A Look at the Literature; Other Rocky Mountain Rifles, Guns for the Mountain Men; The Gun Trade of St. Louis; Conclusions; Appendix A: Jake Hawken and His Family; Appendix B: Samuel Hawken; Appendix C: James Lakenan; Appendix D: William Hawken; List of References Cited; Index.…