Ornate Remington No. 2 Rolling Block Rifle Owned by L. Geiger

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  Lot #60  (Sale Order: 60 of 664) 
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Historic Documented New York Engraved and Gilded Remington No. 2 Rolling Block Sporting Rifle with L.C. Cummins Scope Owned by Inventor Leonard Geiger and Passed Down Through His Family

The No. 2 rifles were manufactured c. 1873-1909. This rifle was passed down through the family of inventor Leonard M. Geiger (1829-1904). He was of Polish ancestry, immigrated to the U.S. from Germany in 1849, and was a stone cutter by trade and a talented marksman. He settled in Hudson, N.Y., and invented a "swinging breech" breech-loading rifle (patent 37,501 of 1/27/1863) and the jacketed bullet (patent 343,269 of 6/8/1886). His patent pre-dated the designs of Joseph Rider (patent 45,123 of 11/15/1864), and the rights were purchased by Remington in 1865 for a 50 cent royalty per Rolling Block Rifle produced which led to Geiger being widely credited as the inventor. Rider may have seen and been influenced by his design. Edward Hull in "Leonard Geiger Inventor of the 'Rolling Block Rifle'" in the December 2010 issue of "Man at Arms" made the case that Geiger and Joseph Rider had developed their designs independently and indicates Remington purchased the Geiger patent rights to prevent it from becoming a competitor or a legal complication rather than to use it as the basis for their designs. This rifle is illustrated in the article. Gary James writing for the American Rifleman in 2023 summarized the Geiger/Rider issue nicely: "In January 1863, Leonard Geiger patented a clever breechloader that employed an action involving a rotating breechblock backed by a centrally mounted hammer. Some 11 months later, coincidentally, Remington Arms designer Joseph Rider also registered a mechanism so similar to the earlier patent that the firm decided it would be commercially prudent to purchase the rights to Geiger’s invention." Geiger's design was clearly a predecessor to the Remington design, and his rifle designs were certainly part of the important transition from muzzleloading rifles to breech-loading rifles in the 1860s and were tested by the U.S. Ordnance. Geiger's patent was clearly under consideration as Remington was developing their design which was widely used throughout the late 1800s and into the 1900s.Geiger continued to tinker in his workshop, remained a serious marksman long after his patent was sold, and promoted Remington's rifles. His family reported that he would fire ten shots a day at a target on a large stump behind his home, and he competed in various competitions in the late 19th century. Some publications specified that he used a Remington Creedmoor rifle. In 1876, he was noted as the first winner of the Amateur Rifle Club's match at Creedmoor in July 1875 with a score of 174 out of 225, including 23 bull's-eyes. The gold "Geiger Badge" was offered by him as the award for the next year and won by Major Henry Fulton. Geiger competed on the Hudson River Rifle Association's team in another match in 1875 and won a match in 1878 at the opening of the rifle range for the 3rd N.Y. Division with a score of 44 out of 50 and was on the team of the Parthian Club of Hudson, N.Y., at the NRA's match. In 1880, he won another match at the 3rd N.Y. Div.'s annual matches with 74 out of 75 at 600 yards. He competed until at least 1887 when he participated in the Bullard Match in Springfield and had a net worth of over $300,000. Includes information on his life, the development of the Remington Rolling Block Rifle, and on the rifle being passed down to Geiger's great-great grandson. Also includes a stag handled walking stick, framed portrait of Leonard Geiger (a piece noted as absent in firearms literature), and a framed remembrance for George W. Geiger, one of his sons.The rifle features a custom barrel possibly installed by Geiger himself. The barrel is unmarked but is noted as chambered in .25-20 Single Shot and has a a dovetailed globe front sight, empty rear sight dovetail, additional pair of dovetails holding the mounting rings for the affixed scope which has a blued tube with light engraving towards the rear, a German silver eye-piece, and is marked "L.C. CUMMINGS/MONTPELIER VT./PAT. JUNE 6, 1893" (also appears to have an 1892 date). The distinctive No. 2 frame features beautiful American scroll engraving and a gold plated finish and was likely engraved by L.D. Nimschke. The patterns are similar to those documented in Nimschke's pull-book on other Remington Rolling Block frames (see page 24 of "L.D. Nimschke Firearms Engraver" by Wilson). The only marking visible on the frame is the serial number on the lower tang. The Schnabel tip forearm has a contrasting grip insert and some figure, and the nicely figured walnut buttstock has a custom blued steel shotgun style buttplate in place of a curved buttplate, again possibly fitted by Geiger himself.

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more... Provenance: Inventor Leonard Geiger; The Geiger Family

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This item is part of Premier Firearms Auction - Day 1
 Friday, May 17, 2024 | 9:00 AM  Central
 
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Ornate Remington No. 2 Rolling Block Rifle Owned by L. Geiger
Ornate Remington No. 2 Rolling Block Rifle Owned by L. Geiger
Lot number: 60
Seller: Rock Island Auction Company
Event: Premier Firearms Auction - Day 1
Ends: Friday, May 17 | 9:00 AM  Central

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