.38-40. 24" octagonal barrel with full magazine. SN: 174296A (mfg. ca. 1884). Blued finish, color casehardened hammer and lever, brass cartridge lifter, smooth straight-gripped walnut stock with crescent butt and smooth forend. Lever action tubular magazine fed rifle with semi-buckhorn leaf rear sight and dovetailed German silver front sight blade, butt trap in butt without leaving rods. Barrel with standard two-line Winchester address and "King's Improvement" and patent markings. Top of barrel and bottom of lifter both marked ".38 Cal." Left side of receiver with an old, scratched script identification that reads: "White Wolf/Indian/Meedicine Man (sic)".

"White Wolf" who was also known as Chief John Smith was probably born circa 1822-1826 and lived somewhere between 88 and 137 years as he died on February 6, 1922 and some sources suggest a birth date as early as 1787. He was a Native American of the Chippewa (Ojibwa) tribe and lived in Minnesota. He was know by a number of names, some of which translated as "Old Wrinkled Meat", "Wrinkled Meat" and "Sloughing Flesh", all referencing the appearance of his skin, most notably his face, which was apparently more of a medical issue than a direct result of his old age. White Wolf was the subject of a number of photos taken by photographer C.N. Christensen who documented the traditional lifestyle of the Ojibwa around the turn of the century 20th. These widely disseminated CDVs, post cards and cabinet cards made him somewhat of a national celebrity. The locals in the Cass Lake area of Minnesota often just referred to him as "The Old Indian". In 1920 he was one of the primary subjects of traveling motion picture show that centered around elderly Native Americans. He was apparently elected a chief of his tribe, but declined to accept the responsibility. During his life he had some eight wives and adopted at least one son. While actual date of White Wolf's birth remains unclear, there is some evidence that supports his birth as either 1822 or possibly in the 1780s or 1790s, as the dating of Native American births at the time by the US government was based upon their age when the Leonid Meteor Shower of 1833 occurred. One reference suggests that White Wolf was around 10 years old the year "when the stars fell", but it similar meteor showers in the 1780s and 1790s make this method of dating unreliable, White Wolf himself claimed to been a participant in the War of 1812, suggesting he was born prior to 1800. His tombstone lists 1784 as the year of his death. While the attribution of the rifle is based only upon the scratched name on the side plate of the rifle, the appearance of the writing is such that it appears to be authentic and such a marking would not be out of place on a gun owned by or associated with a Native American who definitely saw himself as type of celebrity during the last decades of his life and who apparently traveled selling images of himself as part of his means to support himself. {ANTIQUE}

Good. Bore good, moderately oxidized and frosted with strong rifling and some lightly scattered pitting. Metal with strong traces of thinning and faded blue showing some scattered patches of light surface roughed and oxidized discoloration. Markings on the barrel remain clear and legible, scratched identification on the left side plate remains legible, if somewhat weak. Mechanically functional action. Wood sanded with moderate wear, and scattered bumps, dings, mars and scuffs. A full-length crack runs from the end of the comb at the wrist through the rod storage channel in the butt to the butt trap.