Loaded with history
Historic firearms have stories to tell
Miller & Miller's first-ever Firearms & Sporting auction included a remarkable array of historic firearms, each with a story to tell.
Like it or not, you can’t tell the story of Canada - or any nation - without mentioning firearms. The crack of a pistol in a dusty saloon. The whispered exchange of a trade musket for furs along a northern river. The steady vigilance of a mounted officer patrolling the Canadian frontier. Antique firearms are valued by collectors not only for their clever mechanics and attractive design but also for the stories they tell. Miller & Miller's first-ever Firearms & Sporting auction (featuring the G. Wayne Connor Collection), under the direction of firearms expert Paul Matheson, brought many of these stories to life. From sleek pocket pistols to military-grade rifles, each gun had a role in its era, and their history connects us to the people who once wielded them.
Guns have always been more than just weapons. Throughout history, they’ve acted as forms of currency, tools for self-defense and survival, and markers of power. In the 17th and 18th centuries, “trade muskets” were integral to the fur trade in North America. These simple, mass-produced guns became currency in exchanges between European settlers and Indigenous North Americans. The Hudson’s Bay Company would order thousands to trade for valuable beaver pelts. A single musket could fetch 10 to 20 pelts, fueling Europe’s hunger for fur and equipping Indigenous hunters with essential tools for survival.
The March 29th Firearms & Sporting auction showcased a selection of historic trade muskets, including a circa 1875-1880 example by English maker Isaac Hollis & Sons (lot 75), distinguished by brass serpent side plate decorations typical of Hudson’s Bay Company contracts. Another highlight was lot 77, a scarce Canadian percussion trade rifle from circa 1830-40, crafted from repurposed rifle components by British makers Baker and Brunswick. It featured intricate scroll engravings, silver detailing, and “Baker-style” rifling (grooves inside the barrel that spin the bullet like a football for greater accuracy). In contrast, “smoothbore” firearms, like most trade muskets of the era, lacked rifling and were less accurate over long distances.
Lot 75 - Isaac Hollis & Sons Northwest Trade Gun
SOLD: $2,006
Lot 77 - Scarce Canadian Percussion Trade Rifle
SOLD: $3,245
While most trade muskets were rather basic in design, a 'Chief’s Musket' was special. These elaborately decorated guns were intended as diplomatic gifts to Indigenous leaders, inset with a shiny embossed silver chief head logo that was about the size of a silver dollar . The rare Willets manufactured Chief’s musket (lot 76) was one such example, originally crafted by the British firm as a ‘flintlock’ to arm British allies during the War of 1812. It was later upgraded to ‘percussion’ in the 1840s-50s (note: the difference between flintlock and percussion firearms lies in their ignition system: flintlocks used a piece of flint to create a spark, while percussion guns relied on a cap that, when struck, ignited the gunpowder more reliably and quickly).
Lot 76 - Very Scarce Willets Contract Chiefs Musket from the War of 1812
SOLD: $3,245
While trade muskets built bridges between peoples, military weapons determined who would cross them. Before Canada had a professional army, local militias were the backbone of defense. These part-time soldiers, often farmers or tradesmen, trained occasionally but were expected to readily defend their communities if war or unrest broke out. Two rare Colt Model 1851 Navy revolvers featured in the sale were relics from this era, each tied to different Upper Canada militia units: the St. Thomas Militia (lot 168) and a small 20-trooper Yorkville militia (lot 170). These firearms were part of Britain’s broader strategy to arm its North American colonies against American invasion and internal threats.
Lot 168 - Upper Canada Militia Colt 1851 Navy Revolver
SOLD: $10,620
Lot 170 - Upper Canada Militia Colt Second Model 1851 London Navy Percussion Revolver
SOLD: $15,340
When the American Civil War broke out in 1861, reliable sidearms became crucial for soldiers on either side of the Mason-Dixon line. Lot 148 featured a Lefaucheux 1854 Pinfire Revolver used by the Union Army, a military force that fought for the northern states. Interestingly, its missing lanyard loop (the metal ring that allows for the attachment of a string or lanyard) is a story in itself, suggesting that a soldier may have removed it to avoid the threat of clinking during a stealthy operation. The Colt 1860 Army Revolver (lot 7) was one of the most widely used officer’s pistols during the Civil War.
Lot 148 - Lefaucheux M1854 Pinfire Revolver in U.S. Union Army Purchase Range
SOLD: $944
Lot 7 - Colt 1860 Army Revolver
SOLD: $3,245
Amid the chaos of battle, small, concealable weapons became a soldier’s silent lifeline. The rare Colt 1862 Pocket Navy Revolver (lot 167) was a compact version of Colt's full-size Navy revolvers. Fewer than 18,000 were made, and many were later converted to fire modern cartridges. This revolver, remarkably preserved in its original configuration, still loads manually — just as Civil War soldiers would have used it.
Lot 167 - Very Scarce Colt Model 1862 Pocket Navy Revolver
SOLD: 1,888
After the Civil War, the tumultuous era known as the American Wild West (1865–1895) was marked by westward frontier expansion (“manifest destiny”), shifting law and order, and the rise of infamous gunslingers. Extra small, pocket-sized firearms like the Colt 3rd Model "Thuer" Derringer (lot 2) provided gamblers and outlaws with a last line of defense when danger struck. The sale featured several pocket-sized Colts from the late Robert Warwick collection.
Lot 2 - Colt 3rd Model "Thuer" Derringer
SOLD: $649
Lot 5 - Colt Model 1849 Pocket Revolver
SOLD: $1,888
As anarchy reigned, law enforcement officials needed weapons they could rely on. The Colt Model 1862 Pocket Police Revolver (lot 165) combined the power of Colt’s larger revolvers into a smaller, more portable sidearm for officers. The example from the sale was one of only 28,000 ever made. The 1884 Enfield Mk. II Revolver (lot 166) was used by the North West Mounted Police on the Canadian frontier into the 20th century.
Lot 165 - Scarce Colt Model 1862 Pocket Police Revolver
SOLD: $1,770
Lot 166 - Colt Model 1849 Pocket Revolver
SOLD: $2,124
The calendars, posters, and bullet display boards used to sell antique firearms are as intriguing as the firearms themselves. Winchester, one of America’s most iconic gun manufacturers, used bold, rugged imagery by famous illustrator artists to market its products. The 1912 Winchester calendar (lot 133) featuring art by Newell Convers Wyeth shows two hunters standing their ground against a grizzly bear on a mountain slope, protected by their trusted Winchester rifles. A year later the firm’s 1913 calendar (lot 134) depicted art by Robert Robinson featuring a bearded hunter, later known as "Chin Whiskers," carrying the newly introduced Winchester Model 1912 shotgun, primed for action.
Lot 133 - 1912 Winchester Calendar - N.C. Wyeth Art
SOLD: $8,260
Lot 134 - 1913 Winchester Calendar - Robert B. Robinson Art
SOLD: $6,490
At great expense, Winchester also designed elaborate display boards featuring its full assortment of cartridges. The firm’s 1888 Cartridge Display Board (lot 182) featured three hunting vignettes surrounded by 121 original inert (dummy) cartridges - plus primer tins, lead bullets, and paper and brass reloadable shotshells - in an Inverted “V” configuration. By the time Winchester’s 1897 Cartridge Display Board (lot 181) was created the company was producing more than a million rounds of ammunition daily at their 7,000-employee manufacturing plant. Only the firm’s top merchants received display boards. They served as silent salesmen, three-dimensional catalogues, and a signal of Winchester’s dominance in the firearms industry. They are among the most desirable forms of firearms advertising.
Lot 181 - 1897 Winchester Double "W" Cartridge Display Board No. 291
SOLD: $79,650
Lot 180 - Winchester 1902 Double "W" Cartridge Board Lithograph
SOLD: $18,880
Antique firearms represent a history shaped by the hands that carried them and the moments that defined them. Whether traded along northern rivers, drawn in defense, or carried into battle, each holds a story waiting for the collector to tell — long after the smoke has settled.
Story by Tess Malloy
Tess is a freelance writer and history enthusiast who enjoys unearthing interesting stories about remarkable people and objects. Tess has written for The Miller Times for seven years.
NEXT OPPORTUNITY TO CONSIGN:
Firearms & Sporting
October 25, 2025
The deadline to consign is September 29, 2025
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