Lot 564
[CAPONE, Alphonse ("Al")]. Colt New Army & Navy Revolver Model of 1896. "COLT'S PT. F.A. MFG. CO. HARTFORD CT. U.S.A./PATENTED AUG. 5. 1884 NOV 6. 88. MAR. 5. 95,". Manufactured in 1896. A .41 COLT REPORTEDLY USED BY AL CAPONE.
Sale 1097 - Fine Printed Books & Manuscripts, Including Americana
Lots 1-410
Nov 8, 2022
9:00AM CT
Lots 411-717
Nov 9, 2022
9:00AM CT
Live / Chicago
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Estimate
$5,000 -
7,000
Price Realized
$43,750
Sold prices are inclusive of Buyer’s Premium
Lot Description
[CAPONE, Alphonse ("Al") (1899-1947)]. Colt New Army & Navy Revolver Model of 1896.
.41 LC. 6" barrel length. SN: 75042. Double-action swing-out cylinder revolver with topstrap notch and front blade sights. Item displays a blued metal finish with polished hammer and trigger. Black hard rubber grips displaying "{Rampant Colt}" logos mounted to square butt frame without lanyard loop. The same logo within a circle is stamped to the rear left frame. Barrel marks include "DA 41" caliber marking to left barrel and the two-line patent and address mark to top reading, "COLT'S PT. F.A. MFG. CO. HARTFORD CT. U.S.A./PATENTED AUG. 5. 1884 NOV 6. 88. MAR. 5. 95,". Assembly number "862" stamped to the cylinder area with rear of cylinder marked "15" beneath the star extractor. Serial number indicates item manufactured in 1896.
A .41 COLT REPORTEDLY USED BY AL CAPONE
"You can get more with a kind word and a gun than with just a kind word" (Al Capone).
Al Capone’s friendship with Bill and Lowrene Sell developed during his vacations to Sell's Resort in Manitowish Waters in the 1920s. According to family history and stories from Bill and Lowrene, Capone brought a .41 Colt with him during one visit, and gave it to Bill to hold on to in case he should need it. As evidenced by the letters in the family’s collection, the Sells developed a close relationship with Capone: Bill Sells tried to help Capone find real estate in the Northwoods, and apparently introduced Capone to a bootlegger. For several years, Capone spent a great deal of leisure time at the Sells resort.
Accompanying the gun are several modern reprints of photographs also from negatives in the family's collection showing Capone, his associates, and a female companion, fooling around at the Sell's resort with what appears to be a .41 Colt. The gun remained in a safe with other Capone material at the Sell's Resort in Manitowish Waters for several decades, and has been in the family since.
Provenance: Al Capone, by repute, given to Bill and Lowrene Sell; to present owner.
[Please note that this item is located on our Cincinnati premises. Hindman complies with all local, state, and federal firearms regulations in regards to the storage and shipment of firearms.]
This lot is located in Cincinnati.
Chicago-area gangsters in the Prohibition era had close ties to Wisconsin – in addition to being an important avenue for bringing bootlegged liquor to Chicago and the Midwest, it was a refuge where they could escape for rest. “They love[d] to vacation in the Wisconsin Northwoods… The hoods of the Depression era enjoyed escaping to and from Wisconsin when the situation demanded… Enjoying gangster holidays of sorts in the Northwoods during the summers from 1925 to 1931 was ‘Scarface’ Al Capone whose refuge, ‘The Hideout,’ is in Couderay, Wis., 50 miles southwest of Manitowish Waters” (Chicago Tribune, “Northwoods’ Gangsters of Old: From Fishing Holes to Bullet Holes,” 2 March 1987).
William and Lowrene Sell, owners of Sell Improvement Company, a realty and insurance company, also owned and operated Sell’s Resort in Manitowish Waters from the 1920s to 1950s, where, in the early 1920s, Al Capone and his associates were regular guests. According to family lore, Capone was adored by those who knew him, and Lowrene would allow him to take over her kitchen to make his famous gravy. The Sells and Capone developed an intimate friendship over the years, as evidenced by correspondence retained by the family. Taking the Sells into his confidence, Capone maintained a correspondence with them over the years, asking for advice on finding bootleggers and real estate in the Northwoods, and even writing his friend two days after the 1925 assassination attempt to let them know he’s alright. The family kept the correspondence and related items for several generations, but offer it for sale now for the first time.
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