Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! This remarkable collection gives us a rare glimpse into the harsh business of commercial buffalo hunting on the American frontier. While Sharps rifles are fairly common on the collector market, finding one with its complete original buffalo hunting outfit is almost unheard of. Commercial buffalo hunting in the 1870s was brutal, efficient work. A professional outfit typically included the hunter (who rarely did the skinning), skinners who processed dozens of animals daily, camp tenders, and often dedicated gun cleaners. The hunter would position himself on a ridge, drop the lead animal of a herd, and continue shooting as the confused buffalo milled about, sometimes killing 50-100 in a single stand. This particular outfit belonged to Charles Parker, a Vermont native who ventured west during the height of the buffalo slaughter. By the time rifles like this one were manufactured in 1878, the great southern herd was already decimated, and hunters were focusing on the northern plains herds that would soon meet the same fate. The completeness of this set, with its original knives, tools and buffalo hide cases, offers a rare tangible connection to one of the most environmentally destructive chapters of the American frontier – a period that saw an estimated 30-60 million buffalo reduced to just a few hundred animals by the early 1880s.
“Sharps Model 1874 Business Rifle with Buffalo Hunting Gear.” Rock Island Auction Company, https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/4094/49/sharps-model-1874-business-rifle-with-buffalo-hunting-gear. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.
Writer | TheFirearmBlog
Writer | AllOutdoor.com Instagram | sfsgunsmith Old soul, certified gunsmith, published author, avid firearm history learner, and appreciator of old and unique guns.
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