The accompanying factory letter states the revolver was shipped on March 7, 1898 to Hibbard, Spencer, Bartlett Co. of Chicago, Illinois, with a 4 ¾ inch barrel in .38-40 caliber, blue finish and hard rubber stocks. From the John Fox collection it is Fox’s own handwritten notes on the factory letter that state the revolver was “owned by Charles ‘Kid’ Brown, Montana outlaw, Big Timber Resident.” The outlaw provenance is confirmed in a 1974 dated letter by the late Wyoming custom gunmaker Lenard M. Brownell (1922-1982) stating the revolver was once owned by his grandfather, W.S. Murphy of Livingston, Montana. Accompanying this letter is a list of guns from the Murphy collection. This SAA is gun no. 14 (listed by serial number) with the notation: “At one time my grandfather and grandmother ran the stage station at Yancey, Montana. In 1906, a Montana hoodlum, Charles ‘Kid’ Brown originally of Big Timber, Montana, was in flight from the law and came through Yancey, hiding in the barn apparently for a breather. The next day my grandmother was gathering eggs in the barn and found the revolver which Brown had lost in the manger. Brown was chased into Wyoming and killed by the pursuing sheriff.” A Big Timber newspaper described Brown as “one of the most notorious and daredevil rustlers this country has ever had to deal with” and estimated that Brown “disposed of at least five hundred head” in the course of a “few years.” Includes a Miles City Saddlery Co. skeleton pattern shoulder holster rig designed for both concealment and a fast draw, a perfect outlaw accessory. The legendary Miles City Saddlery Co. of Miles City, Montana, has been in business since 1909 and is the original maker of the Coggshall saddle. Provenance: The John Fox Collection

In an as found condition, proudly exhibiting the scars of the cruel environment that was the American West. The very good shoulder holster rig shows authentic use. This is definitely a genuine western SAA that has a classic “been there, done that” appearance with the added bonus of belonging to a Montana outlaw. The stories it could tell!