Home » Ithaca Gun Company records find a new home with the Cody Firearms Records Office
Ithaca Single Barrel Trap Gun, 12 gauge, Serial Number 264501, owned by Annie Oakley. Oakley with a rifle. 2008.10.1 and P.69.0932

Ithaca Gun Company records find a new home with the Cody Firearms Records Office

Walter Snyder, Ithaca historian, has generously donated the surviving records from the original Ithaca Gun Company to the Center to be used by the Cody Firearms Records Office to provide factory letters and serial number searches.

Why we’re excited

These documents provide valuable historical insight for collectors—including our own Cody Firearms Museum.

Associate Curator, Danny Michael, comments, “Accessibility to records from the time of manufacture augment our collection tremendously. We didn’t know that this shotgun was a gift from Annie’s husband, Frank Butler. And even if that detail had been included in the provenance when the firearm was donated to the museum, we have this additional proof now.”

Ithaca Single Barrel Trap Gun, 12 gauge, Serial Number 264501, owned by Annie Oakley, stock was changed by a later owner. Gift of Donald Lawson In Honor and Memory of Joseph L. Box. 2008.10.1
Ithaca Single Barrel Trap Gun, 12 gauge, Serial Number 264501, owned by Annie Oakley, stock was changed by a later owner. Gift of Donald Lawson In Honor and Memory of Joseph L. Box. 2008.10.1
Ithaca Single Barrel Trap Gun, 12 gauge, Serial Number 264501, owned by Annie Oakley, stock was changed by a later owner. Gift of Donald Lawson In Honor and Memory of Joseph L. Box. 2008.10.1
Annie Oakley holding a rifle, black and white photograph, MS 006 William F. Cody Collection, McCracken Research Library. P.69.0932
Annie Oakley holding a rifle, black and white photograph, MS 006 William F. Cody Collection, McCracken Research Library. P.69.0932

For non-museum collectors, knowing whether the gun they have today is the same as it was when it left the factory can dramatically affect the value of the piece.

Record and factory letter for Annie Oakley's Ithaca
Record and factory letter for Annie Oakley’s Ithaca trap gun.

What does that say exactly?

From the detail of the ledger page shown below, you can see that deciphering the various details that collectors care about most from these handwritten records requires a trained eye.

Ithaca's record for Annie Oakley's single-barrel trap gun, serial number 264501, shows communication with F. E. Butler regarding specific measurements for the gun.
Ithaca’s record for Annie Oakley’s single-barrel trap gun, serial number 264501, shows communication with F. E. Butler regarding specific measurements for the gun.
Cabinet photos of Phoebe Ann Moses-Butler, better known by her stage name Annie Oakley, and her husband, sharpshooter Frank E. Butler. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, HA.com.
Cabinet photos of Phoebe Ann Moses-Butler, better known by her stage name Annie Oakley, and her husband, sharpshooter Frank E. Butler. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions, HA.com.

Firearms Records Specialist Jesi Bennett, Assistant Records Specialist Angela Bertalot, and the volunteers of the Cody Firearms Records Office work behind the scenes to generate factory letters and serial number searches for enthusiasts around the world.

“It’s always exciting to come across names we recognize in the records, but my guys love to know who owned their gun first even if it wasn’t someone famous. Maybe it was their great-grandfather or a general store they remember hearing about in their hometown. When you have a name, the history becomes more personal. Not all manufacturers included customer information in their records, but Ithaca often did.”

True to the original

For each lookup, Records Office staff and volunteers reference digital scans of the original records or the original records themselves, which are housed onsite in the Center’s McCracken Research Library. “You can find books out there with typed charts and summaries, but the further away you get from the primary source material, the more human error you introduce,” Jesi notes. “It’s important for us to reference the original record for every factory letter and serial number search we do.”

Danny Michael and Jesi Bennett look at Savage records in the McCracken Research library.
Danny Michael and Jesi Bennett look at Savage records in the McCracken Research library.

Firearms Members and Records Office customers who want information need only provide a manufacturer, model, and specific serial number. Then, Jesi and Angela pull up the corresponding record and distill its contents into a readable format. All together, the Records Office’s tight-knit crew has 30 years of experience analyzing the particular cursive handwriting of the bookkeepers employed by these firearms companies.

What can you expect from each manufacturer?

Here’s a quick summary of what the Cody Firearms Records Office provides access to:

Cody Firearms Records Office access chart
Click the chart image to view larger.

How to get info on your firearms

If you’re already a Firearms Member, you can start requesting serial number searches and factory letters from these additional manufacturers now.

If you’re not a member, you can find more detailed information about the Firearms Membership program, the Records Office, and the serial number ranges we have information for when you visit our Records Office webpage. Or give us a call at 307-578-4031.

Written By

Rachel Lee avatar

Rachel Lee

Rachel raises money for the general operations of the Center through Membership and Annual Fund. She regularly communicates with members and donors through letters, phone calls, e-mails, and special events. Outside of work, Rachel enjoys gardening, reading, cooking, making fancy cakes, and most all other creative outlets!

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