Great Basin National Park Rifle - Staff at at Great Basin National Park reportedly found a Winchester Model 1873 propped against a tree in November of last year. The Great Basin National Park rifle, a 132-year-old Winchester part of history and also called "the gun that won the West," was found leaning against a juniper tree.

Archaeologists discovered that the .44-40 Winchester gun had been manufactured in 1882 after inspecting the rifle.

"They just happened to notice the rifle under the tree," Nichole Andler, Basin National Park's chief of interpretation, said.

She added that the public will get a chance to view the Great Basin National Park rifle over the weekend.

The park staff still have no idea how the rifle ended up beside the tree. However, "it looked like someone propped it up there, sat down to have their lunch and got up to walk off without it," said Andler.

It is a wonder how anyone was able to see the Great Basin National Park rifle last fall, since it had already blended well with the surroundings at the time.

According to Andler, the gun seems to have been exposed to a lot of sun, wind, snow, and rain for many years. Unloaded, the Great Basin National Park rifle appears to have been undisturbed for more than 100 years. Its appearance showed its wooden base already turned gray and cracked, also partially buried. The barrel of the gun had rusted as well.

Despite looking worn out, the Great Basin National Park rifle is definitely still salvageable, said Andle. The gun will reportedly be preserved so that it remains in its current state.

Staff at the Great Basin National Park has checked records of the gun against the Cody West Firearms Museum, reports WTVR.

The model of the Winchester rifle was reportedly popular at the time it was manufactured; therefore it isn't that much of a rare and precious item for a person to just leave during the time. At the time the Great Basin National Park rifle was created, there were 25,000 others also manufactured.

A Model 1873 repeating rifle, the gun bore a serial number indicating its manufacture and shipping date in 1882. The Great Basin National Park rifle reportedly sold for an just $25 at the time, reports archaeology.org.

"Winchester records do not indicate who purchased the rifle from the warehouse or where it was shipped," the park detailed on its Facebook page.

Though the rifle's origin is still unknown, the history of the place where its owner left it offers clues, particularly of the Great Basin being a mining site at the time. However, the area also could have been a place for grazing cattle and sheep. The Great Basin National Park rifle may have also been the relic of game hunting in the area.

"It was one of those things, sort of the everyman's rifle," said Andler.

She added that the Great Basin National Park rifle is often referred to "as the gun that won the West."

Period newspapers and family histories and records are now being combed through by the park's to unearth any information which might lead to discovering how the rifle ended up against the juniper tree, according to The Washington Post.

After trying to find out the history of the Great Basin National Park rifle, conservationists will then conserve the gun in the condition in which it had been found. It will reportedly become part of the display commemorating the park's 30th birthday in 2016.

"It probably has a very good and interesting story but it probably is a story that could have happened to almost anyone living this sort of extraordinary existence out here in the Great Basin Desert," said Andler.

The Great Basin National Park rifle, though costing only $25 more than a hundred years ago, now costs around 10,000 dollars online. Today, collectors even offer more for the 1873 model.

 

Post by WTVR CBS 6 News.