1886 Winchester rifle sells for $1.2 million at auction

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. – An 1886 Winchester rifle that once belonged to a man who helped capture Apache leader Geronimo has sold for $1.2 million at an auction.

The Rock Island Auction Co., of Illinois, says it became the most expensive single firearm ever sold at auction when it was presented for sale in late April. It went to an undisclosed buyer.

George Albee was working for Winchester and was able to secure serial No. 1 of their newest rifle design in 1886. He presented the rifle as a gift to a Civil War buddy, U.S. Army Capt. Henry Ware Lawton, who had just led the operation that captured Geronimo.

The auction company says other guns have sold higher as a pair, but the Winchester brought in the highest price for a single firearm.