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Just wondering if anyone knew the type and caliber of the rifles being held by the soldiers in the picture below. Year is 1887. They are guarding Crow Chief Plenty Coups and some other prisoners. The picture is a Public Domain image from Wikipedia. Click on picture to view it full size.

Eight_Crow_prisoners_under_guard_at_Crow_agency,_Montana,_1887_-_NARA_-_531126.jpg
 
The Army wanted a rifle that could reliably kill a horse at a distance...
Most repeating rifles of the time...fired revolver cartridges*..which could do that task...
Just not at the distances the Army wanted.

And yes...the Winchester 1876 and 1886 fired true rifle cartridges....but the expense of those over the existing service rifle was more.
Andy
* And yes again to the fact that the Spencer series of rifles fired a rifle cartridge...
But again...it did not have the range requirement that the Army wanted.
 
The 1873 Springfield series of rifles and carbines were used from 1873 to the early 1900's...
Plenty of them show up in period pictures of the Spanish American War and the Philippine Insurrection in the hands of US troops.

When growing up , I had a neighbor who trained and drilled with the 1873 Rifle , before he was sent over to France in 1918...
He did not get a 1903 Springfield until heading to the front lines....:eek: :D
( He served in the 32nd Infantry during both WWI and WWII )
Andy
 

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