Great piece of History. Thanks for posting this.

 

SCVHistory.com LW3041 | William S. Hart | Two-Gun Bill Hart at Home in Newhall, 1-7-1946

scvhistory.com

“My father had seen in a flash that they were all gunmen, so he told me to stand still, although we were right in a possible line of fire. If near a gun-fight and the weapons are wielded by amateurs, run for your life; if professionals are handling the trigger, stand still — they know where they are shooting.” W.S Hart

SCVHistory.com | William S. Hart | Two-Gun Man Lives Atop Mountain in Newhall, 7-19-1936

SCVHistory.com | William S. Hart | Two-Gun Man Lives Atop Mountain in Newhall, 7-19-1936

scvhistory.com

"The veteran cowboy says guns aren't particularly his hobby, but the first thing he shows visitors is a valuable collection of firearms. He has guns used by Billy the Kid, Wild Bill Hickok and others. He has the two .45-caliber revolvers he used in pictures.
Bill Hart, tall and straight, still tight-lipped and narrow-eyed, says his eyes aren't so good any more.
"I'll be 64 in December. And yet the other day the Sheriff's station here asked me to take part in shooting practice, and when I showed them some fast and fancy shooting I figured I'd have to apologize for missing the mark so much. I didn't, though. I still can make those babies talk."

"Bill Hart sticks pretty close to home. He likes to be alone. And he didn't look a bit sheepish when he admitted he keeps two loaded revolvers at his bedside. In fact, there was a touch of pride in his voice when he repeated this question asked by a deputy sheriff of two burglary suspects who entered his home:"How come you fellas had the nerve to sneak into Bill Hart's house?"

https://friendsofhartpark.com/bio.asp

The Friends of Hart Park and Museum are people in your community who volunteer their time and talents to support the museum facilities. For many years, funds raised by the Friends have been used to help maintain the mansion, help with the animals in the park, and clean/restore numerous art treasures.
Silent screen legend William S. Hart purchased a ranch house and the 265 acre "Horseshoe Ranch" in Newhall in 1921. Hart eventually retired to the ranch, where he spent his last 20 twilight years, until his death in 1946 at the age of 81.

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In his will, Hart bequeathed his beloved "Horseshoe Ranch" to the people of Los Angeles County, to be set aside for the use and enjoyment of his fans, and the public at large, at no charge. Hart's generous donation is administered by The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, but it is the fund-raising efforts, and endless hours of volunteer work, by The Friends of Hart Park and Museum that allows Hart's public endowment to retain its pristine condition after more than 60 years.

https://friendsofhartpark.com/xhome.asp

Sure would be fun to visit the William S. Hart Park and Musuem...

 

Ugly Hombre, thank you so much for posting this fascinating history of an iconic character. I wish more people would recognize the fantastic and rich history of California and the old west, to include old Hollywood westerns and their stars. This reminds me of Leo Carrillo aka "Pancho" from the Cisco Kid.

 

You are very welcome Adobe! Something that people forget ,California is real western in many areas its just that the big cities drag the state down the rabbit hole. I have rancher friends up in Glenn county and such that live life much like Montana or Idaho. California is the state of John Wayne and Ronald Reagan after all-.

"My ranch the William S. Hart Park is for the benefit of the American Public- of every race and creed."
-William S Hart-

William S. Hart Park and Museum – California’s Golden Parks (153) – Huell Howser Archives at Chapman University

William S. Harts Horseshoe Ranch in Newhall California video visit-

 

Once upon a time gunmen were hero's. When did owning a gun become the incarnation of evil?

 

It never did- they just want you to think it did, I think most agree- Shane put it best..

"William S. Hart's Colt Model 1873 SAA .45"

William S. Hart's Colt Model 1873 SAA .45

William S. Hart's Colt Model 1873 SAA .45 - Burley Auction Group

www.icollector.com

Here is a William S Hart Colt SAA that seems to have been given to Hart by his brother grips have near the same pattern as his engraved pearl handled Colt in the Hart museum

"Backstrap is engraved "Wm. S. Hart from K.L Hart 12-25-02". Checkered grips, with inlayed mother-of-pearl hearts. Was presented 5.5" barrel. serial no. 235942"

 

In the 2nd Hart picture posted with him standing by his gun case is what looks like a Bisley Sheriffs Model or one that’s been cut down. A M&H, too.

 

Earlier I said that looked like a Bisley Sheriffs Model in the second picture posted with Hart to the left of the gun case. Looking closer, the gun’s frame is meant to have an ejector housing so the gun was cut down. And the photo is reversed With ejector on the wrong side of the guns pictured.

 

Excellent post and if I may add a couple of photos. I was recently doing research on E.A. Brininstool who wrote books of the old west such as Fighting Red Cloud's Warriors:


Here is a photo of Brininstool:


He was good friends with William S. Hart and often seen with him:


Brininstool was quite knowledgeable on the subject of the old west and the Indian wars. He was also a collector of fine guns and owned a factory engraved Officers Model Target that was silver-plated and had a gold cylinder.

Cam.

 

A photo of Hart with Charlie Russell, the real deal cowboy artist- "Two Gun Bill" and Charlie were pards.. Hart was a early patron of Russell.

William S. Hart in action above- from a music video by the neo western band "The Steel Wood" you can see how charismatic the man was and some of his riding and shooting skill. You can see the fantastic silent film cinematography and set ups later used by John Ford, Sam Pekinpah and Clint Eastwood. Couple of action shots of him shooting a Colt. Hart knew what he was doing.. and he had a very powerful screen presence . Hart wanted his films to be authentic as possible -he got it done.

Bob Howard- Jim Martin's Colt instructor, probley worked on many of Hart's Colts shown in the action scenes.

I liked the music and the video- found it surfing around thought I would share. Made me want to see more of Harts old films-

Cam- thanks for the tip about Brininstool will look for some of his books for the rude hovel library..

 

Thank you for that video, I am gaining a very, new found respect for Mr. Hart! The history and the authenticity are fascinating! He certainly was the real deal!

 

One-piece wood grips? That too, is unusual for Hollywood.

 

One of the things that still fascinates me to this day about the old silent westerns is the fact that the guns they used weren't props. They were real old Colts, Winchesters, etc. Probably first generation Colts. They may have been kept in studio prop rooms for years, decades maybe, but still...they weren't make believe replicas like we see today.

Don't you wonder whatever happened to all of them?

 

My favorite WSH film is “Hell’s Hinges” from 1916. His movies were made so close to the real old west timewise that the towns, guns, and wardrobes were practically contemporary to the periods they were set in. the Mexican Revolution was in full swing, and Oklahoma and Texas oil boom towns didn’t get the memo that the old west was over.

 

Hell's Hinges

Directed by Charles Swickard, William S. Hart, and Clifford Smith 1916 The United States of America Hell’s Hinges is by far one of the most...

forgottenclassicsofyesteryear.blogspot.com

Looked it up thanks Matt!

105 years ago- amazingly clear and fun to watch!

 

Yeah, and pretty dark violent at the end the way hem uh…handles things. Those big trigger guard 1902 Colt DAs he uses were only 14 years old when this movie was made! A forum member owns a gun of this type with markings of an ancient rental or costume outfit at the time who Hart was connected with.

 

Really enjoy these fascinating stories you present here Perry...

Thanks Pard !!

 

Thanks Kevin Yer welcome Amigo!

 

Hart was probably one of the only guys who could wear a hat like that and get away with it.

 

I always thought Kevin Costner’s hat in “Open Range” looked like hats guys wore in B westerns. That’s about the only distraction for me in that movie. But his hat sure wasn’t as flamboyant as Hart’s here.

 

You often see cowboys giving their horses a drink of water out of their hats in the old westerns. Those high crown styles look like they would be a perfect fit for a horses nose !

 

I imagine that a cowboy's choice of a hat also depended a lot upon what was available in his size at the local general store. There may or may not have been much of a selection available when he walked in to buy one and it's not like the average working cowboy had much in the way of a wardrobe. It was probably more like "I need a new hat. How much is this one ? A dollar ? Sold".