POTD: The Springfield Trapdoor Carbine – Custer’s Cavalry Gun

Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have a carbine that rode into the most studied battle in American history. This is a Springfield Model 1873 Trapdoor carbine in .45-70, and this one falls in the serial range issued to the 7th Cavalry. In other words, it’s the type of gun George Custer’s troopers carried to the Little Bighorn in June 1876.

The trapdoor was a single-shot, hinged-breech design, sturdy and accurate but slow. That mattered, because the Lakota and Cheyenne who met the 7th that day were often carrying Henry, Winchester, and Spencer repeaters. The troopers’ Colt Single Action Army revolvers were the other gun at the last stand, but a single-shot carbine against lever guns is a rough trade in a close fight.

For years the story was that the carbines jammed and cost Custer the battle. The early copper cartridges could swell when the chamber got hot, and the extractor would tear through the soft rim and leave a stuck case you had to pry out with a knife. There’s some truth in it, but the 1983 archaeology dig found only about 3 percent of recovered cases showed prying. The honest answer is that bad ground, bad intelligence, and being badly outnumbered did far more damage than the guns ever did.

Most of our POTDs utilize images from our friends at Rock Island Auction Company, the premier firearms auction in the United States. Take some time to browse their current auctions – who knows, maybe you’ll find a piece of history to take home!

“Desirable Custer Era U.S. Springfield Model 1873 Trapdoor Saddle Ring Carbine.” Rock Island Auction, www.rockislandauction.com/detail/5032/471/custer-era-us-springfield-model-1873-trapdoor-carbine. Accessed 3 July 2026.

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