LENARD CAVE

Lenard Cave

Lenard Cave was born in 1932 in Jamestown, ND in the house his father built himself. He grew up in North Dakota and Iowa, and ultimately his love for North Dakota and it’s expansive history, kept him a lifelong resident. As a youngster in Iowa, his first collectible was a stone grooved hatchet his Uncle had found on his farm. Len’s ability to talk his Uncle out of his find, perhaps, paved the way for him to grow his collection.

Lenard achieved the rank of Sergeant First Class while serving in the U.S. Army during the Korean War.

After the military, he attended Jamestown College and received his Bachelor Degree in Business Administration. He then worked as an insurance adjustor, traveling all over the state. This gave him an opportunity to start building his collection of 1800’s and after historical pieces that he always had an interest in. In those early days, it was a thrill for him to talk to people and be able to buy U.S. History.  One of his first pieces was a 66 Winchester Carbine that he treasured for over 50 years. Many pieces of beadwork that he collected were items that had always been in North Dakota from before the turn of the 20^th Century. This led him to became interested in the likes of Gall, Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse and the Native Tribes that lived in the state of North Dakota. Len built a large library of books on these great leaders and anything related to the everyday life of the Native Tribes, including the beadwork, weapons, tools and stories of the day.

It was the history that fueled his collecting bug. There were many battles fought in North Dakota between the U.S. Military and the Sioux. And of course, Custer’s 7^th Cavalry was stationed only 100 miles away from Jamestown at Fort Lincoln located 5 miles South of Mandan.

Much of his collection came from the Bismarck – Mandan area. Anytime anything came into a show from the J.D. Allen Trading Post, he would grab it, as most of those items either came from Fort Lincoln or from the Standing Rock Reservation. Many of the other dealers weren’t familiar with the J.D. Allen Trading Post, so he would always buy knowing it was rich in history from the area.

In 1957 Lenard married Sandra, and they just recently celebrated their 69^th Wedding Anniversary. Sandra became a lifelong companion traveling to the area gun shows of the Dakotas, Montana, and Denver every year. Not to be outdone, Sandra won a “Best Collectible Handgun” award at the Aberdeen, SD Gun Show. Lenard and Sandra have 3 children who still live close by and share his passion for the area history. All 3 have enjoyed collecting as well. His son Brian, especially spent many years collecting and has included a number of items in this auction.

In 1961, Lenard Co-Founded the Dakota Territory Gun Collectors Association, in which he also served as a board member and 3-term President. The Association is still running strong today. Being a member of the North Dakota Archaeological Association kept him up to date on important finds and sites and archaeological work in North Dakota.

As a lifetime member of the Custer Battlefield Historical and Museum Association, Lenard couldn’t believe it when his good friend Rex Thrower of Columbus, Montana called and said he had bought Kiah Buckner’s Last Museum in Crow Agency, Montana lock, stock, and barrel. Len felt very fortunate Rex didn’t have much interest in the relics from the fight and since Rex knew of his fascination with the battle, Len was given first chance to buy the relics displayed in his museum that were from the battle.

The Buckner Collection was one of the highlights of his 70+ years of collecting. A few others were a 1 of 1000 76 Winchester, a serial # 1 London Navy Colt, a prized Hawken, and American Horse’s Spencer Carbine captured at Slim Buttes. These items, have long since been dealt off, but the opportunity to hold these items in his hands was the true joy of his decades of collecting. For Lenard, the collecting was all about the history.

COLLECTION INDEX

Below are the lot numbers of the items from this collection to be featured in our Nov 6-8, 2026 Premier Firearms & Militaria Auction

  2293 | 3393 | 3394 | 3429 | 3457 | 3461 | 3547 | 3548 | 3549 | 3550 | 3554 |
| 3555 | 3559 | 3560 | 3563 | 3564 | 3566 | 3567 | 3568 | 3572 | 3573 | 3576 |
| 3580 | 3581 | 3592 | 3593 | 3611 | 3612 | 3613 | 3614 | 3615 | 3616 | 3617
| 3618 | 3619 | 3620 | 3621 | 3622 | 3623 | 3624 | 3625 | 3626 | 3627 |
3628 | 3629 | 3630 | 3631 | 3632 | 3633 | 3634 | 3635 | 3636 | 3637 | 3638 |
3639 | 3640 | 3641 | 3642 | 3643 | 3644 | 3647 | 3648 | 3649 | 3650 | 3651

3637
3638
3639
3640
3641
3642
3643
3644
3647
3648
3649
3650
3651