“The Tiffany family (owners of NYC’s Tiffany’s) bought a Colt Machine Gun a donated it to the Rough Riders.”
Not the case. Many writers and historians have assumed it, though.
https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2013/2/27/the-rough-riders-potato-digger/
William Tiffany - a trooper in the 1st US Volunteer Cavalry regiment - was the son of George & Isabella Tiffany of Newport, Rhode Island. Not the NY City Tiffany in the jewelry & adornment trade.
William Tiffany’s parents gifted one of the two Colt-Browning M1895 Automatic Guns used by the Rough Riders in Cuba. The other was a gift from Louisa Kane and Sybil Kane, sisters of Woodbury Kane, another member of the upper crust who served in the regiment.
Both guns chambered 7x57mm Mauser. They became the first full-auto arms to be used in action by any unit of the US Army.
Well my knowledge of it originally came from TV movie ‘ROUGH RIDERS’. Needless to say it was privately bought, which was my point.