Page 328 - Auction84-Book2

Extremely Scarce Documented United States Marine Corps Issued Colt Thompson 1921/28 Submachine Gun
LOT 1652
Highly Desirable Documented U.S. Marine Corps Mail Guard/Law Enforcement Shipped Colt Model 1921/1928 U.S. Navy Overstamp Thompson Submachine Gun Class III/NFA C&R Registered Fully Transferable Machine Gun - Serial no. 5235, 45 ACP cal., 10 1/2 inch ribbed round bbl., blue finish, walnut stock, walnut grips. Per the records listed in Herigstad’s “Colt Thompson Submachine Gun Serial Numbers and Histories” (page 547), this Thompson was originally manufactured as a Model 1921A, with the first recorded transfer being to the Quartermaster of the United States Marine Corps as part of the First Marine Corps Contract order of 250 Thompson SMGs. Herigstad further notes that this was one of only 10 delivered in “A” configuration, with the rest being in the “AC” configuration with signature Cutts Compensator. On January 13th, 1927 this SMG was issued to
LISTED BY SERIAL NUMBER IN THE BOOK COLT THOMPSON SUBMACHINE GUN SERIAL NUMBERS & HISTORIES, VOL. I BY HERGISTAD
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the District Commander of the Eastern Mail Guard, operating out of Atlanta, Georgia. Subjected to many rounds of violence and robbery during the Prohibition Era, the United States Postal Service turned to the President for assistance, who in turn deployed the Marines to bring things under control. In turn, the Marines treated the task as serious as any combat deployment, with orders to go weapons in-hand and ready to fight to the death at a moments notice. To quote Edwin Denby, Secretary of the Navy, “When our Corps goes in as guards over the mail, that mail must be delivered, or there must be a Marine dead at the post of duty. There can be no compromise”. Later, this Thompson would be returned to the factory, receiving both the upgrade to “AC” configuration and conversion to the 1928 parts standard, which came with the “8” overstamp of the model marking and the addition of the “U.S. NAVY” marking; while this USN mark is more or less just a tool for marketing hype on most 1921/1928 overstamps, on this one it’s legit.