Hi all,
Last week I inherited a 1942, Winchester 94. It was issued to my great-grandfather when he joined the Pacific Coast Militia Rangers in 1942. It has been in my family ever since and was the subject of a longstanding "disagreement" between my grandfather and my great-aunt dating back more than sixty years. More on that below, if anyone is interested. On to the rifle...
According to Bert from Gun Values board:
http://www.gunvaluesboard.com/manufacturing-date-for-pcmr-winchester-94-365599.html
The rifle was manufactured on May 26, 1942. The PCMR was the last formed military unit in history to issue lever action rifles to their troops.
You can read about the PCMR here:
http://www.canadiansoldiers.com/organization/specialforces/pcmr.htm
http://www.navalandmilitarymuseum.org/resource_pages/coastal_defence/pcmr.html
http://members.shaw.ca/nambuworld2/pcmr.htm
My great-grandfather was a member of No. 52 Company - Smithers.
Here are a few pictures:
Family Feud
How the rifle got to me is a story unto itself. It is a bit long, but if you are interested, read on.
Cast:
Alfred (Jayne's mother's mother's father = great-grandfather)
Mary (Alfred's oldest daughter, Jayne's maternal grandmother)
Harry (Mary's husband, Jayne's maternal grandfather)
Joyce (Alfred's youngest daughter, Jayne's great-aunt)
Doug (Joyce's husband, Jayne's great uncle)
Robert (Joyce's son, Jayne's first cousin - once removed)
So, Dec 7, 1941, the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbour. The people in BC were sure the Japanese were going to invade any day. They were very worried that there weren't enough troops to defend the province. Bending to public pressure, the government formed the Pacific Coast Militia Rangers, a stop gap measure.
The PCMR consisted of veterans of WWI, upstanding citizens and men too old or unfit for the regular army. My great-grandfather Alfred was the owner of the local lumber yard, deacon in the church and mayor. He was too old for WWII and had been unfit for duty in WWI due to a badly healed right arm (he broke it as a boy and it had healed crooked). He joined the PCMR in 1942 and was issued the rifle.
War never came to BC and when the war ended, Alfred bought the rifle for $5. He had it for a few years before giving it to Harry. Harry had been an RCAF military engineer throughout the war. He worked on the Alaska Highway and building airfields and telegraph lines throughout BC. He had been posted to the Smithers Detachment towards the end of the war and met Mary. When the war ended, they were married and he settled in Smithers.
Harry had the rifle for a few years. In the early 50s, Doug was working for BCTEL. He spent a lot of time in the bush and there were many grizzlies and black bears in the area. Joyce was concerned for his safety. Alfred asked Harry for the gun back.
The next step is the source of the feud. Harry said Alfred had asked him for the gun back to LEND it to Doug. Joyce said Alfred GAVE the gun to Doug.
In any event, Doug kept the gun. He used it for a few years. When he finished working in the bush, Harry asked for it back. Joyce refused (I don't know what Doug thought). She said her father had given it to Doug and it was theirs.
Alfred died in the early 70s without resolving the issue.
Doug died in the early 90s. Again, Harry asked for the gun back. Instead, Joyce gave the rifle to her son Rob. This led to considerable friction between Joyce and Harry.
Harry died in the 2002. To his death bed, he still wanted that gun back.
Fast forward to last week. I am home visiting my mother and Robert comes for a visit. I asked him about the gun. Robert is not a shooter. The gun has sat quietly, unused, in his closet since his dad died 25 years ago.
I explained to him, I don't care who gets the gun, I just want to make sure that it doesn't get turned in to the RCMP and destroyed. I told him, if no one else wanted it, I would like to have it.
Robert agreed I should have it but wanted to talk to Joyce. She says, "Jayne can have it when I am dead." Fortunately, Robert was more practical and insisted on giving it to me immediately. I brought it home with me yesterday.
Since Harry gave me all of his important guns, including his WWII service Lee-Enfield and a .32 calibre revolver given to him by a former BC Provincial Police officer, I am certain he would have left me my great-grandfather's rifle. We were very close. Neither of his sons were shooters and I followed his footsteps and became a RCAF military engineer.
So, 60+ years after this family feud began, we were able to bring it to a happy conclusion.
I have promised my mom and Joyce that when I am too old to care for it, I will pass it on to one of Alfred's other great-grandsons.
It has been a long time coming, but I am happy it turned out so well.
The rifle is in amazing shape. The barrel is pristine. The blueing is pretty good for a 72 year old rifle. The serial number matches the era and the Canadian Army "C-broad arrow" are bold and clear.
I am just happy to be its custodian for a little while.
TTYL
- Jayne
Last week I inherited a 1942, Winchester 94. It was issued to my great-grandfather when he joined the Pacific Coast Militia Rangers in 1942. It has been in my family ever since and was the subject of a longstanding "disagreement" between my grandfather and my great-aunt dating back more than sixty years. More on that below, if anyone is interested. On to the rifle...
According to Bert from Gun Values board:
http://www.gunvaluesboard.com/manufacturing-date-for-pcmr-winchester-94-365599.html
The rifle was manufactured on May 26, 1942. The PCMR was the last formed military unit in history to issue lever action rifles to their troops.
You can read about the PCMR here:
http://www.canadiansoldiers.com/organization/specialforces/pcmr.htm
http://www.navalandmilitarymuseum.org/resource_pages/coastal_defence/pcmr.html
http://members.shaw.ca/nambuworld2/pcmr.htm
My great-grandfather was a member of No. 52 Company - Smithers.
Here are a few pictures:
Family Feud
How the rifle got to me is a story unto itself. It is a bit long, but if you are interested, read on.
Cast:
Alfred (Jayne's mother's mother's father = great-grandfather)
Mary (Alfred's oldest daughter, Jayne's maternal grandmother)
Harry (Mary's husband, Jayne's maternal grandfather)
Joyce (Alfred's youngest daughter, Jayne's great-aunt)
Doug (Joyce's husband, Jayne's great uncle)
Robert (Joyce's son, Jayne's first cousin - once removed)
So, Dec 7, 1941, the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbour. The people in BC were sure the Japanese were going to invade any day. They were very worried that there weren't enough troops to defend the province. Bending to public pressure, the government formed the Pacific Coast Militia Rangers, a stop gap measure.
The PCMR consisted of veterans of WWI, upstanding citizens and men too old or unfit for the regular army. My great-grandfather Alfred was the owner of the local lumber yard, deacon in the church and mayor. He was too old for WWII and had been unfit for duty in WWI due to a badly healed right arm (he broke it as a boy and it had healed crooked). He joined the PCMR in 1942 and was issued the rifle.
War never came to BC and when the war ended, Alfred bought the rifle for $5. He had it for a few years before giving it to Harry. Harry had been an RCAF military engineer throughout the war. He worked on the Alaska Highway and building airfields and telegraph lines throughout BC. He had been posted to the Smithers Detachment towards the end of the war and met Mary. When the war ended, they were married and he settled in Smithers.
Harry had the rifle for a few years. In the early 50s, Doug was working for BCTEL. He spent a lot of time in the bush and there were many grizzlies and black bears in the area. Joyce was concerned for his safety. Alfred asked Harry for the gun back.
The next step is the source of the feud. Harry said Alfred had asked him for the gun back to LEND it to Doug. Joyce said Alfred GAVE the gun to Doug.
In any event, Doug kept the gun. He used it for a few years. When he finished working in the bush, Harry asked for it back. Joyce refused (I don't know what Doug thought). She said her father had given it to Doug and it was theirs.
Alfred died in the early 70s without resolving the issue.
Doug died in the early 90s. Again, Harry asked for the gun back. Instead, Joyce gave the rifle to her son Rob. This led to considerable friction between Joyce and Harry.
Harry died in the 2002. To his death bed, he still wanted that gun back.
Fast forward to last week. I am home visiting my mother and Robert comes for a visit. I asked him about the gun. Robert is not a shooter. The gun has sat quietly, unused, in his closet since his dad died 25 years ago.
I explained to him, I don't care who gets the gun, I just want to make sure that it doesn't get turned in to the RCMP and destroyed. I told him, if no one else wanted it, I would like to have it.
Robert agreed I should have it but wanted to talk to Joyce. She says, "Jayne can have it when I am dead." Fortunately, Robert was more practical and insisted on giving it to me immediately. I brought it home with me yesterday.
Since Harry gave me all of his important guns, including his WWII service Lee-Enfield and a .32 calibre revolver given to him by a former BC Provincial Police officer, I am certain he would have left me my great-grandfather's rifle. We were very close. Neither of his sons were shooters and I followed his footsteps and became a RCAF military engineer.
So, 60+ years after this family feud began, we were able to bring it to a happy conclusion.
I have promised my mom and Joyce that when I am too old to care for it, I will pass it on to one of Alfred's other great-grandsons.
It has been a long time coming, but I am happy it turned out so well.
The rifle is in amazing shape. The barrel is pristine. The blueing is pretty good for a 72 year old rifle. The serial number matches the era and the Canadian Army "C-broad arrow" are bold and clear.
I am just happy to be its custodian for a little while.
TTYL
- Jayne
