Meanea:
I usually refer to these pistols as "Canadian Purchase", rather than "Canadian Contract" since the latter term to my mind implies a special run of pistols made specifically to fulfill a specific contract. For example, the term "British Contract" is appropriate for the 1911 Colts purchased by the UK during WWI, because they were a special run made for Britain in .455 Auto.
However, Canada purchased 5,000 pistols straight from regular Colt commercial production (as opposed to the military specification production exclusively for the US Government contract ongoing at the same time) and they were not "military configuration" at all, but rather had the beautiful high polish fire blue finish and top quality checkered walnut grips standard on commercial-production pistols. (Matter of fact, strictly speaking the name "Model 1911" is properly applied only to the model produced for the U.S. Government, and the pistols produced for commercial sale were called, and marked, "Government Model" instead. Note that is how the letter refers to my pistol.)
It is my understanding that many of these Canadian purchase Colt pistols
aren't marked with the C-Broad Arrow - which was an official Government acceptance and ownership mark for military firearms and other equipment. That was because so many of the pistols were re-sold to commissioned officers (who were required to supply all their own kit at personal expense) and it would have made no sense to mark them as government property when that mark would, by law, have to be 'canceled' upon sale to an individual. My pistol is such an "officer's pistol", and I have full provenance of its ownership by Maj. W. A. Mitchell, of the Canadian Army Service Corps.
On the other hand, examples will certainly be found with the government ownership mark - such pistols were retained in military stores for issue to "Other Ranks" - i.e. NCO's and enlisted men who would be armed with a pistol (e.g. cavalry, perhaps, and such personnel as Dispatch Riders and the like.
I'm not sure from your post if you are actually unfamiliar with the C-Broad Arrow mark. The "Broad Arrow" was a mark used for centuries to signify acceptance, and ownership, of military stores by the British Government. Variations on this mark came to be used by other countries in the British Empire/Commonwealth - and Canada's version had the 'arrow' encircled by a "C" - Here it is no my No. 1 Inglis pistol:
And here it is on my Canadian-issue S&W Military & Police revolver (our primary military handgun in WWII) -
The standard place for application of the mark on a handgun was on the left side - rear of the slide on a semi-automatic pistol and upper rear corner of the frame on a revolver, as seen above ....
