Send us your own comments about this object.

Title:	RIFLE, MILITARY -  U.S. RIFLE M1 .30 SN# 2723026
Maker/Manufacturer:	GARAND, JOHN C.
Date of Manufacture:	03/01/1944
Eminent Figure:
Catalog Number:	SPAR 767
Measurements:	OL:110.4CM 43 1/2" BL: 60.9CM 24" 9.5 lbs.

Object Description:

U.S. RIFLE M1 .30 SN# 2723026
Manufactured by Springfield Armory, Springfield, Ma. in 1944 - Standard issue M1 rifle with unusual tiger grain stock. Semi-automatic, gas-operated, turning bolt. 8-round clip fed. Weapon weighs approximately 9.5 lbs with a muzzle velocity of 2800fps. All original finish. Weapon probably made up as presentation piece.

Markings:
Receiver: U.S. RIFLE/CAL..30 M1/SPRINGFIELD/ARMORY/2723026.
Barrel: 3-44.
Stock: Inspector's mark: S.A. G.A.W. with ordnance stamp. GAW = Colonel George A. Woody.

Weapon transferred to the Museum on 30 March 1944.

Notes: Significant M1 Rifle dates can be found at: www.academicplanet.com/webs/garandstand.

"1941-1945, World War II - The M1 Garand rifle was first used in combat by U.S. troops of the Philippine Division of the United States Forces Far East, against Japanese troops invading the Philippine Islands in December 1941 - January 1942. Only limited number of Garand rifles were available in overseas areas at that time, however, and most of the American and Philippine soldiers were still armed with the Springfield M1903 rifle during the early battles of the war. In October 1942 at Guadalcanal, Army reinforcements landing two months after the initial Marine invasion were armed with the M1; Marine Corps units were still armed with Springfield rifles. First battle use of the Garand rifle by U.S. rifles. First battle use of the Garand rifle by U.S. Army troops in the European Theater at Operations was against VIchy French Colonial Troops during the invasion of North Africa, on November 8-11, 1942. First contact with German troops occured in Tunesia in January 1943. Used in ever-increasing numbers as the war continued, the M1 Garand became the outstanding infantry rifle of World War II. General George S. Patton, one of the most daring of American World War II commanders, called the M1 'the best weapon ever devised.'" - Johnson

"EXACTLY WHAT IS A 'CARTOUCHE' - The dramatic increase collector interest in M1s, '03s and many other U.S. military weapons has resulted in a lot of 'buzzwords' being tossed around. Most of us are sometimes guilty of using such words without paying much attention to their actual meaning.
A good example of this is the word 'cartouche.' Most collectors, myself included, use this term to denote the final inspection stamp applied to a stock. Perhaps the most familiar example of this is the stamp found on M1 stocks such as 'SA/GAW', 'WRA/GHD' and the 'Defense Acceptance Stamp' (spread eagle & stars). These markings are typically termed 'cartouches' by collectors today. Actually, I cannot recall ever seeing any official Ordnance Department reference to the term 'cartouche' in this context. The markings were referred to as 'Final Inspection Stamps' and other terms in Ordnance documents. Therefore, the term 'cartouche' when referring to inspection stamps on U.S. military stocks is a widely used, but non-official, term.
As an aside, the word 'cartouche' is French for 'cartridge.' When French archaeologists began to cipher ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics many years ago, some of the symbols were of oval shape that was reminiscent of the paper cartridges used with the muzzle-loading military weapons of the era. These oval-shaped symbols were termed 'cartouches' by the French in recognition of their shape. The term was also applied to oval-shaped inspection stamps found on flintlock military stocks.
Years later, modern collectors discovered the term 'cartouche' and began to use it in a generic sense to describe any sort of inspection marking stamped in the stock of a military firearm. I have no problems with this unofficial term in the proper context and use it myself all the time to denote the final inspection marking on a military weapon stock.
However, the term 'cartouche' has recently taken on a life of its own and I see a lot of references to the term 'cartouche' to describe any and every mark stamped in the wood. I've heard statements such as, 'The only cartouche remaining on the stock was a partial proof mark on the griMy only point in this discussion is that the term 'cartouche' is a perfectly acceptable, if unofficial, term to denote the final (or principal) inspection marking stamped into a stock. However, to refer to every single marking stamped on a stock as a 'cartouche' is carrying the term a bit too far. Proof marks, Ordnance Department escutcheons ('crossed cannons') and the like are NOT cartouches and should not be referred to as such.
As stated in previous discussions, incorrect terms can sometime be used so often that they take on a patina of legitimacy and acquire a life of their own. Calling a proof mark or manufacturer's initials a 'cartouche' is a classic example of incorrect terminology." - Bruce Canfield

"The most amazing thing about that M1 is you could throw that thing down in a mud hole, drag it through it, pick it up and it would fire." - Darrell "Shifty" Powers

"MYTH: Springfield Armory sub-contracted all of their M1 Rifle operating rod springs to the Wallace Barnes Co.
FACT: Although the Wallace Barnes Co. of Bristol, Connecticut, Newcomb Spring Corporation of Brooklyn, New York and other contractors did manufacture M1 Rifle operating rod springs for Springfield Armory, the 1936 Fiscal Year Report states: 'To forward production of Semiautomatic Rifle components, the following manufacturing operations were performed by the Model Shop: dies, tools and fixtures made, and 1,300 operating rod springs were wound." - The Grand Stand Report, Spring 2005.

LOAN HISTORY:
ARMY# 5659 - Loaned to Mr. Donald Clifford, Principal, Technical High School, Springfield, Ma. 10 April 1958 to 14 April 1958.
Army #5659 - Loaned to Mr. Thomas Tyrer, Masonic Building, Boylston St., Boston, Ma. 10 June 1958 to 11 June 1958.
Army #5659 - Loaned to Lt. Frances Swallow, Boston Army Base, Boston, Ma. from 7 July 1958 to 24 July 1958.

References:
Duff, Scott. THE M1 GARAND: WORLD WAR II. Scott A. Duff, Export, Pa. 1993.
Goodwin, Mark G. US INFANTRY WEAPONS IN COMBAT: PERSONAL EXPERIENCES FROM WORLD WAR II AND KOREA. Scott Duff Publications. Export, Pa. 2005
Johnson, George. INTERNATIONAL ARMAMENT. 2nd Ed. Ironside Publications Inc. Alexandria, Va. 2002.