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Title:	RIFLE, MILITARY -  U.S. RIFLE M1 .30 SN# 6084405
Maker/Manufacturer:	GARAND, JOHN C.
Date of Manufacture:	05/17/1957
Eminent Figure:	GARAND, JOHN CANTIUS
Catalog Number:	SPAR 912
Measurements:	OL:110.4CM 43 1/2" BL: 60.3CM 23 3/4" 9.5 lbs.

Object Description:

U.S. RIFLE M1 .30 SN# 6084405
Manufactured at Springfield Armory, Springfield, Ma. on 17 May 1957 - Standard gas-operated M1 rifle with 8-round clip feed mechanism. Parkerized finish. Weapon equipped with National Match barrel dated March 1956. Weapon weighs approximately 9.5 lbs. This is the last M1 manufactured at SPAR on 5/17/1957.

Markings:
Receiver: U.S. RIFLE/CAL. 30 M1/SPRINGFIELD/ARMORY/6084405.
Barrel: SA 56535448 3 56 A 226A.
Stock: Defense Acceptance Stamp - (3 stars/Eagle in square - Defense Acceptance Stamp). P in circle.

Weapon transferred to the Museum on 30 August 1957. At that time weapon was appraised at $88.00.

Exhibit label: "SERIAL NUMBER 6,084,405 - After a production run of more than six million pieces, this last assembly line M1 was completed at Springfield Armory in May 1957."

Springfield Daily News - 17 May 1957 - "GARAND SEES LAST NAMESAKE ROLL OFF ARMORY PRODUCTION LINE
Modest John Garand, the Springfield man whose genius attracted world wide attention through his contribution to military small arms, today termed the adoption of the fully automatic T-44 to replace his Garand rifle 'as a fitting and necessary step.'
He attended with a group of officers and top civilians the turning out of the last M-1 rifle for general field purposes at the local gun plant.
A soft spoken man, immaculately dressed, and quick on his feet, Mr. Garand refused to make any comment on how much of a part he played in the development of the T-44, fully automatic rifle which is to replace the M-1 for use of American and NATO troops.
If the almost legendary gun maker refused to discuss his role in making the new rifle possible, others close to Armory production claimed that the part he played was a significant one.
Ninety-per cent of the assembly line making the Garand can be converted to make the versatile T-44, it was pointed out.
Mr. Garand in brief comments while he waited for the photographer to take pictures of him holding the last general purpose M-1, said that the need for a smaller cartridge was obvious and was now being fulfilled by the new weapon.
The T-44 rifle which can fire a clip of 20 rounds without reloading, uses a smaller bullet and smaller sized parts to cut down on the rifle weight."

HISTORICAL SUMMARY OF ACTIVITIES:
1JAN57 - 30JUN57 - "The last M1 Rifle was assembled in May, 1957, twenty years after the first of these weapons from Armory manufacturing lines was assembled, marking the end of an historic era for this weapon which had been developed at Springfield Armory and produced in large quantities during World War II and for the Korean conflict....
Activity on the M1 Rifle diminished steadily and came to a complete stop in May when the last weapon was assembled. Termination of M1 Rifle manufacture created a problem in furnishing National Match Rifles. When production lines were operating, selection could be made from many available assemblies to most National Match quality required. The reduced volume limited choice of selection with added time required to rework and custom fit to meet National Match standards. The method proposed during the previous period to custom fit receiver legs in the stocks by using filler pieces, to meet the stricter targeting requirements, was approved and incorporated into production....
All M1 Rifle manufacturing activities were completed during the period except spare part orders for eight assemblies, and the program for turn-in of tooling to storage was continued, being approximately 30% complete at the end of the period. Plans made in the preceding period for shutdown of the M1 Barrel line, and consolidation of remaining barrel activity under one cost area, the Production and Special Barrel Unit, was carried out."
1JAN62 - 30JUN62 - "New orders of importance received called for fabrication of M1 Rifle Barrels, Carbine Stock Assemblies, M1 Rear Sight Bases, and M1 Clip Ejectors. Workload for the Stock Shop was still limited; the order for the M1 Hand Guards was completed early in the 4th Quarter, FY 62...."
1JUL62 - 30JUN63 - Process engineering has moved out on this program, and at the end of June all route sheets were completed and being processed on the Flexo-writers for issue to the shops. Layouts have been made and approved for the equipment and areas where the rebuild work is to be done. Few actual moves were made, pending clarification of funding."
1JUL63 - 30JUN64 - "The Springfield Armory accepted an order for the overhaul and rebuild of 175,822 M1 rifles. Due-out dates were met through an intensive cannibalization and component repair program with a resulting decrease in anticipated rebuild unit cost from the $41 predicted to $21.71....
Funds for rebuilding 175,000 M1 rifles were received and the first delivery made in September. Monthly schedules were not always met early in the program as rebuild had to be accomplished by disassembling large quantities of rifles, cannibalizing, and salvaging parts in order to reassemble rifles. Some difficulty was experienced with lack of skill personnel to assemble rifles and repair targeting rejects which ran as high as 30% early in the program. This was caused primarily by bent barrels, oversize gas cylinders, undersize pistons, and loose clamping on the Stock. Action was taken to check for these specific defects and make corrections prior to targeting, after which rejections dropped by 10%. By the end of CY 1963, parts were becoming available and the program was on schedule.
Standard were established to insure that the work would be done within the labor cost estimate, and operations closely scrutinized to insure the most economical means of doing this work. Rifle costs were reduced from the estimated 1.5 hours of direct labor per rifle to less than one hour, and additional savings were brought about by salvaging of rejected parts. At the end of the program, an average saving of $10.00 per rifle for the full quantity had been effected over the original estimate.
The order was completed in June. With a maximum schedule of 20,000 rifles a month, this was the division's largest activity during the war.
A Technical Data Package cost estimate for Turkey was completed and forward to Hq, AWC. Technical information included all phases of fabrication, parts procurement, and inspection through to final assembly and test of weapons.
Product engineering support service for the Springfield Armory M1 rebuild program was given. A new, improved M1 manual was prepared; a Technical Data Package for product improvement of secondary items for procurement of components was completed....
Improvised Weapons - Sketches, fabrication procedures, and working models of improvised weapons were submitted to Frankford Arsenal for incorporation into their Improvised Munitions Handbook....Two additional items, a rifle (M1) with crossbow and improvised silencers, are in the process of completion and will be submitted to Frankford Arsenal."
1JUL64 - 30JUN65 - "Rifle, Caliber .30, M1 - Engineering support services were furnished to contractors, depots, and procurement districts int he manufacture of components and accessories. A Technical Data Package for a bayonet knife was updated and forwarded to Hq, Army Weapons Command. About six other technical data packages were reviewed, revised, and forwarded to Hq, Army Weapons Command on other items, such as barrels, stocks, cleaning rods, and general data for the rework of weapons in foreign countries..... 50,184 M1 Rifles were scheduled for rebuild at the Armory for FY65; 25,184 for MAP requirements and 25,000 for Army. In December 64, an additional order for 56,000 rifles was accepted for completion during FY65. All commitments were made through an extensive cannibalization and components repair program. This approach reduced the anticipated rebuild units costs from $31.75 to $20.46."
1JUL1JUL66 - 30JUN67 - "Spare parts only were made for the M1 Rifle, although the quantities on many orders were large. Work on the Firing Pins and Operating Rod Assemblies was completed in March and April, and final shipments made before closing the shops in Federal Square.
Delay in receipt of M1 Barrel blanks in the first half of the year caused the line to be drained resulting in a two-month lapse in delivery early in CY 1967. This caused the barrel schedule to be extended into September; however, part of the last order was cancelled in the 3rd Quarter of FY 1967 and replaced with the M14 barrel orders just mentioned. The last M1 Barrel made at the Springfield Armory was shipped in May 1967."

Notes: John Garand returned to the Armory to witness this historical event which took place at 10:43 am on May 17, 1957. The last M1 barrel made at the Armory is also in the Springfield Armory Museum collection. The catalog number for the barrel is SPAR- 8451, and has a barrel date of 3/67.

"A MAN TO REMEMBER. John C. Garand. Invented the Garand Rifle.
Born - Jan. 1888, St. Remi, Quebec, Canada.
Died - Feb., 1974, Springfield, Ma.
John Garand spent only 10 years in Canada before his parents moved to Denisonville, Conn., and then on to Jewett City. At age 20 he became a tool-and gauge maker for Browne & Sharpe and then in 1914 he became acting foreman and machine designer for Federal Screw Corp., in Providence, R.I.
From Providence, Garand moved to New York City, and it was there that he turned his attention to developing automatic firearms. The First World War focused attention on such weapons, and Garand was interested to learn of the frequent malfunctions that plagued them.
Having conceived some designs which he thought would eliminate such failures, he approached the Naval Invention Bureau and was soon put to work at the National Bureau of Standards in Washington, where he successfully developed a primer-activated light machine gun. There Maj. Lee Wright met the inventor and was sufficiently impressed to obtain Army Ordnance sponsor-ship and move Garand to the Springfield Armory in 1919.
Garand's machine gun had been soundly designed, but it failed to perform the functions the Army desired in such an arm. Thus Garand was instructed to develop a semi-automatic rifle, and this he proceeded to do, still using the explosion of the primer to activate the mechanism. He succeeded in perfecting such an arm only to have a change in ammunition adopted in 1925 force him to redesign his rifle, this time utilizing gas pressure of the activation.
Tests of the new rifle were highly satisfactory, but before even limited production could be started the caliber of the rifle was ordered increased from .276 to .30, and this caused further delays and alterations before the final adoption of the arm on Jan. 9, 1936. - HARLOLD L. PETERSON.

"Shown above are the receiver markings of serial number 6084405 which was the last 'issue grade' M1 Rifle assembled at Springfield Armory. John Garand returned to the Armory from his retirement to witness this historical event which took place at 10:43am on May 17, 1957.
Keep in mind that this was the last new production 'standard issue' M1 assembled. It was NOT the highest serial number used. New production National Match M1's continued through 1959. M1 RifLate production M1 receivers will also be found in the Project Salvo tests in caliber .30-06 duplex and triplex and .22-06 single, single smooth bore, and duplex. Springfield Armory also manufactured 7.62mm NATO barrels for installation on M1 rifles." - The Garand Stand Report, Winter, 1991. Vol. I.

"The End of an Era - Manufacture of 'service grade' M1s ended officially at Springfield Armory at 10:30 a.m. on May 17, 1957, sixteen days after the Secretary of the Army, Wilbur H. Brucker, had announced the adoption of the M14 and declared the M1 'limited standard.'
John Garand, invited back to the Armory for the ceremony, was photographed holding rifle SN 6084405, now on display at SANHS, the last standard production M1 rifle to come off the assembly line.
Production of new National Match M1s continued at the Armory through 1959. During this final two year period the grand total of M1s produced went into the 6,100,000 serial number range.
Today, the M1 rifle is no longer utilized for shooting purposes by any U.S. military service, although it does continue to serve. Various crack drill teams from the Air Force, Army, Marine Corps and Navy still use M1s in their performances. High school and college R.O.T.C. units are also so equipped. The legacy of the 'Garand' lives on." - Pyle

References:
Ball, Robert W.D. SPRINGFIELD ARMORY: SHOULDER WEAPONS 1795-1968. Antique Trader Book. Norfolk, Va. 1997.
Duff, Scott A. THE M1 GARAND: POST WORLD WAR II. Scott A. Duff. Export, Pa. 1989.
Poyer, Joe & Craig Riesch. M1 GARAND: 1936 TO 1957. North Cape Publications. Tustin, Ca. 2001.
Pyle, Billy. THE GAS TRAP GARAND. Collector Grade Publications. Cobourg, Ontario Canada. 1999.