I've probably mentioned it elsewhere but we had a local officer who sometimes carried a Baby Browning .25 when not in uniform. The gun wasn't so unusual but he wore it in a ridiculous leather belt holster with safety strap, similar to the type you would have seen back then that were used to carry K22s. The holster no doubt weighed half again what the gun weighed, and it was definitely a lot bigger. One day I overheard the Chief give him the word to change over to a Model 60, which he had come up with from somewhere, and he had offered to sell to me. So, there went my chance to buy a Model 60 when they were impossible to buy in a gun shop.
The Chief was a Marine who wore a 1911 in his everyday dress (street clothes). I rarely saw him in uniform. He carried the .45 according to what told me was "regulations" (chamber empty, but he had a loaded magazine in his gun). He did not think much of carrying it with a round in the chamber. He considered it "dangerous." He was a good egg. Later became mayor and was fairly well-liked in the community. I often wondered if the .45 got stashed in his desk drawer while he was mayor, or if it was left at home.
The majority of local officers carried Model 15s. I remember a couple Model 39s but I don't recall seeing a uniform wearing one - just a detective or two. The 39s seem to be considered something less than a serious gun. In the county we had a couple of town marshals who had Ruger single-actions. One of them also had some kind of odd autoloader that he would wear from time to time but I can't recall what it was. It was fairly small gun with extensive finish wear, probably a 7.65 of some sort, possibly of German or East European origin brought back from WWII? Whatever it was, it did not seem very impressive.
Shotguns were common - mainly Ithacas and sometimes a Model 12 or Model 97. I often saw officers with them. I guess if they fired one to destroy a dog or something the gun had to be brought into the station for cleaning. There were some lever action rifles, not many, maybe two or three '94 Winchesters (?), and there were at least a couple Thompsons somewhere but I only remember seeing them once outside of the city building. It was a sad night. A state policeman was killed by a suspect he was trying to arrest that he thought did not present any sort of threat. I think that night every gun the cops had was out on the street.
Once in a while I noticed a state policeman with an M-1 Carbine. They were a little more hidebound to the rules. I remember wondering if they would be in the cruisers during an inspection.
Finally, I do remember one state police bigshot with a nickel 4-inch Model 57 with custom stocks that he carried in a carved Tom Threepersons style holster with matching belt. Pretty nifty rig. He came up from Indianapolis on a very special detail that lasted for several days. I saw him and the 57 once, then he was gone. Probably had had enough of thrashing around in the mud and sticks with a heavy revolver on his belt. It was the only N-frame I ever saw a policeman wearing in Indiana.
) He and some of his deputies carried Model 58s......
