Guns engraved with names/initials of LEO's

Shotguncoach · Jul 16, 2022

The thread by Kansasgunner about the 3rd Model owned by E.A Haverfield made me wonder: how many revolvers are in our combined forum collection that have been engraved with the name or initials of lawmen from the past? Was this a common practice? Are there any commonalities that we can identify?

Here's mine: 3rd Model HE .44 with a 4" barrel engraved with the initials J.P.F and the word 'Sheriff'. J Perry Francis was the Coconino County Sheriff in Arizona during the 30's and 40's.

quinn · Jul 16, 2022

I have a 3rd model 44 that doesn't have the names engraved but on the inside of the jigged bone grips are the names of the two officers who carried the gun up into the 1950's. Bear in mind that this veteran policed the Texas oil patch for nearly 3 decades!

merl67 · Jul 16, 2022

A excellent thread starter unfortunately I don't have any to add, but hopefully many more will.

mrcvs · Jul 16, 2022

quinn said:
I have a 3rd model 44 that doesn't have the names engraved but on the inside of the jigged bone grips are the names of the two officers who carried the gun up into the 1950's. Bear in mind that this veteran policed the Texas oil patch for nearly 3 decades!

Also not factory engraved but “LARRY” identified this Triple Lock revolver as being his in November of (19)11, as penciled on the inside of the left non medallion stock.

mrcvs · Jul 16, 2022

I perhaps got carried away with my recent response as I neglected to pay attention to the subject matter of this thread, as this revolver is not engraved nor was Larry a LEO, but interesting enough for the topic of a new thread.

bdGreen · Jul 17, 2022

This is as close as I can get to your request for images.

Both of these were awarded to me for Officer of the Year.

They are, I believe, five years apart.

They both have their side plates engraved with my name.

enjoy,

bdGreen

Tap on image to enlarge.

bruce5781 · Jul 17, 2022

Here's a little K frame W&K belonging to Geo. Harrison. Officer Harrison started as a patrolman for Ft. Worth in the early 20's and retired as a turn key in the 50's.

As so many pawn shop engraved guns have been refinished, I always wondered if that was just part of the process. This little gun proved otherwise though, as the engraving is still in the "white", through the original nickle.

Regards,
Bruce

quinn · Jul 17, 2022

Bruce: i don't think I had seen that one before. That is Waaaay cool! W&K AND Ft. Worth PD! Some of us just love the wriggle cut engraving they did.

bruce5781 said:
Here's a little K frame W&K belonging to Geo. Harrison. Officer Harrison started as a patrolman for Ft. Worth in the early 20's and retired as a turn key in the 50's.

As so many pawn shop engraved guns have been refinished, I always wondered if that was just part of the process. This little gun proved otherwise though, as the engraving is still in the "white", through the original nickle.

Regards,
Bruce

824tsv · Jul 17, 2022

From the Great White North

Police Constable Robert Umphrey #387
Born 07 September 1888
Joined the Toronto Police Dept (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) on 01 April 1910, Retired 24 August 1940, and passed away on 08 August 1962.
Apparently he was quite the Marksman. The last pic shows PC (Police Constable) Umphrey in the basement of the Cowan Ave Police Station range circa 1940, shortly before his retirement.
I served 37 years with the same organization.

Club Gun Fan · Jul 17, 2022

This is Springfield Mass Police Officer Joseph Gaudreau's K22 Outdoorsman presented to him by Victor Wesson in Jan 1931. It was the 20th K22 made.

bruce5781 · Jul 17, 2022

quinn said:
Bruce: i don't think I had seen that one before. That is Waaaay cool! W&K AND Ft. Worth PD! Some of us just love the wriggle cut engraving they did.

Thanks Randy. I've had it about 3 years now. I always wanted a pawnshop engraved W&K, but I had envisioned an N frame.

Regards,
Bruce

colt_saa · Jul 17, 2022

While not engraved on the firearm itself, it was kind of a FBI fad (at least in Miami) to put a brass butt plate on target grips for your Model 13 that had your name engraved on the brass plate

I do not own one and never thought to photograph one

mikepriwer · Jul 18, 2022

Here is a LEO presentation revolver to Capt. Campbell of the Denver PD. The photo's include both sides of the revolver, and the factory letter. The grips are unique, as is the forged front sight, but it's all factory.

mikepriwer-albums-mlp20-picture24948-541274-factory-letter.jpg

Regards, Mike Priwer

Buford57 · Jul 18, 2022

This Cobra originally shipped with Coltwood plastic grips. The current grips cover "To Lt." before the name E.R. Freeman. This was a retirement present and AFAIK he never fired it. It came with a tan basketweave Harry Ryskamp paddle holster. The SN puts it in the 2nd year of production (1952) which would amount to about 30 years on the job.

Edd Freeman was a Michigan State Police Trooper who was sent to Cadillac in the mid to late 1930s to open a new post. He drove his POV because no cars were available. The only furniture or equipment in the new post was a telephone and a radio. He used a mop bucket for a chair and an fruit crate for a desk. A few months later another trooper arrived with an official car. The radio in the car could receive, but not transmit. Within the next few years, among other things, Freeman did some community relations work which included arm wrestling with a HS football player who was the attendant at a local gas station. Later Freeman responded when the station was robbed by two escaped cons. The kid decided to run out and get their license and they blew out the station window with a sawed off shotgun, but missed him. So did the Germans in North Africa and France and he came home to marry and have one daughter. I married her. In the early 80s he went looking for a self-defense gun and found a NIB Colt Cobra inscribed to his friend of 40 years before in the used case of a Traverse City gun shop. It, the holster and a full box of the old Super-X 200 grain "Super Police" ammo went home with him. A few years later he passed from a heart attack in his easy chair with the Cobra on the end table. I added the wood grips and T-grip and carried it as a BUG and occasional primary and put all of the visible wear on it. The two LEOs who owned it never fired a shot in anger from the gun, but when I got it 2 rounds were missing from the box, having been used to dispatch an opossum in the pool house.

SWSC · Jul 18, 2022

Gaudreau

SWSC · Jul 18, 2022

Campbell

Guns engraved with names/initials of LEO's

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