I learn so much on this forum, thought it might be nice at least once to give something back. I recently received the S&W Letter from Roy Jinks on my 1952 Baby Chief. Learning the origins of any firearm is always a treat, and when it started life as a law enforcement weapon, even more so.
Roy's letter really piqued my interest when I saw it was shipped to the George Cake Co. for the San Bernardino Police, especially since I had no idea what the Cake Company was. I decided to pass on all the obvious Cake and Donut Shop jokes in my post, and instead opted for the California Politician joke, didn't figure most would mind. Kind of like the old joke when they decided to use Lawyers instead of Lab Rats because 1) The lab assistants were becoming very attached to their little rats. No such sentiment for a lawyer…2) Lawyers breed faster and are in much greater supply…3) Lawyers are much cheaper to care for and…4) There are still some things even a rat won't do.
I just had to know what the 'Cake' company was. As I read, I became even more fascinated, hope you enjoy the read about George F. "Jim" Cake as much as I did…
George F. "Jim" Cake was never a cop, but he probably saved a lot of cops' lives.
Mr. Cake pioneered a lot of police technology. Gun locks, motorcycles and, most importantly, the plastic shields that separate the front seat and backseat in cop cars.
Mr. Cake, a survivor of the '06 quake who later developed and sold law enforcement equipment to police departments in California and nationwide.
The George F. Cake Co. of Berkeley distributed guns, ammunition, badges, handcuffs, helmets, Mace, sirens and radar guns all over the West. Mr. Cake sold everything but the uniform and also taught police officers the use of teargas and submachine guns. He was the first to install metal detectors at Alcatraz, San Quentin and other prisons in the region.
Mr. Cake was a friend and adviser to Earl Warren and Edmund G. "Pat" Brown, working with both when they were young Northern California district attorneys. McIntyre said Mr. Cake worked with Warren on several investigations and that Brown, when he was governor, asked him to sweep the governor's mansion for surveillance "bugs." He found none.
Mr. Cake was born on Feb. 28, 1904, in Shasta County. His family lived in San Francisco's Sunset District in 1906 when the quake hit, and they stayed in Golden Gate Park for several days. They later moved to Los Angeles. He got his start in his chosen business in the 1930s when he supplied firearms and teargas to police and sheriff's departments quelling labor unrest in the Central Valley.
Mr. Cake joined the Army during World War II and served with the general staff as the allied forces marched across Europe toward Berlin. A lieutenant colonel, Mr. Cake was credited for his work on policies for the occupation and for quickly returning civilian control after the soldiers moved on.
He moved to Kensington after the war and started his company. He sold it in 1971 but stayed on as company president until 1975, when he and his wife moved to Rossmoor. Sadly, as happens to us all, Mr. Cake passed away in 2002 at his home in Roseville, CA. He was 98.
Roy's letter really piqued my interest when I saw it was shipped to the George Cake Co. for the San Bernardino Police, especially since I had no idea what the Cake Company was. I decided to pass on all the obvious Cake and Donut Shop jokes in my post, and instead opted for the California Politician joke, didn't figure most would mind. Kind of like the old joke when they decided to use Lawyers instead of Lab Rats because 1) The lab assistants were becoming very attached to their little rats. No such sentiment for a lawyer…2) Lawyers breed faster and are in much greater supply…3) Lawyers are much cheaper to care for and…4) There are still some things even a rat won't do.
I just had to know what the 'Cake' company was. As I read, I became even more fascinated, hope you enjoy the read about George F. "Jim" Cake as much as I did…
George F. "Jim" Cake was never a cop, but he probably saved a lot of cops' lives.
Mr. Cake pioneered a lot of police technology. Gun locks, motorcycles and, most importantly, the plastic shields that separate the front seat and backseat in cop cars.
Mr. Cake, a survivor of the '06 quake who later developed and sold law enforcement equipment to police departments in California and nationwide.
The George F. Cake Co. of Berkeley distributed guns, ammunition, badges, handcuffs, helmets, Mace, sirens and radar guns all over the West. Mr. Cake sold everything but the uniform and also taught police officers the use of teargas and submachine guns. He was the first to install metal detectors at Alcatraz, San Quentin and other prisons in the region.
Mr. Cake was a friend and adviser to Earl Warren and Edmund G. "Pat" Brown, working with both when they were young Northern California district attorneys. McIntyre said Mr. Cake worked with Warren on several investigations and that Brown, when he was governor, asked him to sweep the governor's mansion for surveillance "bugs." He found none.
Mr. Cake was born on Feb. 28, 1904, in Shasta County. His family lived in San Francisco's Sunset District in 1906 when the quake hit, and they stayed in Golden Gate Park for several days. They later moved to Los Angeles. He got his start in his chosen business in the 1930s when he supplied firearms and teargas to police and sheriff's departments quelling labor unrest in the Central Valley.
Mr. Cake joined the Army during World War II and served with the general staff as the allied forces marched across Europe toward Berlin. A lieutenant colonel, Mr. Cake was credited for his work on policies for the occupation and for quickly returning civilian control after the soldiers moved on.
He moved to Kensington after the war and started his company. He sold it in 1971 but stayed on as company president until 1975, when he and his wife moved to Rossmoor. Sadly, as happens to us all, Mr. Cake passed away in 2002 at his home in Roseville, CA. He was 98.
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