Have a gun that I think belonged to James C. (Doc) White. I realize I am only a caretaker and that it will pass on at some point.
Here is my dilemma. Have a letter from Potchernick's to S&W stating that the the gun is the property of Jomer C. White c/o the Federal Bureau of Investigation. They were sending the gun back to S&W for repair. It was out of time.
There was never an agent named Jomer per the FBI Historian.
So Jomer is a misspelling because there was not an agent named Jomer.
Think my gun belonged to Doc. There were only about 400 Special Agents in 1936. The only other agent I found named White was Doc's brother Tom who retired from the Bureau and went to the Bureau of Prisons in 1926 as warden at Leavenworth.
How did this error occur? The letter was signed by F. L. Toepperwein, younger brother of the famous Winchester Exhibition shooter Ad. He was the president of Pothchernick's. Typed by cm. If you looked at something written in cursive, an "a" can look much like an "o" and an "s" can look much like an "r". Thus James becomes Jomer.
A few further facts. Potchernick's is in San Antonio. Doc was a Special Agent in San Antonio in 1936 when the gun was sold and sent back for repair. Shipping date was December 24, 1935. Letter to S&W was dated December 11, 1936. I have a list of San Antonio agents in 1936. No one else named White.
The gun in question is .357 Magnum #47138 REG 657. A couple of years ago I posted asking about value. handejector said he thought $30,000 minimum. Said with a lot of provenance no telling what it might bring on one of the big auction sites like Rock Island or Morphey's, Said a Registered Magnum that belonged to a man that was a Texas Ranger and an FBI Agent was probably unique. Well, if it is a Doc White gun, yes. Otherwise it is just a Registered Magnum with FBI provenance.
I have quite a bit of provenance if you accept that the gun belonged to Doc. Several threads on the gun. Forum members came up with quite a bit. Also did a FOIA request on Doc to the FBI and got quite a bit.
There is a S&WCA Journal article on the gun, "Interesting History of S&W .357 Registered Magnum #657 and the Texas Lawman Who Owned It."
In the .357 Magnum Pre-War Database, Terry Lester (lestert357) listed the gun as belonging to James C. White, Texas Ranger and FBI Agent.
Bill Cross, (Doc44) said he thinks the gun belonged to Doc.
Sounds like Lee Jarrett (handejector) thinks the gun belonged to Doc.
I have two children that are not all that interested in guns. My guess is they would rather have the 30K plus rather than the gun.
Thinking I might talk to the auction houses and see if they think I have enough provenance that they would feel comfortable saying it is a Doc White gun.
The other option would be to list it here. Don't know if you can list a gun without a firm price. Could I say 30K minimum? See what someone would offer? Guess the other option would be a higher price with an OBO option.
I would like the gun to go to a good home. Maybe another advantage of listing it here.
Here is my dilemma. Have a letter from Potchernick's to S&W stating that the the gun is the property of Jomer C. White c/o the Federal Bureau of Investigation. They were sending the gun back to S&W for repair. It was out of time.
There was never an agent named Jomer per the FBI Historian.
So Jomer is a misspelling because there was not an agent named Jomer.
Think my gun belonged to Doc. There were only about 400 Special Agents in 1936. The only other agent I found named White was Doc's brother Tom who retired from the Bureau and went to the Bureau of Prisons in 1926 as warden at Leavenworth.
How did this error occur? The letter was signed by F. L. Toepperwein, younger brother of the famous Winchester Exhibition shooter Ad. He was the president of Pothchernick's. Typed by cm. If you looked at something written in cursive, an "a" can look much like an "o" and an "s" can look much like an "r". Thus James becomes Jomer.
A few further facts. Potchernick's is in San Antonio. Doc was a Special Agent in San Antonio in 1936 when the gun was sold and sent back for repair. Shipping date was December 24, 1935. Letter to S&W was dated December 11, 1936. I have a list of San Antonio agents in 1936. No one else named White.
The gun in question is .357 Magnum #47138 REG 657. A couple of years ago I posted asking about value. handejector said he thought $30,000 minimum. Said with a lot of provenance no telling what it might bring on one of the big auction sites like Rock Island or Morphey's, Said a Registered Magnum that belonged to a man that was a Texas Ranger and an FBI Agent was probably unique. Well, if it is a Doc White gun, yes. Otherwise it is just a Registered Magnum with FBI provenance.
I have quite a bit of provenance if you accept that the gun belonged to Doc. Several threads on the gun. Forum members came up with quite a bit. Also did a FOIA request on Doc to the FBI and got quite a bit.
There is a S&WCA Journal article on the gun, "Interesting History of S&W .357 Registered Magnum #657 and the Texas Lawman Who Owned It."
In the .357 Magnum Pre-War Database, Terry Lester (lestert357) listed the gun as belonging to James C. White, Texas Ranger and FBI Agent.
Bill Cross, (Doc44) said he thinks the gun belonged to Doc.
Sounds like Lee Jarrett (handejector) thinks the gun belonged to Doc.
I have two children that are not all that interested in guns. My guess is they would rather have the 30K plus rather than the gun.
Thinking I might talk to the auction houses and see if they think I have enough provenance that they would feel comfortable saying it is a Doc White gun.
The other option would be to list it here. Don't know if you can list a gun without a firm price. Could I say 30K minimum? See what someone would offer? Guess the other option would be a higher price with an OBO option.
I would like the gun to go to a good home. Maybe another advantage of listing it here.
Last edited:
