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LOT 401
Outstanding Documented Law
Enforcement Shipped Colt Model
1921/1928 U.S. Navy Overstamp
Thompson Submachine Gun, Class III/NFA
C&R Fully Transferable Machine Gun - Serial no. 11079, 45 ACP cal., 10 1/2 inch fluted round bbl., blue finish, walnut stock. Originally manufactured by Colt as a Model 1921 Thompson SMG, one of a number stuck in inventory due to sluggish sales; while today the Thompson is recognized as an American classic and one of the all-time finest “heavy metal” SMGs, at the time it was a novel, untested and expensive weapon, and few were willing to roll the dice. The U.S. Marine Corps was an early adopter, and the firm attempted to capitalize on the connection by adding “U.S. NAVY” markings to their 1921s, updating the features based on USMC feedback, and overstamping the “1921” to “1928” to match their newer model. According to Herigstad’s “Colt Thompson Submachine Gun Serial Numbers and Histories” (page 951), this particular Thompson was shipped to the Sheriff’s Office of Effingham County, Illinois at an unrecorded date. Located in South Central Illinois, the County Seat (also named Effingham) bills itself as the “Crossroads of Opportunity”, and is a noted meeting place of highways and rail lines. The item is also recorded in the collection of Tom Keefe in 1979.