The Firing Line Forums

Go Back   The Firing Line Forums > The Hide > NFA Guns and Gear

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old April 21, 2000, 06:53 PM   #1
Rich Jone
Member
 
Join Date: July 2, 1999
Posts: 22
I recently had the opportunity to actually see & touch the Thompson submachine gun (Model 1921) that was used in the ACTUAL St. Valentine's Day Massacre. I wanted to buy it, but the owner refused.

Question: what is the approximate value of such a gun with such historical evidence?

P.S. -- Yes, I was in disbelief that this was (1) of the actual guns used, until the owner had a book (History of the Thompson Submachine Gun) verifying the serial number with the the one used in the event.
Rich Jone is offline  
Old April 21, 2000, 06:56 PM   #2
Rich Jone
Member
 
Join Date: July 2, 1999
Posts: 22
Oops!!
The work "evidence" should have been "significance".
Thanks in advance.
Rich Jone is offline  
Old April 22, 2000, 11:05 AM   #3
4V50 Gary
Staff
 
Join Date: November 2, 1998
Location: Colorado
Posts: 21,824
Basic market price for the Thompson. For the historical significance associated with it, that's almost priceless.
4V50 Gary is offline  
Old April 22, 2000, 06:46 PM   #4
Uncle Jack
Member
 
Join Date: January 25, 2000
Posts: 38
When you consider the fact that the gun in question was probably directly responsible for the enactment of the National Fireams Act and the beginning of federal "Gun Control", the historical value of the piece becomes unimaginable. Guns used in famous or infamous incidents become "Folklore Artifacts".

The 10 guage double barreled Geener shotgun used by Doc Holladay at the OK Corral recently sold at auction or almost $250,000.00

------------------
Uncle Jack

"If you put the first two where they belong, everything else is rhetoric and theory."
Uncle Jack is offline  
Old April 24, 2000, 10:31 AM   #5
James K
Member In Memoriam
 
Join Date: March 17, 1999
Posts: 24,383
As they say on Antiques Roadshow, if it were put up for auction, it would likely start at $500,000 and go up from there. If you were serious about buying it, let's get together some time. I need a small loan...

Jim
James K is offline  
Old April 26, 2000, 10:27 AM   #6
Alex Johnson
Senior Member
 
Join Date: February 16, 2000
Location: Grand Forks, ND
Posts: 812
Just curious, what was the St. Valentine's Day Massacre?
Alex Johnson is offline  
Old April 26, 2000, 12:01 PM   #7
James K
Member In Memoriam
 
Join Date: March 17, 1999
Posts: 24,383
Hi, Alex,

In (I think) 1929, Al Capone's mob gunned down some of rival Bug Moran's gang in a garage in Chicago. Two of the killers were dressed as cops (in Chicago, they may actually have been cops), and carried Thompson Submachineguns. The victims were unarmed. The investigation was one of the first where forensic firearms identification evidence was used to determine how many shots were fired from each gun.

The combination of this, plus other gangland use of machineguns, plus race riots that fueled fears of blacks with machineguns, led eventually to passage of the National Firearms Act, since incorporated into the Gun Control Act of 1968.

It is worth noting that racism is the dirty little secret behind every gun control law ever passed in this country, no matter what excuse is used at the time.

For more info, do a search on valentine+massacre; there is a lot of info out there.

Jim
James K is offline  
Old April 27, 2000, 02:41 PM   #8
Alex Johnson
Senior Member
 
Join Date: February 16, 2000
Location: Grand Forks, ND
Posts: 812
Thanks Jim, I'll look it up.
Alex Johnson is offline  
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 07:56 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
This site and contents, including all posts, Copyright © 1998-2021 S.W.A.T. Magazine
Copyright Complaints: Please direct DMCA Takedown Notices to the registered agent: thefiringline.com
Page generated in 0.06311 seconds with 8 queries