WWII Very Rare \"WALSH 1945\" M1916 Holster (for .45 cal M1911, M1911A1 ACP) NOS For Sale

WWII Very Rare \
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WWII Very Rare \"WALSH 1945\" M1916 Holster (for .45 cal M1911, M1911A1 ACP) NOS:
$267.50

WWIIM1916 Holster & Mint Cowhide Lace. VERY RARE! (“WALSH1945”)for M1911A1 .45 ACP NOS Unissued!! fromthe very last months of the war!!

Only one contract is KNOWN to have been awarded to WALSH in June 1944 for only 25,000 units. Virtually all of the surviving WALSH holsters are dated \"44\" the year the one and only contract was let. Very, very rarely one appears dated \"45\". This is one of the rarer of the rare: a 1945-dated WALSH holster!!


VERYRARE! Superb Condition! VERY RARE! Superb Condition! VERY RARE!Superb Condition!

Mint \"New Old Stock\" Unissued.

There\'s no evidence that a M1911 has ever been placed inside this WALSH holster!

U.S.Marine Corps; Army; U.S. Navy.

+Collectors of the WWII-era M1916 Holster recognize four categories ofrarity/scarcity: (1) Very Common, (2) Common, (3) Rare, and (4) Very Rare.

+Only three other America contractors besides the WALSH HARNESS CO. of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, areregarded as \"VeryRare\": BrauerBrothers Mfg.of St. Louis, Mo., JosephH. Mosser Tanneryof Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and Benjamin T. Crump & Co. of Richmond, Virginia!

CRUMPonlymade the M1916Holster in1942. It is believed that the contract was for only approximately20,000 units!

+Not only is this deeply and legibly stamped M1916 Holster from theVERYRARELYseen WALSH HARNESS COMPANY is also in stunning, beautifully preserved condition! These \"WALSH\"stampedHolsters simply do not turn up at all ... letalone in this condition!

+It is believed that sixteencontractors,combined, manufactureda wartime total of 1,830,536almost two million (1,830,536) M1916Holstersat a per unit cost ranging between $1.55 and $1.68 each.

+It is known that Walsh Harness Co. produced only 25,000 Holsters, marked either 1944 or 1945 or 1.4% or all Holsters made. Of that 1.4% it is not known what fraction of that 1.4% have survived to the present!

Bycomparison Boytmanufacturedover 430,881 holsters, Enger-Kressmanufactured341,000, GRATON-KNIGHTmanufactured188,437!

*****

ThisM1916Holsterwas worn by Marine and Army Officers,NCOs,personnel withcrew-served weapons,Aviators, Pilots, bomber Crewmen -- many of whom chose to carrya large frameM1911 .45 ACPin a belt holster suchas this one rather than the Shoulder Holster. The M1916 Holster was also worn by any otherMarine or Soldier who could lay his hands on a side arm!

*****

PARTICULARSof CONDITION:

* Deeplyembossed \"U.S.\" on the Flap.

*Crisply and deeply stamped in san serif font capital letterson the rear is the Milwaukee harness manufacturer\'s name:

WALSH

* Cowhide LACE is present.

*ZERO \'crazing’at the fold of the Flap!

* TheLeather at the point of attachment of theM1910 BeltHookisSTRONG and 100% FREEofcracks, dry rot, wear or\'crazing\'.

*ZERObreaks in the\'Hole\'on the Flap forthe blackened Brass STUD.

* ZEROscuffs, stains, personalized markings, scratches, cuts, dry rot, orcrazing to the leather! This supple example has never been\'neatsfoot oiled\' or \'saddle-soaped,\' both of which tend to breakdown the fibers of the leather!

*TheFLAP STUD, all four oftheRIVETS,thetwoEYELETSforLeatherLace TIE-DOWNare stillSECURELY SET!

* Onlyvery, very minor traces ofVERDIGRISon the Rivets!

* ZERO rust, bends, scratches of damage to the period-correct blackened steel M1910 BELT HOOK.

*ZERObreaks in theCORRECT ORANGE LINEN THREAD!(Current Holsters and reproductions are seen withWHITEPOLYESTERthread.)

* Boththe leather-covered wooden BLOCK near the TriggerGuard(to cant the pistol Grip away from the wearer\'s body) and the wooden BLOCK at the toe of the holster are present and securely stitched in place.

*****

The Walsh Harness Company of Milwaukee, Wisconsin: A Strong History of Tradition and Excellence.

he pioneering of the famous Walsh No-Buckle Harness was developed in a non-conventional way. In the fall of 1904, James M. Walsh, a research worker in Washington, D.C., returned to his father’s farm in Milwaukee, Wisconsin for brief visit. During his stay, while walking across a plowed field, he was attracted to a piece of harness leather that was damaged by a plow a few hours prior. Curious of its remaining longevity, he picked up the piece of leather and cut it in two with a pocket knife; to his amazement, the stitching and leather remained strong, but the buckles and rings were tearing at the ends! As Mr. Walsh made this discovery, his younger brother appeared, teasing him about the ability to make a harness that would “last for life”. To this reply, Mr. Walsh decided to take on that challenge and create a harness that would indeed last a lifetime.Originally named The James M. Walsh Company, the creation of the first working harness without buckles and rings appeared on the market in 1914. Walsh immediately grew to prominence and this new invention revolutionized the harness industry. Mr. Walsh scientifically tested his leather harness the same as steel mills tested for tensile strength in order to prove that a Walsh Harness would outlast the competitor so frequently. He continued to innovate and modify his designs to accommodate modern ideas as well as demonstrate the money saving investment on purchasing a harness that would need far less repair as it aged.To this day, Walsh Products is proud to continue to uphold Mr. Walsh\'s legacy in creating quality and durable products that will last. We never changed our standard of perfection and by using the finest materials, alongside the art of old world craftsmanship, Walsh has become a leader in the equine industry. by Scott Meadows,“A Word on Holsters: Part AND ACTUAL USE

\"Fromthe time that war broke out in late 1941 until sometime in late 1943almost all the holsters used by the American Forces in the field wereleftover from WW1 as were most of the pistols. It is very common tofind a vet brought back WW2Coltin a WW1 era issuedholster. From an historical context a holster was a holster, theyused what was available in the supply chain. Seventy years later wecollectors like to tidy things up a bit and stick WW2 made pistols inWW2 made stopped dating holsters sometime in 1944. All WW2 madeholsters were constructed of russet tan oil finished leather. Therewere16 known US contractorsfor these holstershaving their maker marks stamped on the back of the holster.Someare “Very Common,” some are simply “Common,” some are“Rare,” and only four of the sixteen makers are regarded by collectors as “Very Rare.
WALSH is one of the \"Very Rare\" makers!

Noteverybody made holsters at the same time and many of these makerslisted as very rare only made holsters in style=\"margin-bottom: 0in\">A.L.P. CO. (Atchison Leather Products Co., Atchison, Kansas)

  • BRAUER (Brauer Brothers Mfg. Co., St. Louis, Missouri)

  • BOYT (Boyt Harness Company, Des Moines, Iowa)

  • CRAIGHEAD (John R. Craighead Co., Inc., Denver, Colorado)

  • CRUMP (Benjamin T. Crump & Co., Richmond, Virginia)

  • ENGER-KRESS (Enger-Kress Company, West Bend, Wisconsin)

  • FINK (Fink Leather Shops, Kansas City, Missouri)

  • GRATON & KNIGHT CO. (Graton & Knight Manufacturing Co., Worcester, Mass.)

  • HARPHAM BROS. (Harpham Brothers Co., Lincoln, Nebraska)

  • MILWAUKEE SADDLERY CO. (Milwaukee Saddlery Co., Milwaukee, Wisconsin)

  • JOSEPH H. MOSSER (Joseph H. Mosser Co., Williamsport, Pennsylvania)

  • S-B CO. (Straus-Bodenheimer Saddlery Co., Houston, Texas)

  • SEARS (Sears Saddlery Co., Davenport, Iowa)

  • TEXTAN (Texas Tanning & Manufacturing Co., Yoakum, Texas)

  • WALSH (Walsh Harness Co., Milwaukee, Wisconsin)

  • WARREN LEATHER GOODS CO. (Warren Leather Goods Co., Worcester, Mass.)

    • TheG.I. .45 in World War IIbyBruce Canfield, appearing inAmerican Rifleman,April6, 2010\"...ahandgun was essentially a supplemental sidearm and was generallyemployed in actual combat action only when the more effective riflesand automatic arms were unavailable, out of ammunition or damaged. AnOct. 23, 1943, Marine Corps document titled “Report onInfantry Weapons in Combat” gave a brief synopsis of thevarious arms used by a Marine Raider Battalion on New Georgia Island.The section pertaining to the.45 ACPsimply stated:\"Held up very well, but used very little.”

    \"Many.45pistolswere acquired by troops who were not officiallyauthorized to be issued them as called for in their unit’sTOE(Table of Organization and Equipment). However, such regulationswere rarely enforced in combat zones, and many G.I.s and Marines whocould acquirea .45did so, and consideredthemselves lucky.

    \"Aleather hip holster, theModel of 1912,wasstandardized soon after theM1911’sadoption. Thisholster had a swivel attachment to make it better adapted to cavalryuse. Just before America’s entry into World War I, theModelof 1916holster was adopted, which differed fromtheM1912primarily in the deletion of the swivelfeature. Both were fitted with wire hooks that attached to thegrommets on the bottom of the standard webbed pistol belt orcartridge belt. There were sufficient numbers of World WarI-vintageM1916 holstersto meet the demand untilthe U.S. became actively involved in World War II. TheM1916holsterwas put back into production and almost 3 millionwere made by 16 different commercial firms between 1941 and 1945.These holsters were embossed with a large“U.S.”onthe cover flap, with the name of the maker and year of production onback.

    \"Aleathershoulder holster for the .45 pistol, designated as the“M3,”wasadopted in 1942 for use by aviators, tankers and others who preferredcarrying the pistol over the hip holster.An improvedshoulder holster design was standardized in 1944 as the \"M7.\"The pistol was secured in the shoulder holster by means of leatherstrap with a snap fastener. The shoulder holsters were also embossedwith a large “U.S” on the front, with the identity of themanufacturer and year of production on the back.

    \"...Itwas not uncommon for soldiers and Marines to be armed with bothcarbines and .45 pistols. Nevertheless, the desire to replace thepistol with the carbine continued throughout the war. This wasevidenced in a Jan. 26, 1943, Marine Corps document...

    \"Despitethis official stance, pistols were issued in ever-increasing numbersduring the war. As an example, the U.S. Marine Corps’ TOE(Tableof Organization and Equipment)in1942 authorized 798 .45 pistols for a Division but, by 1945, theauthorized figure had been increased to 1,707. So much for efforts toget rid of the pistol. The situation was much the same in the U.S.Army where the carbines and .45s were procured and issued side byside in large numbers. The total number of M1911A1 pistolsmanufactured during World War II was 1,878,742. Clearly, the .45 wasan integral part of America’s World War II infantry small armsarsenal!\"



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