Smith & Wesson Model 1 – Their First Firearm

My dad started taking me to gun shows when I was around ten years old.  I fondly remember ogling the endless tables at eye level displaying Lugers, Broomhandle Mausers, Walther PPK pistols, Colt Single Action Army revolvers, and Smith & Wesson double actions in gold-colored boxes.  Those were indeed the good old days, circa 1975.  Before the dark times, before the empire of black polymer. Continue reading “Smith & Wesson Model 1 – Their First Firearm”

My LAPD Revolver Journey

. . . From Colt to S&W, and from Inspector to Cop

In 1961, New York Hardware Store, at 5th and Hill Streets, was a short two block walk from my part-time Saturday job parking cars in downtown Los Angeles.  New York Hardware had a nice gun section with rifles, shotguns, and handguns. Continue reading “My LAPD Revolver Journey”

The Day that Two Men, Who Traveled Life’s Road on Both Sides of Good and Bad, Collided with Fatal Results

As folks travel down the road of life, it is an interesting journey with many experiences and emotions.  It also has many issues in the journey that force us to choose between right and wrong.  No one can claim a 100% journey on the side of good.  There is only one man who lived a perfect life.

In the early days of law enforcement in this country there were many examples of individuals who had both worn a badge and committed crimes.  Our two principal fellows in this story illustrate the old saying that sometimes it takes one, to catch one. Continue reading “The Day that Two Men, Who Traveled Life’s Road on Both Sides of Good and Bad, Collided with Fatal Results”

The Day Politics Started a Gunfight Between the Police and Sheriff’s Departments in Hot Springs

Members of the Police Department and the Sheriff’s Department shot and killed each other on the main drag of this resort town, in this crazy episode from the late -19th Century. Continue reading “The Day Politics Started a Gunfight Between the Police and Sheriff’s Departments in Hot Springs”