Parker Bros Shell Casing
 

I am looking for some history on this brass shell found in Alexander Fjord in the Canadian Arctic.
It is a full brass casing of 2 5/8”. 12 Gauge

It may have been brought up North by some early explorers or traded later on in history. If I can get some details of when they were manufactured it would give me a clue as to what expeditions I could include in the research.

Thank you
Jim

interesting find

I don't know that I have ever seen a specific date range of when they were made, and being durable- they had a long life

I think generally you can place them in the last quarter of the 1800's

No doubt that shotshells are a while study in themselves.

That would be the UMC made (Parker stamped) Berdan type shotshell in 12A.

A couble variations exist in this type of shell in the early times of offering them.

The Parker Story states this type of shell was sold first by Parker in 1869 and continued to be offered until around 1895, thought UMC stopped making them in 1885. Obviously actual use of the shells by the shooters of the guns could be using them much later than that.

I'm not sure when A and B brass shells first became available, but they are listed in the Union Metallic Cartridge Co. catalogs from 1880 through the 1885-6 catalog. Not mentioned from the 1887 UMC catalog and onward. As I recall I read somewhere that the Parker Bros. brass shells were made for them by UMC, but I don't have that reference in front of me.

I don't see any mention of A and B shells in the 1878 E. Remington & Sons catalog.

Why wouldn’t a thin-walled brass shell like that have suffered more corrosion than it has having been subjected to the highly corrosive effects of salt water? I would expect to see a more jagged edge of the mouth of the shell...

Perhaps dropped by someone shooting black powder & brass shells more recently like some of us do today...?





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I have many 12A and 10A brass shells, and those stamped "West Meriden" are clearly UMC. Those marked "Meriden have a diamond impressed in the raised circle. They are most likely also UMC. Brass drawing and forming was a somewhat specialized process, and not one likely to have been performed by Parker, themselves.
Perhaps there is some way to distinguish manufacturing time period by the use of 'West' and opposed to not including it. These are subjects for the more academic than I am.
I gave up pipe smoking about 6 or 7 years ago, after enjoying it for over 40 years. The reason this seemingly unrelated thought is included, is that I always carried wooden matches inside a match case made by sliding a 12A brass shell into a 10A shell. The same can be done with a 14A inside a 12, or a 16 inside a 12. This completes today's useless trivia lesson.

Jim, that's a very cool find. A Parker brass shell found in the Arctic. Now if it could only talk. Would love to hear more of what your research reveals. John

Parket Shell Case
 

Edger did your match holder look something like this one:

1907 Penny glued to the cap.

Parker Shell Casing
 

more photos.
The Parker Shell casing is a 12 gauge.

Wow. Fancy, George. If my son ever gives me back my knurling tool, I'll make an end cap like that.
My every day match case was a brass 12A inside a brass 10A.
My Sunday fancy one was a nickel plated 3" 12A inside a nickel plated 3" 10A.