One owner Parker

[todd allen]

Sitting in my office last night reflecting on the history, miles in the field, and many owners hands that these guns have passed thru, it got me thinking. How many of us, if any, have ever acquired a Parker from the original owner. Finding one still owned by the original family would, more than likely be as close as you can get these days.
I may have come as close as you can get to a one owner Parker back in 1996 with the acquisition of Parker number 242122, from the widow of Dr. Bruce Stephens.
Since ownership had not been transferred to anyone else since the passing of the doctor, could this gun be considered a one owner?
This is the little DHE two-bbl 20 gauge I have posted about here in the past, btw.

[Greg Baehman]

I would say it definitely was a one-owner Parker---right up to the time you acquired it.

[Robin Lewis]

Todd, I have a 16 GHE that was owned by my dearest friend in my life, he was the original owner and when he passed he left that Parker to me. That was the first Parker I had ever seen and the seed for the Parker passion that I can't seem to shake.

[Richard Flanders]

I inherited my mothers VHE20. My grandfather bought it new for her when she was barely a teenager.

[Bill Murphy]

You never told us about that before, Richard. You win.

[Richard Flanders]

Bill: I have actually related this story here, in my very first introductory post in, I think, the summer of 2006. I think it was my first post anyway, if my memory serves me right, which it doesn't do much lately.... The best part of the story is worth repeating. My mother was ill with cancer for 2.5 yrs before she passed on at only 37yrs old. The last person to see her was her mother and the very last thing she said before she rolled over and expired was, "make sure Richard gets the Parker".... True story. My grandmother told me that. I doubt my mother had seen that gun in at least 15 yrs. I never had a clue she wanted me to have it but I was the only avid hunter of us 4 boys so it made sense. I waited 6 yrs to finally claim it from it's place in the closet gun cabinet at my grandmothers lake house. My uncle did NOT want me to have it; I had to literally pull it from his greedy alcoholic hands. No way I was leaving without it. He would have sold it for alcohol funds at some point. I've never owned anything as precious to me as that gun. I have one niece(of 5)who loves to shoot... pistols, shotguns, rifles... anything, and she has a Rem 870 that she loves... She has shooting parties with her friends in the pasture and has completely cleaned the house out of every type of ammunition that was there, which was a lot. I plan to change her gun preference at some point. Hopefully she'll never look back and will take good care of it. I never thought I'd feel it, but I'm actually looking forward to the parting. She's had a rough go of life in some ways. I think this will be a definite turning point for her that I'm happy to facilitate. I've had it for 38yrs; it's getting close to someone elses turn.

[todd allen]

Richard, the bottom line is, we're all just taking turns. Soon it will be someone else's. I'm hoping my Grandson will be the one.
Part of our stewardship, is to guide these things into the right hands.

[David Holes]

well choose your next guardian carefully. A DH, vent rib 12 came my way when a 21 year old great grandson decided it was worth to much cash to keep.

[Austin W Hogan]

The Czar gun was owned by a single family until auctioned. We made a remark in Parker Pages that it was the only one owner A1S publically sold this century.

Best, Austin

[calvin humburg]

Richard that is really a neet story. Now where's my hankey. Robin you have a very neet story as well. Bet you take it hunting for your buddy.

[charlie cleveland]

all the stories were fantastic...i agree with choose wisely whom you give yout treasures away.... charlie

[Bill Murphy]

I have Granddad's E Grade Lefever pigeon gun, special ordered, probably by him, in 1887. By 1887, he was 31 years old, a successful businessman in Hazleton, PA. There would be no reason, in my mind, that he would buy a used gun that just happened to be built as a pigeon gun. He was a cafe keeper and operated a pigeon shooting operation on Pine Street in Hazleton Heights. Sure, the gun could have been someone else's gun, but I'm fairly comfortable that it was his from birth. There is no way I can document this gun as a one owner-one family gun, except that my Dad, born in 1903, and his brother, born in 1899, told me that the Lefever is the only gun they remember their father ever shooting. Too darn bad it isn't a Parker. Granddad used the Lefever from 1887 to 1929, 42 years, a long time. I've used my first Parker since 1960, 51 years. My Dad never owned a Parker or a Lefever, unfortunately.

[Richard Flanders]

Good story Bill. Thanks. Our second family Parker could be a one owner gun but I doubt it. My brother has it. It's a 30" 2-frame VH12 with a very crude chainsaw job replacement stock and, thanks to me, the top rib separated on both sides for over 2" at the breech end. I used to reload very short light loads with my grandfathers old Winchester reloading kit and try to wingshoot sparrows in the hay fields in summer. I was about 14 at the time. One day the rib separated when I shot and rung my ears pretty good when it opened up at the breech a tad. I've never understood why it let loose but was/am glad I didn't have a full power load in there! My loads were about 2-1/4" long and very light and I'm very sure I didn't over load a shell; there just wasn't room to do so. It's never been fixed and I doubt ever will be. None of us has a clue from where or when my grandfather acquired it.

[Leighton Stallones]

I bought a nice VHE 20 ga from a friend of mine about 3 years ago.
His Father had bought it from A&F in 1932 and I have the records from the purchase and the factory letter which also included the original work order tag. My friend grew up in Michigan and they used it for grouse in the area. When he moved to San Antonio after inheriting the gun, he used it for Quail and dove in South Texas. After reaching near 90 years, he asked if I would be interested in it, which I was of course.

[Bill Murphy]

I've really never thought about how long my Granddad shot his old E Grade Lefever pigeon gun compared to how long I've been shooting it. He shot it from 1887 to 1929, 42 years. My uncle sent me the gun in 1957 when I was twelve years old. I have been shooting the gun for 54 years, twelve years longer than Granddad shot it. When I got the gun in 1957, my Dad was all atwitter about the "soft barrels", and told me I couldn't shoot factory shells in it. He had a friend on Staten Island, Bill Lea, who was a prolific antique gun collector. Bill sent me a set of BGI loading equipment, a roll crimper, an adjustable measure, and a decapping block, all of which I still have. I didn't know where to buy wads, so I used newspaper for wads and loaded shells for the Lefever which I shot on the skeet range like it was a normal thing to do. It wasn't long before the skeet committee at the club put me to work loading shells for the club and I found out about real card wads and fiber fillers. Bill Lea also sent me a very nice Francotte Grade 14 ejector gun with a blown right barrel and asked me if I could do anything with it. I knew Lefever would sleeve it for about $125, but I didn't think I would come out on top with a deal like that. I didn't have the nerve to ask for how much he would sell the gun to me. Foolishly, I sent the gun back to Mr. Lea with thanks. That was a bad decision. I think he meant to give me the gun, but I didn't know that at the time. My Dad's work place was full of gun people, at least I thought so. When I was eleven or twelve years old and on a trip to New York, Mr. Lea invited us to his home on the very end of the island and showed us guns for an afternoon. One that was most impressive was a Winchester Model 86 Deluxe in 50-110. He was nobody's shotgun guy. However, one of my Dad's work friends owned a Novotny A-1 Special. We exchanged letters about the gun but I never saw the gun or pictures of the gun. Fifty years later, through my "shooter research", I found that my Dad's friend and Mr. Novotny had shot together in Minnesota. Just about the time Ron Kirby was getting seriously into "Novotny Research", he left PGCA.

[Richard Flanders]

Great story Bill. There are some incredible Win 1886 deluxe models out there. I'd love to have a .50-110 for moose; the bigger the hole the better! I'm off today to try for one with my Win 1885 Hi wall .45-90.

[Bill Murphy]

I have a John Oberlies built High Wall in 45-70 that I would like to take to meet some game. It is a big rifle, could easily be bored or rebarrelled to a fifty caliber. Oberlies bought brand new barrels from Winchester to build his rifles, so rebarrelling would be a better alternative to reboring.

[Stu Williams]

Mine has always been in our family. A 1929 Trojan 20 ga that was my Grandfathers, and he gave it to me when I was 12. I used it when my Grandfather taught me to hunt dove and quail. So it is still a one family Parker, and I imagine many or most are still in their respective families. I fret over what to do with it after I am gone, I have 3 daughters that don't hunt or shoot (Well one goes to the skeet range with me and pulls). I have no nephews to leave it with either (I'm sure there might be a volunteer or two on the forum).
While it is a Parker (ok a trojan) the value to me is the time I spent using it to knock down dove and quail with my grandfather and it is just a bonus that it is a Parker.

[Dave Suponski]

Uncle Stu...Don't forget about me....:)

[Bill Murphy]

My Dad never owned a Parker, but he got me started with Parkers and watched with interest while I bought a few. His favorite gun was his Model 21 20 gauge 28" Skeet Grade. It is still in mint condition because he never carried it in the field and only shot a couple of rounds of skeet with it.

[Eric Eis]

Mine has always been in our family. A 1929 Trojan 20 ga that was my Grandfathers, and he gave it to me when I was 12. I used it when my Grandfather taught me to hunt dove and quail. So it is still a one family Parker, and I imagine many or most are still in their respective families. I fret over what to do with it after I am gone, I have 3 daughters that don't hunt or shoot (Well one goes to the skeet range with me and pulls). I have no nephews to leave it with either (I'm sure there might be a volunteer or two on the forum).
While it is a Parker (ok a trojan) the value to me is the time I spent using it to knock down dove and quail with my grandfather and it is just a bonus that it is a Parker.

Stu, Hold on to it because maybe one of your Grandkids might enjoy it

[edgarspencer]

My grandfather's cousin took my dad to the Parker showroom in 1917 and bought him this 1 frame VHE 16 for his birthday. Even though my grandfather worked at Parker, he wouldn't buy him a gun. I don't think the old guy even knew how to bait a hook until he retired. There have been a cord of them since that time, but this one will stay. My dad took me out with him thanksgiving morning. We had just crossed a footbridge when I heard "BOOM...BOOM" (Hey when your 7, it really sounded BIG) He then says to me "You go get those two, I'll get these" That man still walks on water in my mind.

[George Lander]

I have my Dad's Fox Sterlingworth that the owner orf the Packard dealership, where he worked as a salesman, gave him in 1919. I also have a research letter from John Callahan which states that the gun was shipped on February 26, 1919 from Fox's plant in Philadelphia to S.B. McMaster & Co. Columbia, SC.

He hunted everything with that gun & was the only gun that he owned that I remember. He carried it in the trunk of his car and over the years had become a little beat up. A few years before he passed away in 1974 I had the gun completely restored to "as-new" and gave it back to him. I can still remember the look on his face as he quietly remembered hunts, dogs and friends long past. That's the one gun that will never be sold.

Best Regards, George

[Steve McCarty]

I bought my SBT SC from a fellow who got it from his father in law who, as far as I know, was the original owner. The fellow, who was my dad's best friend, lost his wife to a murder. His new wife, said that she didn't want any guns in their house, so the gent offered to sell me the gun for what it'd been apprised for in the 70's. $1500.

My Single Barrel Trap Parker SC is a fantastic trap gun! Very high and straight comb, so even with a hard spot weld it shoots high, which means you have a "lot of air", but it breaks birds like mad. Strangly my hardest shot has always been the straight going away bird. I was shooting underneath it, since the bird is rising. The Parker smokes those birds, which improves my score.

I visited the local trap club. Those guys were shooting all kinds of fancy guns with do dads that adjusted the butt plate, the comb and trigger. The guns looked new. So I show up with my Parker broken open, cradled over my elbow.

"What ya shoot'n". One of the guys asked.

"Why a Parker trap gun." I relied. The guy looked at me as if I'd said I drive an old VW bus.

He glanced at my gun, looked away and said something like, "Well, yer gonna have to get something better than that old piece of s..."

I turned and walked away. Didn't join the club either.

[Steve McCarty]

I own, shoot and charish my Dad's Knickerbacher SxS 20 gage. His dad bought it from the fellow who became the trap champion of Kansas and gave it to my dad for his 10th birthday. I think my grandfather paid $6 for the gun. My dad and his dad hunted together for over ten years with that gun. My granddad using an old Remington model 11 in 12 gage, which I got. It had a Poly choke. When hunting ducks my grandfather had jammed it in the mud and when he shot it, it opened up the last inch or two of the gun. Thus the Poly choke. 35 years ago someone broke into my apartment and stole it.

But I still have my dad's old Knickerbacher. It was the first shotgun I shot, and from that day since I've liked two triggers. It's a side lock gun. I'll have to get a picture of it and post it. My dad had it reblued about 35 years ago. He is gone now, and so is his dad, but when I handle that old 20 I remember those two men and the great times they had together shooting ducks and bob white quail in western Kansas. It got to do it with them too and if I could relive some days, those just might be them.

[charlie cleveland]

stu one of your daughters may hold an ace there mite be a future shooter that you dont know about yet who will want that parker... charlie

[Stu Williams]

Just gotta live that long first!