This is pretty cool
 

Hi All,

I recently acquired this and thought you all might like to see a wonderful package.

It's a neat little P grade with items that just made my heart stop when I saw them.

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WOW - What luck!

Excellant gun and great factory paperwork to go along with it!!!

Now that's really cool to have that paperwork....I own three VH guns, one 20ga. and two O frame 16ga. guns...no paperwork..)-: I just sent for a letter for one of my 16-s factory two barrel set. No luck, most of the info was unreadable. Bummer SXS ohio

mighty nice gun and paper work....charlie

Interesting that the letter discussed progressive burning smokeless powder and 2 3/4 inch shells, but the hang tag states "use shells 2 1/2 long" and the load the gun was targeted with was 2 1/4 drams of bulk smokeless powder pushing 7/8 ounce of shot, the "normal" 2 1/2 inch 20-gauge shell of the day.

Yea, I noticed that about the shells too. One would have thought they would have used the new "progressive smokeless" powder for the proof tests. Granted, this was right at the transition period to smokeless, and it wasn't like the black powder was going to make a comeback. But, as someone said in another thread, "I wasn't at Parker" when they made these tests.

I also need to check the chambers for the length. Again.......what the.....?

This is the kind of stuff that makes collecting these so fascinating.

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My 0-frame 26-inch barrel VH-grade 20-gauge is in the 235xxx serial number range, weighs 6 pounds 2 ounces and was shipped in November 1930. It is still chambered 2 3/8 inch, intended for the 2 1/2 inch shells.

Researcher, my little 20 gauge GHE, serial 234606, made shortly before your VH, has 2 and 5/8" chambers. At least that is what the Galazan chamber length gauge shows. I would have expected 2 and 1/2".

Aside from the paperwork*, the gun looks to be in really nice condition.

*I'm always amazed at people who can retain paperwork for generations. I can't find my wallet half the time.

bill murphy is the most amazing person i ve ever seen in filing and keeping up with paper work...this interesting paper work for sure on this little 20 ga....charlie

Thanks for all the responses.

I just got back from taking the letter, envelope and hang tags to a framing shop to get them framed and suitable for display. Boy, are there a lot of choices in frame material and different things. Of course, we're using acid free/rag matting and museum glass and all that. The back side will be glass covered also and cut out to display the back side of the hang tags and envelope. And just using a plain black frame instead of pretty wood, after all, it is a document display. Do you guys agree?

I'll post pictures when it comes home.

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Sounds like a great idea. My paper is "to be found" by those who come after me. Of course, I know where everything is.

Bill, Do you really have enough wall space to follow through with this "good idea"? I'm guessing your files fill more than one cabinet.
Erick

Right - just like me, but if anyone ever straightens out and organizes your stuff you'll never be able to find it again... I know - I know.

Dean, I wish I could give you 3 thumbs up.:cheers:

This is pretty cool
 

Hello everyone,

I got the letter, envelope, and hang tags back and framed up this afternoon.

Pictures attached. I am not the best photographer in the world and I apologize for that.

As stated earlier, I went with a black frame instead of a pretty wooden frame. This is because it is a document display. Do you agree?

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An excellent display frame and matting! Great job.

Really nice looking, and great idea Larry. I have the hang tags for my 1st Parker, a VH 16 1 frame. I may have to borrow your idea. Beautiful little gun also. I have a neighbor with a nice little PH 20 but he is not ready to sell it to me yet. I have been offered a very nice PH 16 1 frame with twist barrels.

My VH 16 hang tags

Good Morning,

Thanks for the responses.

Harold, when I saw your hang tags it caught my eye that the handwriting looked to be the same as on mine. Now, I am no forensic handwriting specialist, but I would say they are by the same person. After holding them side by side as best I could. I wonder if someone would have access to the person's name that would have filled out the hang tags? Like the title of this thread, "this is pretty cool". Is there any information on that person?

Also, would anyone have information that would tell us who would have signed the letter? The signature is hard to decipher. The letter came from the New York sales room at 25 Murray Street. A sales office in New York?

My next step is to get a letter to show where it was shipped. It is in the serialization book, and all the information matches so a letter should be no problem.

Again, thanks for the responses, help and info.

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A pretty poor reproduction, but it seems that Henry L. Carpenter, chief of office operations, signed your letter. The Parker Story may have some information on him. Your gun is too late to have an order book entry, so there is little chance for you to find out where your gun was shipped.

Bill,

Thanks for your response and information. The last name of Carpenter was a name my wife and I thought it could be, but couldn't tell for sure.

I have to ask, what do you mean by a "pretty poor reproduction"? I presume you mean the signature was done by a secretary? I never thought about a person (other than a government official) having someone sign a letter for them in the mid twenties.

Why would this gun, serial number 213XXX, be too late to letter with a ship to? The last letter I got was on a VHE serial number 230XXX, would that not be later than 213XXX by four years?

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Bill,

Please disregard the last part of my last post. I looked at the wrong gun to get the serial number 230XXX. The gun I got the last letter with a ship to was a much earlier gun. Please accept my apologies for doubting you?

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I was referring to the fact that the signature was not easy to read from the pictures in this thread. I think your display is outstanding. Have you tried to identify the person the letter was written to? A brief google search identifies F.H. Murray as the Superintendent of the Poinset State Park in Sumter. I'm sure more searches will turn up much more information.

Bill,

I never thought of reproduction meaning the item going across the world wide web and being viewed on another's computer. I guess that would indeed be reproduction. See, you're never too old to learn.........to retain might be another story however.

I've been working on the original owner's information. I've also found a Murray that was part of an engineering firm in Sumter in the mid twenties. I'll keep looking.

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Yes, Mr. Murray was a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Bill,

I have finally felt like doing some more research on this, and it would seem that not only was Mr. Murray an engineer, he wrote books on physics and worked at Oak Ridge, Tenn.

He also was one of six men that put up $10,000.00 each to purchase the island on which Edisto beach is located. Quite interesting. If all my test come out good and I get through the doctor appointments this week, I'll jump back on this.

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