New member, new Parker owner
 

Hi, although I am from Germany this will be a familiar post to you …

I‘ve inherited a Parker shotgun manufactured in 1910 from my late father-in-law. It must have brought to Germany by a US soldier during WWII who left his Parker as a gift to the family.

Whatever you can tell me about this gun will be highly appreciated. I’m very curious about any information.

Thank you!

https://postimg.cc/gallery/KRdVJHg

Welcome Karen, your Parker shotgun is a VH grade manufactured in late 1910. It wears a beaver tail forend. The serial number isn’t listed in the Parker Gun book to gain any further information. However, you can obtain a factory letter containing additional information about the shotgun. Congratulations on your new possession.

Thank you very much, Bruce!!

Maybe that‘s a stupid question, but how can I obtain a factory letter?

Open this link and click on “Research Letters”. If you become a PGCA member the factory letter is only $40.00.
https://parkerguns.org/

Oh, great! Thanks again, Bruce.

The gun is a VH grade. The forend wood it wears is not original. And the gun was converted to a single trigger at one time. A trigger Of an aftermarket type. The frame also appears to have been blued.

The barrels, forend iron and the release have been blued also. The barrels look to be the original length. Have the gun looked over by a competent gunsmith, especially the barrels because re-blueing can sometimes result in loose top and bottom ribs. If you get the "all good" from the gunsmith then you will have a shootable Parker shotgun! Congratulations on your inherited Parker!

Karen:

Will you or a member of your family be enjoying the use of the gun, for target shooting or hunting, or is it to be retained as a meaningful artifact of your family history?

For most of us our vintage guns serve all of those purposes.

Thank you! Since when did Parker use single trigger?

It is definitely all these purposes. Happy about it.

Will do that, thank you!

The trigger is the late variation of the Miller trigger. It is an American trigger with a good reputation. On a gun like yours, it probably will add to its value. The Miller trigger, the questionable refinish, and the beavertail forend suggest that it was once owned by a Pennsylvania trapshooter or pigeon shooter. You have a very nice gun.

This is interesting! How do you know that it must have been a shooter from Pennsylvania? I am very curious.

Pennsylvania was the home of Miller triggers. It is a very big trapshooting state and trapshooters were the biggest customers for Miller triggers. The Miller brothers were prolific trap and pigeon shooters and saturated their market in areas close to their shop. The beavertail forearm is another clue since the original forearm on your Parker would not be a favorite of trapshooters because it allows the hot barrels to burn the hands when the gun is shot on the trap range.

Love to learn about history, thanks for the lesson!

Karen - you should join the PGCA as an annual member for $40
The benefits of membership are tremendous and one of those benefits is our newsletter/journal/magazine
And instead of the $100 you would pay as a “Forum Associate” a member pays only $40 foe a PGCA Research Letter.






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Karen, that Miller single trigger is a good trigger. I have a couple that were on my guns. I also have an Infallible single trigger that is being changed to a Miller as we speak. I prefer double triggers, but the Miller will serve you well.

I'll echo the comment about having a competent gunsmith check those barrels. Those ribs could have loosened from hot bluing.

Mike, why are you giving up on the Infallible trigger? I have several and they all work fine.

Mine had a doubling problem. Easier to covert it than to find someone to fix it.

Who is your choice of a gunsmith to fix your problem? Miller Single Triggers?

Yup, nobody else wanted to touch it.

Karen:

The Miller single trigger was the creation of Elmer Miller, of Millersburg, Pennsylvania.

Many “Pennsylvania Dutch” (read: Deutsch), who are descendants of 18th and 19th Century German immigrants, today call the town home.

It would be interesting to know if Elmer Miller had been a member of the Millersburg Gun and Conservation Club, which was a viable organization even a few years ago.