Question concerning Col. E.G. Buckner
 

I have one of the seven SBT (5th I believe) which was made in a manufacturing run in 1917. The Parker Letter states it was shipped to E. J. DuPont Company for Col. E. G. Buckner. 32 inch barrels with a Monte Carlo stock and Jostan Pad. Col. E. G. Buckner was Vice President of Military Sales for DuPont, on the staff of the Governor of Kentucky and published several articles concerning gun powder and explosives. I can't find any information on his military records and limited data on his life.
I have one paragraph claiming he was hunter and his office walls was covered with mounts.

Can anyone recommend another avenue for research on Col. Buckner?

I'm sure you found them, but a Google search of his name + DuPont turned up an article in Dupont Magazine about 1914 concerning antitrust issues. He is listed as simply a DuPont Vice President.

A 1938 announcement concerning the death of Major KKV Casey (a very famous rifleman) mentions that he worked for DuPont Under Buckner in the early 1900's running their rifle division. It also mentioned that E. G. was deceased at that time.

A search without DuPont listed many people who were high ranking officers over a 150 year span. Simon Boliver Buckner was a major general in the Confederate Army. He later was Governor of Kentucky and ran for the Vice Presidency. His wife was the daughter of another Kentucky governor. His son, S B Jr, was a general in WWII and was killed while commanding the Marines on Okinawa, one of the four highest ranking generals killed in the war. All these people were from Kentucky. One of the family offspring moved to Oregon, and there is a current Colonel in the Air Force named Buckner from thr northwest.

It is odd that there is not much data about E. G. available. Cincinnati and Louisville were long time powder centers and you mention that he was on the staff of the Kentucky governor. Given the timing he likely serve either Governor Beckhem or Willson. They followed the first Republican Governors of the post Civil War period. After the 2nd Republican was elected, he was removed by the Democratic house and senate in a questionable action. Upon the election of William Goeble in a special election, both parties fielded militia forces that set up lines in the Capitol district in Frankfort. Some severe fighting ensued. During this month long period, the newly elected governor was murdered and the Feds stepped in. Border states had these kind of problems for a half century after the war. (Look up the history of the Klan, the Regulators and fueds in the latter half of the 19th century in Kentucky). The eastern third of KY was likely one of the most lawless sections of the country during this period.

Against this background there are a couple of possible scenarios. First, E. G. may have been a militia officer. This was true of Major KKV Tracy. Secondly, being from Kentucky, he may have been a Kentucky Colonel. This is an honorary rank bestowed by a group formed by the first governor, Issac Shelby in the early 1800's (my wife happens to be one). It is kind of a novelty thing now, but at one time taken very seriously by politicians and farmer/planters, with many of the members using the Colonel title officially. These two reasons may suggest an answer to your question on the lack of data. He may have been connected to a famous military family, but not connected to a national service.

What is the serial number of this gun? I have a very early SC, 176,128 as I recall, and would like to compare my number with yours.

177962

Thank you. To see where your gun is in the scheme of manufacture, use the Serialization Book.

Thanks to Mr Murphy suggestion I relieved the Serialization Book looking for the SBT information. I'm sure this topic has been discussed but I'd like any further information the members would I to share. All the SBT seem to list under stock configuration is "S" which means straight stock and since mine has a Monte Carlo just like Parker Letter states it was ordered from the factory. But in the book it's listed as a "S" is this common and how many were ordered with other stock configurations besides "S"? Thanks

Interesting that 177962 has no "Extras" code in the Ser. book. I would expect at least a code of 11.





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George and Dean, I looked up every single trap I have at my disposal. Some, but not all, are identified by grade, the rest just identified as "S", a single barrel. Some, but not all, have extras identified, such as "2" for ejectors. Some, but not all, have stock type correctly identified, such as "S" for straight grip, or "C" for capped pistol grip. There is no rhyme or reason for the codes that are posted in the SB for single barrels. The same goes for .410 guns, which are almost always identified as "S" for straight grip, regardless of whether or not they are actually straight grip guns. A PGCA letter is the only way to find out how these guns left the factory.