WWII Holster M1916 ("BOYT -42-") for M19llA1 .45 cal ACP Unissued.

Description: Early-war M1916 HOLSTER, 1942-dated from the "BOYT HARNESS COMPANY," Des Moines, Iowa.Unissued. This one has never had a .45 ACP placed inside it!+ This is an ORIGINAL M1916 Holster for the .45 cal M1911A1 ACP comes complete with the ORIGINAL 48" x 1/4" heavy RAWHIDE LACE. The LACE is invariably missing from most wartime examples! + Of the sixteen harness/saddlery/leather manufacturers awarded contracts for the M1916 Holster, it is believed that, from ALL contractors combined, produced a wartime total of 1,830,536 (almost two million!) M1916 Holsters... at a "per unit cost" ranging between $1.55 and $1.68 each. + BOYT manufactured over 430,881 holsters as well as a major amount of canvas web gear for the U.S. Marine Corps, earning the coveted Army-Navy 'E' Award for excellence in production. + Of the sixteen manufacturers who were awarded contracts during WWII to manufacture the M1916 Holster, the name of BOYT is most often associated with the holster, much in the same way the manufacturer KA-BAR is associated with the Marine's MKII knife. This BOYT example is from the first year (1942) that contracts were let for WWII production of the holster! + But regardless, very, VERY FEW Holsters, even of the larger contracts, turn up today in SUPERIOR (Unissued?) structural condition such as this one!!!! + This LATE-WAR, deeply embossed "BOYT -42-" M1916 Holster from the factory in Des Moines, was what was issued to the ARMY, U.S. MARINE CORPS and the NAVY during WW2. This particular Holster was produced contemporaneously with the Marines' and the Army's campaigns of the war, both in Mediterranean, European, and the Pacific theaters from the battles in Tunisia, North Africa, Sicily, Italy, Normandy, the Falaise Pocket, Anzio, the Po River Valley, the Bulge, Central Europe, Leyte and Luzon in the Philippines, Central Burma, as well as ALL of the Pacific campaign from Guadalcanal... and through the fighting on Kwajalein, Truk, Eniwetok, Saipan, Guam, Tinian, Peleliu, Iwo Jima, Okinawa — and, yes, these M1916 Holsters went aloft in the cockpits of , Marine Corps fighter pilots, USN aviators, and on the hips of AAF bomber crewmen in every theater of the war. + NOTE: There were no M1916 Holsters specifically stamped on the Flap with “USMC” or “USN” during WW2. + This M1916 Holster was worn by Marine and Army Officers, NCOs, personnel with crew-served weapons, Aviators and Pilots, many of whom chose to carry a large frame M1911 .45 ACP in a belt holster such as this one. The M1916 Holster was also worn by any other Marine or Soldier who could lay his hands on a side arm! ***** PARTICULARS of CONDITION: + Crisply and deeply stamped on the Flap in serif font is the "U.S." surcharge and on the rear with the manufacturer's name and year, with the first and last letters enlarged, BoyT -42- + FANTASTIC warm NATURAL flesh-colored Cowhide overall. + ZERO significant scuffs, scratches, cuts, or crazing to the Leather! This example has never been destroyed with Neatsfoot Oil of black dye! + ZERO 'crazing’ at the fold of the Flap.+ Minor traces of authenticating 'patina' of verdigris on the rivets, eyelets for the lace, and the flap stud. + The leather at the point of attachment of the M1910 Belt Hook is STRONG and 100% FREE of cracks or wear! + ZERO breaks in the 'Hole' on the Flap for the blackened brass STUD. + PERFECT high relief of the embossed “U.S.” within the "oval". + The FLAP STUD, all four of the RIVETS, the two EYELETS for Leather Lace TIE-DOWN are still SECURELY SET! + PERFECT finish on the period-correct steel M1910 BELT HOOK (which is correct for 1942, brass having been placed on the list of 'conserved metals' for use in the manufacture of ordnance materiel). + ZERO breaks in the CORRECT ORANGE LINEN THREAD! (Current Holsters and reproductions are seen with WHITE POLYESTER thread.) + The Wooden BLOCK at the toe of the Holster is present. The leather-covered Wooden BLOCK near the Trigger Guard (to cant the pistol Grip away from the wearer's body) is ALSO in securely stitched in place. + The heavy 1/4" RAWHIDE LACE (which is often missing from many Holsters) is ABSOLUTELY MINT CONDITION: strong, supple, and coiled. These by themselves are SCARCE. ***** History of Boyt Harness Company by Jennifer Watson "110 Years of Sporting Tradition" Boyt Harness Company, the hunting industry standard for gun cases and firearm storage and transport, traces their beginnings to a family owned regional harness shop in turn of the century Iowa. These kinds of firearms storage facilities have gained approval from the safe experts who specialize in firearm storage. In 1885 a young Englishman named Walter Boyt set sail to America to find his calling in life. Meeting up with his brother John in Des Moines, the pair settled into the well-worn workbenches of Des Moines Saddlery Company, learning the time-honored trade as saddle makers and leather workers. Started in 1881, Des Moines Saddlery sat at the confluence of two major rivers and 13 rail lines giving the company a competitive transportation edge over competitors. The ideal location was not lost on the aspiring Boyt brothers. Between long days of sorting hides, making patterns, tooling leather and then sewing it on massive belt driven machines, the Boyt brothers found time to travel back to England, enjoy the Iowa rural lifestyle and socialize in the many gathering places along Des Moines Court Avenue district. Walter married and started a family that would eventually include six daughters, known throughout Des Moines as the "Beautiful Boyt Sisters"! After twenty years in business, Des Moines Saddlery closed their doors and the industrious Boyt brothers decided to continue building saddles and harness as proprietors rather than employees with the founding of Walter Boyt Saddlery in 1901.The business was moved just a few blocks east, still close to both the rivers and the rail yards. With his business savvy wife Mary as vice president and brother, John, as book keeper and trusted advisor, Walter’s burgeoning enterprise primarily manufactured fine driving harness for buggies, however, the Great War in Europe took the company in a direction that would frame it for the next 100 years. The advent of World War I found the company building the first of many firearm accessories such as military pistol holsters for the then new Colt 1911 .45 Pistol along with cavalry saddle bags and harness for artillery and transport horses. n 1925, Walter Boyt decided to sell the company to John Boyt and his three sons, Joseph Walter, Arthur John, and Paul Alfred Boyt. The name was changed from The Walter Boyt Saddlery Company to The Boyt Harness Company and a new generation of Boyt brothers continued the tradition of making harness, saddles, bridles and tack for farmers and stockmen across the Midwest. Struggling through the Great Depression and the dust bowl years, Boyt Harness Company developed a reputation for quality and delivery second to none and farmers across the country proudly tacked their draft teams in well oiled Boyt harness and collars each morning but the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor begin another shift to production for the war effort. From 1941 through 1945, The Boyt Harness Company produced millions of pieces of equipment destined for American offensives in both the European and Pacific theaters as tens of thousands of teachers, farmers, office workers and tradesmen were transformed into the largest standing fighting force in the nation's history. Some of those soldiers were local kids from the neighborhoods to the south and east of the factory, including the large Italian American community of Des Moines south side, directly across the river from Boyt. 'My uncles, who served with the First Marine Division and the 3rd and 4th Raider Battalions, were combat marines who made the landings at Pelelieu, Guadalcanal, Bougainville and Okinawa," said Tony Caligiuri, president of Boyt Harness. "On their transport ships to the Solomon's, they were pleasantly surprised to find much of the gear they were issued had been made at the bustling harness factory just a few blocks from their house. I still have my Uncle Frank's theater modified Marine bolo in a BOYT sheath that he wore next to his Raider stiletto," recalled Caligiuri. In fact, combat Marines generally were issued more than a dozen pieces of gear that was produced by Boyt including their backpacks, web belts, cartridge pouches and M-1 Garand slings. There was a saying in the factory that Japanese soldiers had never seen a BOYT backpack because United States Marines never retreated. At one point, war production required 2800 workers and BOYT became one of the largest manufacturing operations in Iowa." After the war, Boyt shifted production back to saddles and harness, but the mechanization of America had put most of the work horses out to pasture. For the first time, sporting goods became a priority and gun cases, hunting vests and cartridge bags begin to make up the majority of production. The "Boyt Five Star" canvas case, named for the five award stars that the company had been presented for their production efforts during the war years, was quickly heralded as the premier method of firearm storage of the times, a position that Boyt has maintained for almost 70 years. Sadly, this period also marked the passing of the founders, both John and Walter Boyt. Though gun cases and other sporting products were the main production focus, the company continued to make saddle and tack into the late 1950s, eventually selling the business to Welsh Sporting Goods in 1963. The 1960s saw the company move their headquarters and production from Des Moines to Iowa Falls, Iowa along with the creation of Boyt Luggage Company and an expansion into the growing soft sided luggage market. ***** Exceptional research by Scott Meadows, “A Word on Holsters: Part 2” of "pre-98” HISTORICAL CONTEXT AND ACTUAL USE "From the time that war broke out in late 1941 until sometime in late 1943 almost all the holsters used by the American Forces in the field were leftover from WW1 as were most of the pistols. It is very common to find a vet brought back WW2 Colt in a WW1 era issued holster. From an historical context a holster was a holster, they used what was available in the supply chain. 70 years later we collectors like to tidy things up a bit and stick WW2 made pistols in WW2 made holsters." WHAT’S RARE? ...many makers stopped dating holsters sometime in 1944. All WW2 made holsters were constructed of russet tan oil finished leather. There were 16 known US contractors for these holsters having their maker marks stamped on the back of the holster. Some are very common and some are rarely seen. Not everybody made holsters at the same time and many of these makers listed as very rare only made holsters in 1942. Manufacturers: A.L.P. CO. (Atchison Leather Products Co., Atchison, Kansas) BRAUER (Brauer Brothers Mfg. Co., St. Louis, Missouri) BOYT (Boyt Harness Company, Des Moines, Iowa) CRAIGHEAD (John R. Craighead Co., Inc., Denver, Colorado) CRUMP (Benjamin T. Crump & Co., Richmond, Virginia) ENGER-KRESS (Enger-Kress Company, West Bend, Wisconsin) FINK (Fink Leather Shops, Kansas City, Missouri) GRATON & KNIGHT CO. (Graton & Knight Manufacturing Co., Worcester, Mass.) HARPHAM BROS. (Harpham Brothers Co., Lincoln, Nebraska) MILWAUKEE SADDLERY CO. (Milwaukee Saddlery Co., Milwaukee, Wisconsin) JOSEPH H. MOSSER (Joseph H. Mosser Co., Williamsport, Pennsylvania) S-B CO. (Straus-Bodenheimer Saddlery Co., Houston, Texas) SEARS (Sears Saddlery Co., Davenport, Iowa) TEXTAN (Texas Tanning & Manufacturing Co., Yoakum, Texas) WALSH (Walsh Harness Co., Milwaukee, Wisconsin) WARREN LEATHER GOODS CO. (Warren Leather Goods Co., Worcester, Mass.) The G.I. .45 in World War II by Bruce Canfield, appearing in American Rifleman, April 6, 2010 "...a handgun was essentially a supplemental sidearm and was generally employed in actual combat action only when the more effective rifles and automatic arms were unavailable, out of ammunition or damaged. An Oct. 23, 1943, Marine Corps document titled “Report on Infantry Weapons in Combat” gave a brief synopsis of the various arms used by a Marine Raider Battalion on New Georgia Island. The section pertaining to the .45 ACP simply stated: "Held up very well, but used very little.” "Many .45 pistols were acquired by troops who were not officially authorized to be issued them as called for in their unit’s TOE (Table of Organization and Equipment). However, such regulations were rarely enforced in combat zones, and many G.I.s and Marines who could acquire a .45 did so, and considered themselves lucky. "A leather hip holster, the Model of 1912, was standardized soon after the M1911’s adoption. This holster had a swivel attachment to make it better adapted to cavalry use. Just before America’s entry into World War I, the Model of 1916 holster was adopted, which differed from the M1912 primarily in the deletion of the swivel feature. Both were fitted with wire hooks that attached to the grommets on the bottom of the standard webbed pistol belt or cartridge belt. There were sufficient numbers of World War I-vintage M1916 holsters to meet the demand until the U.S. became actively involved in World War II. The M1916 holster was put back into production and almost 3 million were made by 16 different commercial firms between 1941 and 1945. These holsters were embossed with a large “U.S.” on the cover flap, with the name of the maker and year of production on back. "A leather shoulder holster for the .45 pistol, designated as the “M3,” was adopted in 1942 for use by aviators, tankers and others who preferred carrying the pistol over the hip holster. An improved shoulder holster design was standardized in 1944 as the "M7." The pistol was secured in the shoulder holster by means of leather strap with a snap fastener. The shoulder holsters were also embossed with a large “U.S” on the front, with the identity of the manufacturer and year of production on the back. "...It was not uncommon for soldiers and Marines to be armed with both carbines and .45 pistols. Nevertheless, the desire to replace the pistol with the carbine continued throughout the war. This was evidenced in a Jan. 26, 1943, Marine Corps document... "Despite this official stance, pistols were issued in ever-increasing numbers during the war. As an example, the U.S. Marine Corps’ TOE (Table of Organization and Equipment) in 1942 authorized 798 .45 pistols for a Division but, by 1945, the authorized figure had been increased to 1,707. So much for efforts to get rid of the pistol. The situation was much the same in the U.S. Army where the carbines and .45s were procured and issued side by side in large numbers. The total number of M1911A1 pistols manufactured during World War II was 1,878,742. Clearly, the .45 was an integral part of America’s World War II infantry small arms arsenal!"

Price: 147.5 USD

Location: Little Rock, Arkansas

End Time: 2024-12-02T21:20:21.000Z

Shipping Cost: 14.85 USD