![ithaca 1911 to navy oakland ithaca 1911 to navy oakland](http://www.coolgunsite.com/navy/navygrpbig.jpg)
Browning, who had designed for them a pump-action shotgun adopted in 1937 as the Model 37.Īn Ithaca M1911A1, issued to the U.S. An interesting historical footnote is that Ithaca had its own relationship with John M. Further, although the Ithaca Gun Company was a maker of sporting shotguns rather than military handguns, they were unique among the several additional M1911A1 contractors recruited by the United States in that they were the only company among the “new guys” with any experience whatsoever manufacturing firearms. In fact, the Ithaca Gun Company was founded in 1883 and significantly pre-dated the design and adoption of the M1911 pistol. The government responded by issuing contracts to several other companies to manufacture the M1911A1 pistol.Īmong the companies asked to produce the venerable M1911A1 was the equally venerable Ithaca Gun Company. As production ramped up quickly to support the war effort, it became evident that Colt alone could not supply enough M1911A1 pistols to meet the need.
![ithaca 1911 to navy oakland ithaca 1911 to navy oakland](https://www.gunsamerica.com/UserImages/684/945343457/wm_4065843.jpg)
Other than some M1911 models procured during World War 1 from Springfield Armory (the original, government Springfield Armory) and from Remington UMC, Colt had been the sole source for M1911s and M1911A1s. When the United States found itself immersed in World War 2, fighting one well-equipped and determined enemy in Europe and another well-equipped and determined enemy in the Pacific, it needed to procure a lot of weapons, quickly. However, the United States had not purchased any significant numbers of M1911A1 pistols since the year 1924, when 10,000 pistols were purchased from Colt. The standard, military issue sidearms for the United States Army, Marines, and Navy had been the M1911 (and M1911A1) since … well, since 1911. One of the truisms about fighting wars on a large scale and on multiple fronts is that you need guns … lots and lots of guns. Nearly seven decades ago, the United States found itself an active participant in a bit of international unpleasantries otherwise known as World War 2.