Do you own a piece of history? Please share your items & accounts

[Trailrider]

That reminds me of the stories of Mrs. Zerelda James Simms Samuel.
Who would play on the sympathies of her visitors by offering to sell old, rusted, often inoperable guns that she said belonged to Jesse before he died, which in reality she had bought second-hand, leading to a proliferation of people claiming to and sincerely believing that they owned a gun that had once belonged to Jesse James.

When Bat Masterson was a sports writer in NYC, he would buy some Colt's SAA's and give them to people as ones he used out West!

[DeaconKC]

This is a 1917 built 1911 that took me many years to get the correct parts for. Also, a 1915 Luger with Imperial markings. All matching except for the trigger plate, which was thrown away by German Officers and NCOs if they were about to be captured.

[River City John]

Love the grips on the Luger. Original as acquired or after-market additions by you?

[RRio]

Very cool, Major! You must be very proud of that. I know I would be.

[Major 2]

He was living here in town, and I got to meet him in April.
I understood he was going to live in Ga., sadly he passed in Aug.
I was honored to meet him.

[Darto]

I also found it hard to resist....
Attached is my parent's old Philco radio. In the 1940's, I used to listen to the Lone Ranger, Amos & Andy and the Shadow on it with my father. Wish I had a picture of our first television set. It had an 8" screen.

For anyone wanting genuine old tube radios from the 1920s to the 1950s the best place is the Radio Attic. Almost all of them are restored by replacing the old paper tube capacitors inside with modern ones. They play at least as good as new, and sound deep and mellow.
https://radioattic.com/radios.htm

As for authentic old time listening that is still being broadcast locally by one of your local stations: Baseball games! The game has not changed 1% since the 1920's ! And there's 162 broadcasts a year.

[Major 2]

 Thanks Darto, your post jogged a fond memory. 

I recall I got a Zenith Royal 250 transistor radio; it was 1959.
For a kid in that time, the height of cool was a small shirt pocket AM radio. The Royal 250 was a bit larger,
it was 6 transistors, that was the state of the art, and it was NOT cheap.
I did odd jobs all summer to earn the $38 and handed that over to Jay's TV for my set.
The real leather case was an additional $4, which, Jay allowed me to hand out 1000 of his paper ad flyers
all over town... at the end of the week, I claimed my tan leather case as payment.
According to the Inflation Calculator, $38 in 1959 is equivalent to about $401.92 today, 64 years later.

  It used 4 AA batteries. and the COOL rock & roll station was WQAM in Miami.
Rick Shaw was the DJ and THE man!
  A year or so later a wave of Japanese transistor radios flooded the market, and the prices fell greatly.
Of course, in 1959 anything from Japan was deemed JUNK!
(if you remember there was still WW2 hatred) 
But a US owned, and manufacturer Zenith was the respected name in televisions, record players and short-wave radios.
Zenith came out with their line of Royal radios 250 , 400 , 500 and 1000 models. I think GE also had models.  More that likely they all had Japanese components, but we or rather I was oblivious, mine was a Zenith ! 

I still had my radio and it still worked in 2012, but it was lost to my building fire that year. 
  I had long before regulated it to storage, and I had moved on over the years to AM-FM and cassettes, DVD and so on.
I do know it worked but, as I recall it had rather short AA battery life, I don't know it was age thing or
just comparably, it just seemed to use up the batteries some quicker as it was nearing 50 years old.


Oh! I just recalled, Rick Shaw's by-line Ditti intro R-I-C-K - R-I-C-K  AHHHH-SHAW


Shaw was the top-rated radio celebrity in South Florida in the 1960s, and among other accomplishments, was the first disc jockey to spin The Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" in Miami in early 1964, on top-rated Top 40 station WQAM, "Tiger Radio" at 560 AM on your transistor radio dial.
Each night Rick would sign off with "Good Night my Love" sung by Ray Peterson (1959)

[Major 2]

It was a Friday; I was in 9th grade Science Class, last period, Mr. Stroke's class 60 years ago today.
  It was a PA speaker mounted on the wall much like this one (every class had one) we first heard the news.
John F. Kennedy had been shot; the crackled radio broadcast stated.
It was poor audio, and hard to hear, by the time we got home it was CBS Bulletin Breaking News Televised, ironic it was the soap opera "As the World Turns" that was preempted.   
Walter Cronkite said, " the President was dead! "

[Johnny McCrae]

It was a Friday; I was in 9th grade Science Class, last period, Mr. Stroke's class 60 years ago today.
  It was a PA speaker mounted on the wall much like this one (every class had one) we first heard the news.
John F. Kennedy had been shot; the crackled radio broadcast stated.
It was poor audio, and hard to hear, by the time we got home it was CBS Bulletin Breaking News Televised, ironic it was the soap opera "As the World Turns" that was preempted.

I was in a drafting class in college when I heard the news. Later on, my bride to be along with my parents watched Oswald getting shot by Jack Ruby on live TV.
Everybody remembers where they were on that tragic day.

[RoyceP]

I was in the first grade that day in November 1963. We went to the second grade classroom to watch the televised parade. About the time President Kennedy passed the Texas School book depository the screen went black. A few seconds later Walter Cronkite came on the air and told us that the President was shot and killed. Shortly after that we were all sent home for the day.

I was in Dallas, TX in school that day.

[Crow Choker]

Major, you must be of the class of 1967 as I. I was in ninth grade English or just before it. A classmate advised me in the rest room of the shooting, went to class and stayed in the same seat until school was out watching the Ol black and white TV.

Was going to post about if I owned a piece of history and was going to advise "Ya, me"! 

[Major 2]

Indeed Sir, Class of 67... In those days 9th grade was Jr High 7th, 8th and 9th grades inclusive.
You moved on to a totally different High School for Sophomore, Junor and Senior years.
I was enrolled at North Miami Beach Junor High School,
By late Spring "64" Apr. 27th.  just a few weeks before final exams North Miami Beach Junor High School was renamed in the murdered former President's memory.
I wonder how many other Schools were also, along with The Space Port at Cape Canaveral,
Highway's, by-ways, and parks, 

I still have my yearbook "The Falcon"


       

[Crow Choker]

Same deal in my area; 7-8-9 considered Jr High, went to another building for 10-11-12. Starting 7th grade I recall being intimidated with new system vs grade school. By the time ya reached 9th grade, ya (at least thought so) had everything figured out and you were one of the big kids. Starting 10th ya were back down to the cheap seats and sort of 'one of the little kids' looked down on by older students. 12th grade ya were one of the big kids (at least thought so) and all of those 10th graders were new fodder. Funny how the social ladder worked back then. 82 in my class, ya knew everyone. Have talked with those that went to large city schools, 300,500, 600 plus in class. A former pastor told me once his class was 800 something and at his last class reunion talked to people he never knew in his grad class. Still have my yearbook 'The Warrior', have reunion every five years, good times, look forward to them.

[Major 2]

Ha ! my senior class was quite large @ North Miami Sr. High "the Pioneers"
I don't recall the total graduating class numbers something like 800+
Total student population was about 2300.
They tore down the old Buildings (below) years ago. The new High school was built about 2 blocks south of the old campus.

[Johnny McCrae]

My mother was a skilled seamstress and made lots of her own clothes. In the forties, she used a Singer sewing machine with a foot treadle for power. Later on, she progressed to an electric model. Attached is a picture of her "Singer" scissors. I'm guessing they are close to 100 years old. I use them all the time and they cut much better than any other scissors l have.

[Froogal]

My grandma had a Singer with the foot treadle for power. My mom had one just like it, but electric.

[RRio]

Here's my small bits of history:
Top picture - I think an old Stevens .22 Short single shot pistol from South Dakota
Middle picture - Old Smith and Wesson model 1 1/2 .32 bought at an estate sale from prospector also
                                  from South Dakota
Bottom picture - Given to me from a friend from Montana.

[Major 2]

Here is one that means a great deal to me.
It's a S&W Hand ejector chambered in 32/20 made in 1927.
My dad acquired it in a trade with his brother in 1942.
Dad had it on board the Lenape' (his 32-foot cabin cruiser) he served in the civilian Coast Guard Axillary.
He volunteered the boat to serve as a coast watcher and served with an armed Costie aboard around Biscayne Bay and Key Largo. 

[Johnny McCrae]

My father made his living selling Cigars, Cigarettes and Candy to local taverns and grocery stores. I used to help him on his route. Attached is a picture of his 1948 International Van. I learned to drive on it. It had a 4-speed floor shift and no directionals. You had to open the sliding door and stick your arm out to signal. Not fun in wintertime or when it was raining. He did not own a car, so I took my driver's test on the International when I turned 16.

[Major 2]

I saw an " American Pickers" episode where they restored the original Aerosmith 1st. tour van.
Pretty cool, piece of Rock history.