Happy National Buy Ammo Day & International Men's Day!
Remember to buy 100 rounds of ammo today to support the industry and keep your stock piles up.
Last year we told the story of 8 interesting men in the world of firearms, today we have 8 more, these men carpe'ed the diem like no others, the used foresight, grit and bravery to conquer their worlds. Today we honor them, here they are in no particular order.
P.O. Ackley
Parker Otto Ackley, better known a P.O. was born on May 25th, 1903, in Granville New York. The same year The Ford Motor Company and Harley Davidson were founded.
From a young age P.O. was interested in firearms. After high school he went to Syracuse University where he got a degree in Agriculture. He started a family farm and was successful until the Great Depression hit. He sold the farm in 1936 and moved to Roseburg Oregon where he bought a gun shop. Working on guns led him into the realm of barrel making which he was quite successful at.
When WWII came along P.O. entered the service and was assigned to the Ogden Army Ordnance Depot where he created a repair department, one of the inspectors there was another interesting man in the world of firearms, Elmer Keith.
After the war P.O. bought a gun shop in Cimarron, New Mexico and moved it to Trinidad Colorado. In 1947 he partnered with Trinidad Junior College to create a gunsmithing program, one that still operates to this day.
In 1951 he moved again, this time to Salt Lake City and opened yet another gun shop, this would be his last gun shop, he worked there until his death.
Ackley developed and improved many cartridges, he would take existing cartridges and change neck angles or neck them down to create new wildcat cartridges, 29 of them carry his name. He had an affinity for sub-30 caliber cartridges and even created the infamous .22 Eargesplitten Loudenboomer, a .50 BMG necked down to .22, yes that cartridge really did exist, it was to an attempt to get a .22 bullet to 5000 fps.
Ackley was also a proficient gun writer, penning 5 books and contributed to various gun magazines, he was a staff writer for Guns & Ammo from 1959 to 1974. His contributions to barrel making, cartridge development and pressure levels are immeasurable. Parker Otto Ackley passed away in 1989 at the age of 86.
Col. Townsend Whelen
There are a lot of men who have perfected the art of shooting, but only one was ever called "Mr. Rifleman" and that man is Townsend Whelen.
%20and%2015%20more%20pages%20-%20Personal%20-%20Microso.png)
Whelen, or "Townie" as his friends called him was born into a wealthy Philidelphia family on March 6th, 1877. He was not born with a "manly physique" and began daily exercise as a way to "make something of himself". The story is similar to that of Teddy Roosevelt. At the age of 11 Townie received a Quakenbush air rifle for his birthday, which began a love of shooting and accuracy.
His father, having witnessed Townie's love of the air rifle, purchased a Remington Rolling Block .22 rifle as a gift for his 13th birthday.
In 1902, when Whelen was just 15, his wealthy family was able to get him an audience with President Theodore Roosevelt. He asked the President to make him an officer in the U.S. Army. Roosevelt agreed to help and sent him to take the officer's test in which he placed 2nd out of 30 applicants. Townsend was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant of the 15th Infantry at the age of 15. This would have made Townie the youngest commissioned officer in the U.S. Army, however, everything I read stated another man was the youngest at 18.
Whelen served in the Pennsylvania National Guard during the Spanish-American War but did not get to see any action as the war had ended before he got the chance, still he decided he wanted an Army career.
Townsend's love of tactics led him to become a teacher; he was so good at it that it kept him from seeing action during WWI. His shooting acumen was also noticed by Army brass; he was placed on the Army shooting team and became their best shooter. He could regularly hit 6 of 10 shots on a man size target at 200 yards with an open sighted M1903A3.
Townsend participated in the very first National Rifle Team Match at Sea Grit. NJ in 1903. Three years later his team won the match.
Townsend loved the 30-'06 for many reasons, not the least of which was that he helped develop it. Often times coming to its defense, one of his most famous quotes is: "the 30-06 is never a mistake".
Later Whelen switched from Infantry to Ordnance and was put in charge of the Frankford Arsenal where he worked alongside James Howe who later co-founded Griffen & Howe. After a few years he was made commander of the famous Springfield Armory (the real one, not the company co-opting the name). At Ordnance he was free to experiment with rifles and cartridges and found that nearly all rifles can be accurate if paired with the correct load. He is also credited to be the 1st to document the use of the rifle sling as a shooting aid, not just for carrying the rifle.
Townsend, now a Colonel, retired from the Army in 1936 after 34 years of service. He began a writing career; he wrote for nearly every publication involving guns and even some that didn't. In all Townsend wrote 55 books and thousands of articles on hunting, target shooting, reloading, wildcatting and all things relating to rifles.
Townsend was known to go on hunting excursions deep into the mountains of the western states and British Columbia, often for months at a time, living off the land.
Col. Whelen died at the age of 84 on December 23, 1961, his final book was published posthumously, an autobiography, appropriately titled Mr. Rifleman, the book was finished by his family.
Sir Hiram Stevens Maxim
Hiram Stevens Maxim was born on February 5th, 1840, in Sangerville, Maine.
His mother had died when he was young, and he was raised in poverty by his sheep herding father. Maxim only attended school for 5 years, learning only the basics of reading and writing.
At 14 he was apprenticed to a carriage maker, working in a rat-infested workshop, to solve the problem he invented an automated mouse trap that is still used to this day.
During the Civil War he developed a way to make any porous service into a blackboard, in 1866 he filed his first of many patents for a hair curling iron, keep in mind this was before the invention of electricity.
Maxim suffered from bronchitis, and he invented one the first inhaler, using menthol (from the Eucalyptus tree). He also invented a machine for making tarp and sail eyelets as well as a device to prevent the rolling of ships. One of his best inventions was the first automatic fire sprinkler system, not only did it dispense water at the first sign of fire, but it also set off alarms and notified the local fire department.
Next, he invented a device for illuminating gas (think neon or fluorescent light bulbs) and new locomotive head lights. This led him to be hired by the United States Electric Lighting Company as chief Engineer. It was during his time there that he invented the carbon filament and had a legitimate claim to the invention of the light bulb, which kept him and Edison in court for some time.
In 1881 he was sent to the Paris Exhibition to demonstrate his new electric pressure regulator which regulated pressure in gas, air and water lines. The French Government decorated him for his invention.
During his visit a European told him that "if he wanted to make a fortune, he should invent a machine to help the Europeans kill one another." Later that year, Maxim immigrated to England to represent his employer. While in England he began working on a design for a machine gun.
While the machine gun had been previously invented by Dr. Richard Gatling, the Gatling gun wasn't a real machine gun as it required human power. What Maxim invented in 1884 was a self-powered machine gun. Using the recoil from the fired round to eject the spent case and load the next one. He found the gun powder would foul the action quickly, so he invented his own smokeless gun propellent called Cordite. With patent in hand, he started the Maxim Machine Gun Company in England. Although I couldn't find mention of it, I assume he applied for and was granted British citizenship in order to found his company.
.png)
The Maxim Machine Gun Company was eventually absorbed by Vickers Ltd and was adopted by the British Royal Forces as well as other countries including the United States who initially scoffed at the gun.
Moving on from guns he created an airship wing design to create lift. He also invented an airplane propeller (hooked to a steam engine) and proved that powered flight was possible, this was before the Wright Brothers famous flight.
He then invented some amusement rides; one is still in operation in Blackpool England. For his service to Britian, he was Knighted by Queen Victoria in 1900, Maxim is one of a very few naturalized British citizens to be bestowed such an honor.
Sir Hiram Stevens Maxim died on November 24, 1916, during WWI, at the age of 76. He was awarded 122 U.S. patents and 149 British patents, along with other awards for his contributions to society.
Col. John Dean (Jeff) Cooper
Known to his friends and fans as Jeff, John Dean Cooper was born in Los Angeles on May 10th, 1920. His family was quite wealthy and kept a summer home on Catalina Island.
He acquired his first gun (a Remington model 34 .22) at age 11 and began a lifelong love of firearms.
In high school Cooper signed up for the ROTC program (because they offered free ammo to members) and furthered his education at Stanford University where he lettered in fencing. He received his bachelor's degree in political science in 1941. He was recruited to the United States Marine Corps as a full commissioned officer (2nd Lieutenant) and assigned to the USS Pennsylvania in the Pacific theater. By the end of the war he had been promoted to Major. After the war Cooper was assigned to the Marine Corps Command and Staff School in Quantico Virigina. It was here that he began his work on the "art of the combat pistol".
Cooper resigned his commission in 1949, but reupped during the Korean War where he fought in "clandestine warfare" outside of the normal battle lines.
He resigned his commission a second time in 1955, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel.
He got caught up in the post war mania that was auto racing in Southern California and even wrote some articles for Peterson Publishing (Hot Rod and others).
Then he organized a fast draw pistol competition called "Leatherslaps", this was a turning point for Cooper, from then on his obsession would be the combat pistol.
An extension of the training he began offering included the combat mindset and a lifestyle of situational awareness.
During this time Cooper received a Masters degree from UC Riverside and began teaching high school history and as professor at various colleges.
In 1976 Cooper founded the American Pistol Institute in Paulden Arizona (just outside Prescott) where he taught combat pistol classes. That same year he helped found the International Practical Shooting Confederation and acted as the groups 1st President.
In the 1980s he assisted with the design of the Bren Ten pistol, a well-intentioned effort to build the greatest combat pistol the World had seen. The pistol and company failed, but the 10mm Auto cartridge they developed lived on and was even adopted by the FBI for a short time.
He also envisioned a "Scout Rifle" which would be short-barreled bolt action 308 rifle with a long eye relief scope and back up iron sights. Ruger produced a model to his specifications known as the Gunsite Scout Rifle. Other companies did so as well.
Throughout his life Cooper was a big game hunter and went on numerous safaris into the depths of the dark continent.
A prolific writer, Cooper penned 4 books and wrote a monthly column full of observations and musings on the back page of Guns & Ammo magazine. His quotes are used every day by someone on the internet.
Cooper passed away at the age of 86 at his home on the Gunsite Ranch on September 25, 2006.
Ludwig (Lewis) Wilhelm Seecamp
Ludwig Wilhelm Seecamp, if you hadn't guessed from his name was born in Germany on June 6th, 1901. He apprenticed as a gunsmith during The Great War and the Great Depression. In the 40's he was drafted into the Third Reich's Gebirgsjaeger (Mountain Troops) in the Eastern Front, serving as the unit's armorer.
His love of double actions came when a Walther P-38 saved his life in WWII. The incident took a few of his teeth and left him with a long scar on his cheek from a bullet. He also learned that in combat, at short distances, sights don't really matter, point shooting is reality.
After WWII things were a little tougher for a German gunsmith, so in 1959 he emigrated to Canada with his family and a short time later was granted entry into the United States.
Settling down in New Haven Connecticut area he was hired by Mossberg to be a designer. He designed several firearms at Mossberg including their model 800 rifle.
A side project for Ludwig (Louis) was converting 1911 pistols to double action, he even applied for a received a patent on his design.
In 1971 retired from Mossberg and started a company to produce the 1911 conversions.
He started the company with his son Lueder (Larry).
When the .45 double action market became saturated with factory offerings Louis and Larry switched to designing pocket pistols, but not just any pocket pistol, the smallest of the small. A .25 ACP, which soon became a .32 ACP and finally a .380.
The pistol was a blowback design and used a special telescopic, dual captive recoil spring system that was patented and later licensed to Glock, Colt, Kahr and Para-Ordnance to name a few.
This little pistol was basically handmade; they were considered the "Rolls Royce of pocket guns". It was even suggested as a replacement for James Bond's Walther PPK, note the serial # on the pistol below.
The diminutive pistols were in such demand, many customers had to wait 2 years to get one, they often sold second hand for as much as four times the original sale price.
On September 6th, 1989 Ludwig Seecamp passed away at the age of 88. His son Larry continued to produce the pistols until 2014 when he sold the company due to declining health.
Christopher Miner Spencer
Christopher Spencer was born on January 20, 1833 in Manchester Connecticut. As a young man Spencer worked at the Colt factory in Hartford, learning the gun trade.
In 1860 Spencer invented a repeating rifle, using a lever style action to open the breech and extract the spent cartridge.
In order to gain a contract with the Union Army, Spencer boldly walked into the White House, past the guards with a rifle in one hand and a box of cartridges in the other. He was able to get an audience with President Lincoln, the next day along with the Secretary of War, Edwin Stanton, the three went shooting on the mall near the Washington Monument.
Spencer secured a contract for 100,000 rifles. After the war Spencer went to work for Roper Arms, then in 1869 co-founded Billings and Spencer making hand tools, machine tools and parts for sewing machines.
The company became famous for their open-end adjustable wrenches which led them to being purchased by the Crescent Tool Company in 1962.
Christopher Spencer died on January 14th, 1922 at the age of 88.
Lee Jurras
Lee Jurras was born on July 27th, 1934 on a strawberry farm in Dover, Florida. He began shooting at a young age and by the age of 12 he was reloading ammo and selling it for profit (this was long before the 1968 Gun Control Act).
At 17 he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps, in boot camp he set a marksmanship record of 249 x 250 (250 x 250 is a perfect score). After serving at the tail end of the Korean War he was honorably discharged and went to the Indiana School of Mortuary Science. Although the pay preparing corpses was not enough to support a family so he went to work in the asphalt business with his stepfather.
During this time Lee began experimenting with hollow point ammunition for handguns, even creating some from solid billets on the lathe.
In 1964 he started his own company to sell his creations, called SuperVel Ammunition. His ammunition was so successful that he found it hard to find brass, all the suppliers were now his competitors. In late 1974 Lee was forced to shut his business down.
It was at this time Lee moved his family to New Mexico and began experimenting with the .44 Automag pistol, developing a .357 Automag and a .41 Automag. He was building the pistols and selling them to handgun hunters. He used these Automags to hunt in Africa.
Lee Co-Authored a book on handgun hunting and spent many hours shooting with both Skeeter Skelton and Elmer Keith. He was also friends with Col. Charles Askins, Bill Ruger, J.D. Jones, Rex Applegate, Jeff Cooper and Bill Jordan.
Lee created several wildcat cartridges besides the aforementioned .357 and .41 Automags, there was also the .375 and .500 Jurras the latter of which sent a 500-grain slug down range at 1200fps.
Shooting Illustrated named him the "Father of modern personal-defense ammunition"
Lee died at the age of 82 on April 24, 2017, in Columbus Indiana.
John C. Garand
St. Jean le Baptiste (John) Cantius Garand was born on New Years Day 1888 in St. Remi Quebec Canada. He was raised in a French household and spoke only French.
He was one of 12 children in his family, raised on a farm. All of Johns brothers shared his first name (St. Jean Le Baptiste) but only John used the name John, his brothers all used their middle names.
When John was 11 his mother died and his father moved the family to Jewett City, Connecticut, not far from "Gun Valley".
John began his employment at the age of 12, sweeping floors in a textile factory, this is where he learned to speak English.
Another early job was working at a shooting gallery, John not only learned to shoot, but how to repair the guns and a love affair with firearms was born.
At the textile mill he learned machinist skills, which led him to other jobs in the machinist industry. You can guess what happened next.
In 1917 the U.S. Government was looking for a light machine gun and Garand offered up a prototype he had been working on. Garand was then appointed to a position at the Bureau of Standards with the task of perfecting his design.
In 1919 he had a workable design, too late for the Great War, the government saw enough promise that they sent Garand to the Springfield Armory in Massachusetts (Nov 4th, 1919) as an engineer, his machine gun was put on hold as the war had ended.
In 1920 Garand was granted his U.S. citizenship. At Springfield Garand was given the task of designing a new gas operated self-loading infantry rifle. It took Garand 15 years, but he finally reached perfection, and the Semiautomatic, Caliber 30, M1 Rifle was adopted in 1936.
In 1940 the gun went into production, hailed as one of the greatest battle implements ever devised (an actual quote from General Patton). In fact, once in service you would be hard pressed to find anyone who had a bad thing to say about the new rifle.
In 1941 Garand was awarded the Meritorious Civilian Service Award, in 1944 he was awarded the Alexander M. Holley Award from the Society of Mechanical Engineers along with the first Medal of Merit.
In the late 40's through the 50's Garand designed a 30-'06 Bullpup rifle, but the design was never adopted and ended up in the museum.
In 1953 John Garand retired from his service at Springfield, he was never awarded any royalties or bonuses for his invention.
In 1973 John Garand was inducted into the U.S. Army Ordnance Corps Hall of Fame.
The Civilian Marksmanship Facility in Anniston Alabama erected a statue in his honor.
John C. Garand died in Springfield, MA on February 16th, 1974 at the age of 86
Sources:
Remembering P.O. Ackley and His Legacy - Guns and Ammo
Colonel Townsend Whelen – American Rifleman And Soldier – Part I - Frontier Partisans
Col. Townsend Whelen: Mr. Rifleman’s Vermont Retreat | An Official Journal Of The NRA
Col. Townsend Whelen: America's Top 20th Century Shooter (Arguably) | An NRA Shooting Sports Journal
Sir Hiram Maxim - Engineering and Technology History Wiki
Jeff Cooper: The Man Behind The 'Modern Technique' | An Official Journal Of The NRA
Ludwig Seecamp | laststandonzombieisland
Lee Jurras: The Father of Modern Personal-Defense Ammo | An Official Journal Of The NRA
Lee Jurras: the man who gave us hollowpoints. - Free Online Library
John Garand: The Man Behind the Legendary M1 Rifle - The Armory Life
