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Gordon Herigstad on the trigger, from the hip!


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I know Gordon is a legend, especially on account of his research and books

on Colt Thompson serial numbers. But time is passing and I am sure many on this

forum know him only by his name and reputation, and have never met him. (And

sadly, never will...)

Gordon and Doug were really good friends and in constant communication. Much

of Gordons research has turned up in Doug's papers as Doug would make copies on

both sides of papers. I found this photo of Gordon in Doug's office. I was fortunate

enough to meet him a couple of times in the "Thompson Corner" at the SAR Show in

Phoenix, I guess by now going on 15 years ago. He was always a snappy dresser

and this photo does not disappoint.

The back of the photo is marked "Gordon Herigstad 11/29/94 Silverton Oregon"

 

The frame the photo is in is marked "For Doug and Madlyn. This is the real thing.

Who could want anything more. Keep up God's work. The best to both of you.

Gordon. Colt #338 11/94.

 

Gordon (2).jpg

 

Bob

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Great photo find. Having met Gordon 20+ years ago and remained friends until the end. He was a character, wish I had known him in the 70's or 80's, from some of his stories. And his quest for Colt research I don't think will ever be matched, well, maybe TD is close.

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I recall my wife Alice and I hanging out with the Thompson crew of usual suspects at SAR in I believe 2007 and 2008 (??).

There were Doug and Madlyn, Tino and Lana, Murray and Jan, Gordon and Merle, and Ron.

The gang was dressed in 20's attire in 2008 and I took several pictures with my camera (which I'll publish when we're home again) as well as several with Gordon's camera as well as Rons.

Im sure Gordon published a couple of his here as I've seen them posted. All in pinstripes, Jan Willis in a blue "flappers" dress with hat andvfeather boa, and Gordon donning a nice straw fedora.

We'd chat non stop about Thompson stuff and some would watch the booth while others forayed out after treasures.

We'd do a fancy dinner at a local steakhouse and talk more Thompsons, gangsters, etc. (Except Alice, who chatted stock options nonstop with Ron all evening!).

I recall riding over on a Thursday evening with Madlyn in their Mercedes, one of the most terrifying rides I've ever endured, to help set up some stuff Doug had for sale as they needed a hand carrying it in.

Always had PTSD flashbacks riding in a Mercedes since then !!!

Seriously though, those were two of the most memorable weekends we ever spent with gun people, and all in very wonderful company.

Gordon was researching Thompsons by going through federal files out in DC as the paperwork reduction act was in full swing then and he was grabbing every original piece of Thompson related paper he could get his hands on, copying what they decided to keep....then told us all about it. Good times were definitely had by all!

Edited by john
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Yes, I have found copies of documents I figure Gordon dug out of the

National Archives - for example:

 

Naval Supply Depot, Norfolk VA August 16, 1934

United States Asiatic Fleet, USS Isabel, Manila P.I. 11 January, 1934

USS Fulton, Hong Kong, China. 11 January, 1934

USS Richmond, Havana, Cuba, 17 December 1933

 

Listing Thompson submachine guns on board the vessels by serial number,

and judging from the serial numbers, they are all Colts. I don't know how

Gordon did it, but he was a gifted researcher.

 

Also, wasn't there a Thompson guy from New Zealand that would come to

the SAR Show? (Murray?)

 

Bob

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Murray Willis, and his wife Jan. Yes, very good friends of ours still and friends of both Gordon, Doug and Merle.

He and Jan would fly to Califirnia and Gordon would haul them to SAR. Murray had an incredible collection of Thompsons and even more Lugers. I think he was probably the top collector of both on this earth. With New Zealand rounding up all the guns, well, that did it for his collection but he was able to sell and export most of them so they weren't destroyed. Not sure if he frequents these boards still but we still keep in touch.

He acquired four IRA "Irish Swords" from Peter Laidler as the IRA disarmed and Mike Hensley has pics on his website.

He knew everyone and everything "Thompson".

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Oh, and Gordon located some paperwork that showed the FBI still had a gun that was taken from a South St Paul cop during an arrest escape by a member of the Barker or Dillinger gang....(?) and the serial numbers were ground off. The FBI did raise the serial number with acid and still had that gun in their vault. Gordon spoke with them and cleared the way for that department to get their gun back, then flew to St Paul and arranged the deal with the South St Paul police Chief.

Pretty cool thing to do.

I know a couple TCA people have examined the gun since then but don't think that barrel was ever pulled to verify the number.

Gordon was like that.....doing things for others.

Maybe I'll take a run over and have a look at that gun, and publish some pics here.

Edited by john
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I would be very interested in seeing a pic of the defacing. Maybe the one that was found in Homer Van Meters car he abandoned at the Lincoln curt apartments shootout!

Oh, and Gordon located some paperwork that showed the FBI still had a gun that was taken from a South St Paul cop during an arrest escape by a member of the Barker or Dillinger gang....(?) and the serial numbers were ground off. The FBI did raise the serial number with acid and still had that gun in their vault. Gordon spoke with them and cleared the way for that department to get their gun back, then flew to St Paul and arranged the deal with the South St Paul police Chief.
Pretty cool thing to do.
I know a couple TCA people have examined the gun since then but don't think that barrel was ever pulled to verify the number.
Gordon was like that.....doing things for others.
Maybe Ill take a run iver and gave a look at that gun, and publish some pics here.

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I wrote a multiple part article in the original Thompson Collector Newsletter about the South St. Paul payroll robbery that took place outside the US Post Office.

 

The receiver and trigger frame appear to have been done with a bench grinder. The C drum looks like a chisel was used since Dremel tools were not around to my knowledge.

 

The Colt belonged to the South St.Paul Police Department and was taken by the gang after they killed a patrolman.

 

Jack, check your private messages. There is also a defaced Colt C drum.

 

JEXfYyol.jpg

 

0fBKFpil.jpg

Edited by Bridgeport28A1
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I wrote a multiple part article in the original Thompson Collector Newsletter about the South St. Paul payroll robbery that took place outside the US Post Office.

 

The receiver and trigger frame appear to have been done with a bench grinder. The C drum looks like a chisel was used since Dremel tools were not around to my knowledge.

 

The Colt belonged to the South St.Paul Police Department and was taken by the gang after they killed a patrolman.

 

Jack, check your private messages. There is also a defaced Colt C drum.

 

JEXfYyol.jpg

 

0fBKFpil.jpg

I recently learned about the South St Paul robbery from a member of the Dakota County club during the deer rifle event. The member was a retiree from Dakota County Sheriff's Office and recalled a time in the 90s when the SWAT team got new mp5s and went out to the range to qualify. A team member from the South Saint Paul PD brought that Thompson and a few of the team members shot it. From what he understood, the weapon is still on the wall from the chief's office despite efforts from the Dakota County museum across the street to display it there. He also told me that there are still bullet holes in the post office walls from that robbery, I drove down there a few weeks ago and found a few holes in the bricks that look to fit .45 slugs.

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When I wrote the article and inspected the Thompson in the Chief's office it was not displayed. They also still had part of the original case file on the robbery and murder that i was allowed to look though. They still had the file when I wrote the articles because it had involved a line in the duty death of one of their officers.

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Don't mean to hi-jack this thread, but I believe this is one of the 5 Lebman Thompsons shipped to the Bennetts for Baby Face Nelson, probably need to start a new thread.

The PDF from the FBI Vault looks like 7579. Way to close to be a coincidence. This from a earlier post.

 

We knew from the original barrel removal research that it was one of five Thompson's purchased by Nelson, in an arrangement with Lebman in September of 1933, then separately shipped in October 33 to

Joseph Bennett's home (brother-in-law of Tommy Carroll) on 16th street in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The number's were, 1709, 5487, 6141, 6315 and 7579.

We new one was lost at the Bennett's home in an attempt to arrest Tommy Carroll on Nov. 11, 1933, number unknown, one was lost at the Lincoln Court Apartments shoot out in St Paul, left in VanMeter's car, number unknown, and two Thompson's # 6141 and # 6315 were lost at Little Bohemia, Leaving one mystery gun, thinking this had to be mine. But I was mistaken.

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I believe the one that was taken from South St Paul was originally purchased by them. This was the one Gordon facilitated the recovery of after it was stolen and the numbers ground off. Is that correct, Ross?

I never read the article but if you have a copy please email it to me or post a link. Anything that happened in Minnesota is of particular interest to me.

 

Also, here's a link to a pic of the usual suspects. For some reason I can't post the pic so here's a link to it: It's one I took but may have been with Gordons camera and perhaps he posted it here previously?

 

https://imgur.com/a/Fx30sJi

 

Murray Willis, Ron E., Jan Willis and Gordon Herigstad, all looking dapper and very dangerous!

 

I have a few more angles and pics of these wanted individuals but at home on a hard drive so they'll have to wait.

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yous guys have such cool stories.....south side Tony..

#4656 defaced along with c drum..has quite a History...

 

I am glad a SAR SHOW post brought out the guns.

 

Even after 50 years of it the tales and info never tire out, Have fun at the show guys.I will have some trinkets.and the normal gun history info.RON K.

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Incidentally, the gun Gordon is holding is a demilled Colt gun with an original C-drum.

Look closely at the image. Expand it and you can see that it was cut with a torch in several places, then tacked back together for display.

No idea what the serial number or story was on that gun and wonder what became of it.

 

Anyone know?

 

And to Murray's right you can see some of Dougs stuff for sale.....he wasn't around when the pic was taken.

Edited by john
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I wrote a multiple part article in the original Thompson Collector Newsletter about the South St. Paul payroll robbery that took place outside the US Post Office.

 

The receiver and trigger frame appear to have been done with a bench grinder. The C drum looks like a chisel was used since Dremel tools were not around to my knowledge.

 

The Colt belonged to the South St.Paul Police Department and was taken by the gang after they killed a patrolman.

 

Jack, check your private messages. There is also a defaced Colt C drum.

 

 

 

Bridgeport28A1, could you tell me where the Type C drum appeared? When the Model 1928AC (#7679) was seized from "Doc" Barker in 1935, it was found with two Type Ls, not a Type C. Was the number on the Type C raised at some point?

 

Cheers

 

HANS

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Don't mean to hi-jack this thread, but I believe this is one of the 5 Lebman Thompsons shipped to the Bennetts for Baby Face Nelson, probably need to start a new thread.

The PDF from the FBI Vault looks like 7579. Way to close to be a coincidence. This from a earlier post.

 

We knew from the original barrel removal research that it was one of five Thompson's purchased by Nelson, in an arrangement with Lebman in September of 1933, then separately shipped in October 33 to

Joseph Bennett's home (brother-in-law of Tommy Carroll) on 16th street in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The number's were, 1709, 5487, 6141, 6315 and 7579.

We new one was lost at the Bennett's home in an attempt to arrest Tommy Carroll on Nov. 11, 1933, number unknown, one was lost at the Lincoln Court Apartments shoot out in St Paul, left in VanMeter's car, number unknown, and two Thompson's # 6141 and # 6315 were lost at Little Bohemia, Leaving one mystery gun, thinking this had to be mine. But I was mistaken.

 

 

No, these are two different guns.

The Model 1921AC (#7579) supplied by Hyman Lebman via Joseph Bennett to the Nelson Gang in 1933 has disappeared. It could have been the one seized in 1934 from Dillinger-Nelson Gang member Homer van Meter in St. Paul, that has never been ascertained to my knowledge.

The Model 1928AC (#7679) was bought by the South St. Paul Police Department in 1933 and taken later in 1933 from a policeman during a robbery at the Post Office in South St. Paul by the Barker-Karpis Gang. It was eventually seized in 1935 from Barker-Karpis Gang member Arthur "Doc" Barker in Chicago.

 

Cheers

 

HANS

Edited by HANS
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