Sunday for Monday

Re: Sunday for Monday

John Veerkamp

Looks like a rubber band gun to me. But I Don't think that the feds began controlling toys back then yet

Early morning grab.  When I first

Gary Smyth

saw it I thought so too, but not correct. Next grab when I find a computer but likely this afternoon. The time is unique in American history.

Re: Sunday for Monday

Thomas Skaggs, Foothills of Mount Level

I'll guess it's a fake gun...either used to rob banks....getting one into jail....or used as a way to OUT of jail!

T.

Re: Early morning grab.  When I first

Alex Y

I initially thought rubber band gun as well, but given the hint, I'm going to guess a bottle opener of some sort.

Good

Gary Smyth

You get the star for today, but if you know, tell me which of your offerings. Then try the link to the rest of the question.

Dillinger

Thomas Skaggs, Foothills of Mount Level

Looks like blackened wood. Actually blackened soap. John Dillinger used it successfully to spring himself from jail.

Re: Sunday for Monday

Gary Smyth

Tommy gets the pistol. Actually I heard the soap story many times but the picture is supposed to be the actual pistol used in the get away. One story I heard is that the soap story was made up because it sold more newspapers than because a lawyer smuggled in the wood item to a prisoner. Also, lawyers didn't like that it was brought in by one of their own.

Copy with picture states--Is this the infamous wooden pistol that John Dillinger used to break out of prison in 1934? The person who paid $19,120 for it at an auction in December 2009 probably thinks so. I like that it has "Colt 38" carved into the side. A nice touch!

Probably the Single Most Iconic Item Associated with John Dillinger is the Legendary "Wooden Gun" He Used to Escape from the Crown Point, Indiana Jail, March 3, 1934. In reality there are three 'wooden guns', including this example, that can lay claim, all with some degree of credibility, to being the one Dillinger used is his remarkable escape. This example was part of the personal effects of Dillinger's younger brother Hubert, and has been in the possession of Frances Helen's family since his death in 1974. Another example is in the possession of the Dillinger Museum in Hammond, Indiana, while still another is in the possession of another branch of the family. While it will probably never be known which, if indeed any, of these three examples is the one he actually used, aside from it having a traceable lineage through the Dillinger family, this example exhibits several other details which lend strong credence to the family's belief that this is, in fact, the original specimen. 5.75" overall, the blackened finish is clearly affected by a dye, such as shoe blacking, rather than a paint and it does, indeed appear to have been fabricated from the leg of something such as a washboard. The general impression, based on the barrel form, is that of an automatic pistol. There are tiny brads in place on top at the front and back giving the impression of sights, with an incised line between them. A notched area at the back approximates a hammer. The front/muzzle has a .25" copper tube inserted to simulate a barrel. Crudely carved on the right side "Colt 38" and on the left, clearly in keeping with Dillinger's sense of humor and irony, "Pat Mar 3, 1934" the date of Dillinger's escape. Accompanied by a detailed letter of provenance and lineage from Frances Helen Thompson (Dillinger).

In January 1934 Dillinger allegedly led his gang in a bank robbery, holding up the First National Bank in East Chicago and killing police officer William O'Malley. Dillinger was officially charged with the murder although the identity of the actual killer was debatable, and it is even in question whether Dillinger participated in that robbery at all. As police began closing in on the Dillinger gang , the men left Chicago to hide out first in Florida; later in El Paso, Texas, and then to the Hotel Congress in Arizona.

A fire broke out at the Hotel Congress in Tucson where the Dillinger gang was staying. Forced to leave their luggage behind, They were rescued by way of a fire ladder at a window but forced to leave their luggage behind. One of the gang tipped a couple of firemen $12 to climb back up and retrieve the luggage, affording the firefighters a good look at several members of Dillinger's gang. The firemen later recognized some of the men while thumbing through a copy of True Detective and informed the police who promptly arrested Harry Pierpont, Charles Makley, Russell Clark, Ed Shouse, and Dillinger. They found them in possession of over $25,000 in cash and several automatic weapons.

The men were extradited to Indiana, where Dillinger was held in the Crown Point jail, while the others were then sent to Ohio to stand trial for a different murder. Dillinger was charged with the murder of the police officer in East Chicago. The police boasted to area newspapers that the jail was escape-proof and posted extra guards to make sure. However, Louis Piquett, John Dillinger's attorney, was able to sneak a wooden gun within the prison and into the hands of Dillinger. Using it, Dillinger was able to trick a guard into opening his cell. He then took two men hostage, rounded up all the guards in the jail, locked them in his cell, and fled. Before leaving, Dillinger said to the guards he locked up, "See what I locked all of you monkeys up with - nothing but a little piece of wood.� In his escape Dillinger stole the Sheriff�s car and traveled to Chicago. In so doing, he crossed the state line in a stolen car, breaking the federal Motor Vehicle Theft Act. The crime, the breakout and the car theft were now under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Investigation (BOI), now FBI, who immediately took over the Dillinger case. Later of course he was shot dead by them. That is the story of the pictured wood pistol, and how the FBI turned local crime into Federal offences...

Sources: Internet under Dillinger wood pistol.