Colt 1914 Government Model .45 ACP British/Canadian shipped to Remington/UMCMarkings

[varifleman]

Here for your perusal is Colt .45 ACP 1914 Government Model Pistol serial number C9591 which was 1 of 20 shipped to Remington Arms-UMC Company Bridgeport CT on October 5 1914. I'd like the forum's opinion on why the pistol was shipped to Remington/UMC and how it wound up in apparent British and Canadian service. The Canadian C broad arrow property mark is stamped on the magazine floor plate and British Birmingham commercial proofing on the slide and barrel. Looks like it saw British and Canadian service in WWI and WWII. The BNP proofs seem to be added when pistol is sold off as redundant. From what I can determine from Birmingham Proof Mark Chart below the mark going clockwise looks like B (3 o'clock)-4(6 o'clock)-J(9 o'clock) which would indicate it was proofed in 1958. Also it seems the 1914 Canadian Government Model pistols were shipped with just one unmarked two-toned blue lanyard loop magazine normally supplied with Colt Government Model pistols due to necessity to get the pistols supplied quickly to the Canadian Expeditionary Force and later in 1915 spare magazines were ordered and marked with the C-Broad Arrow mark. According to a reply received from the Imperial War Museum in London: "During the autumn of 1914, the Canadian Government purchased 5,000 Colt M1911 pistols to equip its military forces. These were issued to officers, NCOs and cavalry troopers, but could also be purchased by officers wishing to acquire their sidearm permanently. Unfortunately, apart from a few pistols that received unit marks on the grip-strap, or were inscribed with the name of the officer who purchased them, there is no way of ascertaining which unit or formation they were issued to.I can’t see very clearly from your photos, but it appears that the proof mark on it post-dates the First World War. This would imply that the pistol was put through proof at Birmingham at some point after its First World War military career – and prior to it re-crossing the Atlantic."

[aardq]

While I’m far from an expert, I have picked up a few bits of knowledge along the way, so I’ll start the guessing on this gun.

First off, you probably already know that the C serial means it is a commercial gun. Then and now, gun companies buy products from other companies, just to find out what the competition is doing, and how well the are doing it. Or, there could have been talk of contracting out production to other companies. Thus, Rem was sent the guns to study with the idea they may be called on later to make the guns. Which Rem did end up doing later in the war.

My understanding is that all guns entering England must be proofed first, so the BNP marking would have been done when the gun entered, not when it left.

The experts will have to jump in and tell us if the guns bought by Canada in 1914 were produced as military contract guns or bought from commercial stocks.

Once Rem was done with this pistol, they may have sold it off in the commercial market. As to how this gun saw both Canadian and British service, and when, is nothing but conjecture on our part, unless some sort of documentation is found. British officers were allowed to purchase their own side arms, and it is possible that this gun was bought by a Canadian officer. From there is just more guessing.

This is an interesting gun, that comes with lots of questions, and very few answers. I suggest the Colt forum (www.coltforum.com) for the real experts on Colts. Now we wait for the experts to jump in and educate us.

Good luck, and enjoy your pistol,
Dan

[varifleman]

Dan; thanks for your valuable comments. It's a very interesting pistol and I'm looking forward to any other comments.

[varifleman]

I sent information and photos of the pistol to the American Rifleman Magazine's Dope Bag and got this interesting reply from Field Editor Bruce Canfield.

[ChuckD]

Every thing stated is very interesting, but doesn't explain why it was first sent to Remington-UMC before it's
world travels. Might I suggest that it was sent to UMC for cartridge development and function.
Then forwarded to either Colt or directly to Canada, Just my guess?

[varifleman]

ChuckD; sounds like a plausible scenario; thanks.

[AlanD]

Supply to Remington UMC for testing of ammunition would seem the most logical explanation. If you are making tens of millions of rounds on a government contract you will need a number of pistols to test the ammo.

All the big cartridge manufactures did this.

Regards

AlanD
Sydney

[varifleman]

Took a look at the inside of grips and looks like there are some initials/numbers "1 WV" on top grip and "15" on the lower grip. Any ideas about these; owner's initials/unit designator; (19)15?

1914grips.jpg

[varifleman]

Took this old WWI vet to the range the other day and it performed flawlessly with current production .45ACP. Probably will be retired to collection status now.

[varifleman]

I received this very interesting detailed reply from the Royal Canadian Artillery Museum concerning this pistol and would appreciate fellow member comments:

1. Shipment to Remington-UMC (October 1914)
Your pistol (C9591) being 1 of 20 shipped to Remington-UMC on Oct 5, 1914 is the key starting point.
That is not a normal commercial or military delivery pattern. Small lots like “20 pistols” sent to an ammunition manufacturer strongly suggest:
Most likely purpose:


Ammunition development / function testing

Establishing reliable .45 ACP loads for wartime production

Possibly endurance and pressure testing

This fits the context:

WWI had just begun (August 1914)

Britain and its allies were scrambling to source arms and ammunition in North America

UMC (soon part of Remington) was gearing up for large-scale contracts

So yes—Colt absolutely did send pistols to ammunition makers. That was standard practice when scaling up production of a cartridge.
2. How did it get into Canadian service?
This is the tricky part—and where speculation needs to be disciplined.
Known historical anchor:


Canada purchased ~5,000 Colt Government Models in late 1914 for the Canadian Expeditionary Force

These were shipped directly from Colt—not via intermediaries like Remington

Your pistol’s path (most plausible reconstruction):

Scenario A (most likely)


Colt ships pistol to Remington-UMC for testing

After testing, pistol becomes surplus / retained inventory

It is later:

Sold commercially or

Transferred as part of broader wartime supply dealings

It enters Canadian service through:

Direct purchase

Officer private purchase

Or informal acquisition early in the war

Early-war procurement (late 1914–early 1915) was messy. Canada and Britain were buying anything available.

Scenario B (possible, but less provable)


Remington-UMC acted as a procurement intermediary

The pistol was bundled into shipments tied to:

ammunition contracts

here is precedent:

Remington Arms supplied rifles and handled foreign contracts

They also arranged handgun supply (e.g., S&W .455s for Britain)

But: there is no direct evidence that these 20 Colts were officially forwarded to Canada as a batch.


Scenario C (least likely but often suggested)

“Smuggled” or informally diverted into Canada

This is usually overstated. While early war procurement was chaotic, outright smuggling is not needed to explain this pistol’s path.
3. Canadian marking (C Broad Arrow)

The Canadian “C broad arrow” on the magazine is important:
Likely applied to replacement or spare magazines (1915 onward)

Matches your note that early pistols shipped with unmarked mags

This suggests:

The pistol was in Canadian service long enough to receive replacement equipment

The magazine is not necessarily original to the pistol

4. British proof marks (Birmingham)

The Birmingham Proof House marks tell a very clear story:

BNP (Birmingham Nitro Proof) = civilian/commercial proof

Required when:

A firearm enters civilian market in the UK

Or is exported commercially

Your dating (1958) is very plausible:

Post-WWII surplus disposal

British/Commonwealth pistols sold off commercially

Proofed before sale/export

This means:

This means

The pistol remained in British/Commonwealth control through WWII

Then entered civilian circulation in the late 1950s

5. WWII barrel on a WWI pistol
Completely normal.

Many WWI Colts were:

Re-arsenaled

Refitted with later barrels (1937–WWII production)

Your “G” marked barrel fits U.S. government contract replacement barrels (pre-1943)

This strongly supports:
Continued service life into WWII

Likely refurbishment in a British or Canadian system

6. Putting it all together (clean timeline)

Most defensible reconstruction:

1914 – Manufactured by Colt

Oct 5, 1914 – Shipped to Remington-UMC for ammo testing

1914–1915 – Leaves Remington inventory (sale/transfer)

WWI – Enters Canadian service (CEF), magazine later replaced

Interwar / WWII – Remains in Commonwealth service, refurbished (new barrel)

Post-1945 – Declared surplus

~1958 – Proofed at Birmingham for civilian sale/export

Later – Returns to North America

Bottom line answers to your core questions
Did Colt send pistols to ammo makers for testing?
Yes—very likely in this case. That’s the most solid conclusion.
Did Remington-UMC forward it to Canada?
Possible, but unproven.
More likely: it left Remington as surplus and was later acquired through wartime purchasing channels.
Is the Canadian/British service story believable?
Yes—strongly supported by:

Canadian-marked magazine

British proof marks

WWII replacement barrel

Final assessment
Your pistol is a legitimate multi-service gun with a complex but believable chain:

Non-standard origin (test gun)

Early wartime acquisition

Canadian service

Extended Commonwealth use

Postwar British disposal