1938 FOLSOM STATE PRISON Marked|Documented REMINGTON Model 81 Rifle .30 C&R California Guard Gun; Johnny Cash Live Recording 1967

Description:
1938 FOLSOM STATE PRISON Marked|Documented REMINGTON Model 81 Rifle .30 C&R

California Guard Gun; Johnny Cash Live Recording 1967

Here we present a C&R Remington Model 81 Rifle, manufactured circa 1938 in Ilion, NY. This one was marked “F.S.P.” for Folsom State Prison and has been documented by the California State Prison at Folsom to have been 1 of 6 Model 81s listed by serial number (along with eleven Winchester Model 94s) to have been sold as surplus January 29, 1975.

Folsom Prison was built in 1880 as one of the first maximum security prisons and the first in the state with electricity, and it was made with high granite walls to house dangerous and flight-risky inmates. The institution has a long and bloody history of executions and escape attempts. Having been made in 1938, these rifles would have been acquired by the prison in the aftermath of the bloody September 1937 escape attempt that saw both Warden Clarence Larkin & Officer Harry Martin killed by stabbing when the seven desperate men who had taken Larkin hostage in their escape were fired upon by guards. In addition to the two lawmen dying of their wounds, two of the seven escapees were killed in a hail of bullets, while the rest of them were subsequently convicted of the murders and executed, two of them having the dubious honor of inaugurating the brand-new gas chamber on December 2, 1938.

This rifle would have been in service when the prison’s most famous visitor, Johnny Cash, was there recording his live album in 1967. He had written the “Folsom Prison Blues” in 1955, after having been stationed nearby with the Air Force Security Service and seeing the documentary film Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison.

The Remington Model 81 was the successor of the Model 8 semi-automatic rifle designed by John Browning and produced by Remington Arms, introduced as the Remington Autoloading Rifle in 1905, though the name was changed to the Remington Model 8 in 1911. The Model 81 had nearly identical action but the stock was enlarged and a pistol grip added to the stock. These are considered the first commercially successful semi-auto rifles in the US. They were chambered in cartridges powerful enough to reliably punch through automobile doors and body panels.
The overall condition is near fine. Original finish. The action is excellent. The bore is reflective with strong rifling. The stock shows use (small chip at the toe) and remains solid. This one is marked with the prison’s initials on the side of the receiver as well as “R53”, which we take to be a rack number, on the bottom of the pistol grip. Early serial number. Will come with a printed copy of the documentation. A fantastic piece of history from one of California’s most notorious prisons.

Own the original! This firearm is classified as a Curio & Relic.

Barrel is 22 inches.

Caliber: .30 Remington Auto

Overall condition as seen in photos.

Very Fast. Very Safe. FREE SHIPPING. Will need to be sent to your local FFL or C&R licensee. This firearm is classified as a Curio & Relic.

Guaranteed AUTHENTIC & Includes CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICITY.

ancestryguns

$3600

#263026
 

Curio/Relic: Yes

Price: $3,600.00
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