Several years back my Father-In-Law made reference to buying some En bloc clips for a good price. When I asked him about having an M1 he said he did. That was the the extent of the conversation and I didn't probe any further.
Fast forward to 2 years ago. I got a call from him with a request, "come get my guns from me." He was an alcoholic that was losing the fight. He was afraid he was going to use a gun on himself. I didn't give it much thought when emptying his safe. There was no M1 in the mix.
Just after Midnight on Thanksgiving he lost the fight with Alcohol. While we were at his house spending time with his wife(my wife's Step Mother) and family. I went back to his safe to see what was left in it. Misc ammo and assorted junk. On the top shelf was a piece of paper folded up that read "Gun Inventory." The date on the top was from 1978. The signature at the bottom is my wife's grandfather. Listed out was each firearm he had at the time, serial number and price he paid for each. (I'll pull out the receipt from 1975 for the purchase of a Smith Model 60 Stainless .38 Special. It will make you sick) About a 3rd of the way down read, "M1 Automatic Army Issue. . . $95.00." Apparently her Grandfather had purchased his issued M1 when he discharged from the Army.
Now I'm fearing the worst. Did he sell this rifle? If not where was it. We checked the house inside and out nothing. Then I remembered moving things out of my wife's Grandmother's house. There were some old guns in the attic. I had asked if we needed to move those and he said no. They still own the house and know the renters well. My wife made a phone call and sure enough there was a pile of guns in the attic. We went over after church to see what was there. My first question was, "Is there a Garand in the mix?" Yes there was.
Several of the rifles are to far gone to even worry about. The Garand was covered in dust. A little rust on the bolt catch and some surface rust here and there. Overall in superb condition for being in the attic for an estimated 30+ years. Below is a link to the Photobucket album with pictures.
http://s258.photobucket.com/user/dblystone/library/Springfield M1 Garand
Now onto the next two rifles that were on that inventory. The British Enfield and German Mauser. Both in similar condition. While this is a rifle I've wanted in my collection for years. I'm super excited that I now have this rifle and an incredible story to go with it. In addition I'll be able to hand this down to one of my boys.
One last thing. Bonus points to someone who can identify the Safety lever on the trigger group without Google. It took me some time to figure it out.
