El Tejon
Member
Here's my favorite: my father used to shoot rats at the city dump in the late '40s/early '50s. He and his friends would tie their rifles to their bike handles or sling them over their backs, ride to the dump, shoot rats all morning (with the blessing of the city!), and ride back to downtown to the "soda shop" for lunch.
During lunch the wife of the owner made them put their guns up by the front door , where people usually left their umbrellas or coats, while they sat at the counter. Sometimes a city cop would be there and talk to them about their adventures or about guns. Dad told me once a cop bought him a milkshake because he shot the most rats.
This was Bloomington, Indiana, circa 1947 to 1953.
Another I like is that my paternal grandfather ran a hardware store in Bloomington. One day a barrel full of Liberators was on the truck from Indianapolis (after WWII the factories around Indy were drowning in war surplus--a lot went up in smoke or was thrown into rivers). Grandfather bought the barrel, opened the barrel and stuck a "for sale" sign in them near the cash register like an impulse buy item! Many were apparently sold as "toy guns", painted bright colors and used to play "Lone Ranger" or "The Shadow".
My grandfather told me that he would not sell guns to kids, unless he knew their parents or they had a note from a relative! Oh, and he sold ammo by the round. Different times, different planet. Can you imagine any of this happening now, even in my state? The SWAT team would cart kids away like gangsters and the politicians would be doing backflips over the "horrific danger to our children.":banghead:
During lunch the wife of the owner made them put their guns up by the front door , where people usually left their umbrellas or coats, while they sat at the counter. Sometimes a city cop would be there and talk to them about their adventures or about guns. Dad told me once a cop bought him a milkshake because he shot the most rats.
This was Bloomington, Indiana, circa 1947 to 1953.
Another I like is that my paternal grandfather ran a hardware store in Bloomington. One day a barrel full of Liberators was on the truck from Indianapolis (after WWII the factories around Indy were drowning in war surplus--a lot went up in smoke or was thrown into rivers). Grandfather bought the barrel, opened the barrel and stuck a "for sale" sign in them near the cash register like an impulse buy item! Many were apparently sold as "toy guns", painted bright colors and used to play "Lone Ranger" or "The Shadow".
My grandfather told me that he would not sell guns to kids, unless he knew their parents or they had a note from a relative! Oh, and he sold ammo by the round. Different times, different planet. Can you imagine any of this happening now, even in my state? The SWAT team would cart kids away like gangsters and the politicians would be doing backflips over the "horrific danger to our children.":banghead: