JeffG
Member
Mc Gowen has been around a long time , since 80s I am sure. He was making custom rifles since 1968, the modern company purchased his equiptment and name from storage. He is deceased now RIP Harry, but during the Fast and Furious sad days of BATFE there was this to hurt the poor old man
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted a late-night "enforcement operation" Thursday at the home of Harry McGowen, of rural St. Anne.
The address, 5961 Spruce Lane in the Hieland Road area, is also listed as the office of McGowen Rifle Barrels.
The Chicago office ATF information officer Thomas Ahearn reported Friday that "we cannot disclose any particulars, but I can say that there is an ongoing investigation."
McGowen, a gunsmith and custom rifle builder of world-wide reputation, started assembling quality rifles in 1959 and manufacturing them completely from scratch in his basement in 1968, according to a 1984 profile in The Daily Journal. He previously held a federal firearms manufacturer's license.
Spruce Lane residents called The Daily Journal Friday, noting that multiple vans and a SWAT truck were on their street overnight, with agents apparently hauling multiple boxes of evidence out of the McGowen home and business until midnight.
The person who answered a call to the business said only that he couldn't comment on the incident.
That's a shame.
