Hi All,
I had mentioned this a year or two ago when I posted another bringback from a guy who did big things after the war. This one is ironically a WW2 bringback, but from what we know from photos and other evidence, the LP08 remained in limited service during WW2 (likely stashed ones that avoided conversion/destruction). On its own merits, it's a solid 1914 Erfurt, which is the only year they were made at the arsenal and in limited numbers. The real cool factor here is who brought it back. The vet in question recently passed away at the age of 100, so I thought this would be a good tribute to a life well-lived. I purchased it a few years ago from a dealer in his neck of the woods (Charlottesville, VA)
Samuel R. Gammon III was a WW2/Korean War Army vet, career diplomat, US ambassador, historian and leader , among other things. Originally from Texas, he appears to have lived in VA in his later years. While attending Texas A&M, he joined the Corps of Cadets and later commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in the US Cavalry, serving in Europe until 1946. According to what I read, he was apparently the first Americans to enter one of Hitler's bunkers in Garmisch. He returned to finish his final semester at A&M and upon graduating, attended Princeton for his MA and PhD (though breaking his studies upon recall to serve during the Korean War) He eventually graduated in 1953 and joined the State Department for a long and distinguished career, culminating in serving as the US Ambassador to Mauritius under Carter. After retirement from State, he served for 13 more years as Executive Director for the American Historical Association.
I attempted to reach out to him a couple of times, but to no avail. He unfortunately left no immediate family either, based on the obituary. Thankfully, there was a lot of information available for him; he even had a small Wikipedia page.
Recent obituary:
Article from Texas A&M after he made a large donation to them a few years ago:
spirit.txamfoundation.com
Bio on the American Historical Association website:
www.historians.org
Interview with Ambassador Gammon:
In any case, here is the pistol and a picture of Ambassador Gammon in uniform. As you'll see he left his name and home location (at Texas A&M) on the pistol. His "SRG" initials are also stamped on the right side by the acceptance.
I had mentioned this a year or two ago when I posted another bringback from a guy who did big things after the war. This one is ironically a WW2 bringback, but from what we know from photos and other evidence, the LP08 remained in limited service during WW2 (likely stashed ones that avoided conversion/destruction). On its own merits, it's a solid 1914 Erfurt, which is the only year they were made at the arsenal and in limited numbers. The real cool factor here is who brought it back. The vet in question recently passed away at the age of 100, so I thought this would be a good tribute to a life well-lived. I purchased it a few years ago from a dealer in his neck of the woods (Charlottesville, VA)
Samuel R. Gammon III was a WW2/Korean War Army vet, career diplomat, US ambassador, historian and leader , among other things. Originally from Texas, he appears to have lived in VA in his later years. While attending Texas A&M, he joined the Corps of Cadets and later commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in the US Cavalry, serving in Europe until 1946. According to what I read, he was apparently the first Americans to enter one of Hitler's bunkers in Garmisch. He returned to finish his final semester at A&M and upon graduating, attended Princeton for his MA and PhD (though breaking his studies upon recall to serve during the Korean War) He eventually graduated in 1953 and joined the State Department for a long and distinguished career, culminating in serving as the US Ambassador to Mauritius under Carter. After retirement from State, he served for 13 more years as Executive Director for the American Historical Association.
I attempted to reach out to him a couple of times, but to no avail. He unfortunately left no immediate family either, based on the obituary. Thankfully, there was a lot of information available for him; he even had a small Wikipedia page.
Recent obituary:
Article from Texas A&M after he made a large donation to them a few years ago:
The Legacy
Dr. Samuel R. Gammon III ’44, a World War II veteran and retired Foreign Service Officer, reflects on his lifetime of experiences and his decision to give a bequest to the Department of History.
spirit.txamfoundation.com
Bio on the American Historical Association website:
Samuel R. Gammon III – AHA
Samuel R. Gammon III was AHA executive director from 1981 to 1994. He was appointed executive director in June 1981, following a distinguished career in the Foreign Service, from which he retired with ambassadorial rank. Gammon's diplomatic career included service as vice-consul in Italy...
www.historians.org
Interview with Ambassador Gammon:
In any case, here is the pistol and a picture of Ambassador Gammon in uniform. As you'll see he left his name and home location (at Texas A&M) on the pistol. His "SRG" initials are also stamped on the right side by the acceptance.
