E.E. Richardson: The Best Thompson SMG Salesman of All Time

There is little doubt that the Thompson has the most dedicated corps of enthusiasts of any submachine gun ever produced. The first run of Thompsons was manufactured by Colt during the “Roaring Twenties” era, where it gained most of its notoriety from use by the underworld characters of the day. During World War II, after a 20-year hiatus, the production of the Thompson submachine gun resumed, addressing a shortage of weapons for the war effort. Despite the design being nearly 20 years old, the Thompson proved it was up to the job. Wartime production by the Savage Arms Company and Auto-Ordnance’s own Bridgeport, Connecticut, plant exceeded Colt’s production numbers. Despite honorably serving both U.S. and Allied forces during World War II, and in far greater (approximately 1.5 million) numbers, the Thompson submachine gun is best known for its use by outlaws.

The passionate collector interest in the Colt-manufactured Thompsons and the prices they bring would simply astound the Thompson creators John T. Thompson, Theodore Eickhoff and Oscar Payne if they were alive today. There has been more research done by more people on the subject since the last Thompson came off of Colt’s assembly line nearly 100 years ago. Still, even today new discoveries are being made. Some items of interest are the 15,000 serial numbers, whom the guns were originally sold to and their provenance these many years later. Many of the old Thompsons remain lost to time, and their location is unknown.

The Thompson submachine gun was first produced in 1921. The Auto-Ordnance Corporation had no large manufacturing facilities, so a contract was awarded to the Colt’s Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company to make 15,000 Model 1921 Thompson submachine guns. All of the Thompson submachine guns originally made by Colt were produced as the Model 1921. The first production Colt Thompson, serial number 41, came off the assembly line in March 1921. By this time, World War I had ended, and the world was awash in surplus weapons. Sales of the Thompson were extremely slow. It would take almost 20 years to sell off all the initial production of guns. The $200.00 list price of a 1921AC Thompson was quite a sum of money in the 1920s. To generate interest in the weapon “new” models were created from the stock of unsold Model 1921 guns.

E.E. Richardson

One of the most successful salesmen of the Thompson submachine gun was Edward E. “Cap” Richardson. Mr. Richardson was serving as a Deputy Marshal in Maumee, Ohio; while attending a City Council meeting, an Auto-Ordnance salesman was attempting to sell the city a Thompson submachine gun. Apparently, the salesman’s tactics left an unfavorable impression on the members of the City Council. The city did eventually buy a Thompson from a local hardware store, which made a substantial profit on the sale. Thinking the Thompson would be a valuable tool for law enforcement, as well as a possible career opportunity, prompted Mr. Rich-ardson to contact the Auto-Ordnance Corporation in the fall of 1928 and offer his services as a sales representative.

chine guns, replied to Mr. Richardson offering him a commission of 15 percent on each Thompson and accessory sold and 20 percent on ammunition. Richardson had concerns on protecting his sales territory, given the salesman’s earlier attempt at selling the City of Maumee a Thompson, only to have them order one from a local hardware store. Richardson was worried that he might expend his best efforts on selling a Thompson, only to have the potential customer get a better offer from another area salesman.

Edward Richardson believed that live demonstrations of the Thompson’s effectiveness would go farther in selling the weapon than correspondence and sales literature. He would eventually receive two Model 1921ACs, Thompson serial numbers 9962 and 9964, a 50-round drum, two 20-round box magazines and one shot-shell magazine for demonstration purposes. Ammunition expended during law enforcement demonstrations would be provided by Auto-Ordnance.

Sales Approach

Using demonstrations and sales pitches developed by Mr. Richardson, as well as his confidence in the weapon, soon made him the top-selling Thompson salesman for Auto-Ordnance. Because of his success, he soon established his own dealer network employing several salesmen. Richardson developed a “recommended” package for law enforcement agencies consisting of a Colt Thompson, three 20-round magazines, a shot magazine, a 50-round drum, a carrying case and a supply of .45 caliber ammunition. In addition to his law enforcement customers, Mr. Richardson sold Thompson submachine guns to several country clubs and a yacht club. Perhaps the wealthy wanted to “experience” the notorious weapon that was making headlines in the hands of outlaws.

The Submachine Gun School at Camp Perry

In addition to his job as an Auto-Ordnance salesman, Edward Richardson also accepted the position of instructor at a submachine gun school held at Camp Perry, Ohio, as part of the annual service rifle shooting matches held there. The classes held for police and military personnel consisted of familiarization with the Thompson submachine gun, its assembly and disassembly and semiautomatic and full-auto-matic fire at different ranges. At the end of the class, a competition was held for the attendees, with the first prize being a Thompson submachine gun. Richardson organized and ran the school from 1929 to 1933.

Civilian Sales Suspended

Due to the negative press the Thompson gun was receiving from its use by gangsters, Auto-Ordnance decided to suspend all but military sales in 1930; however, commercial sales resumed in 1932. During this period, Federal Laboratories of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a police equipment supply company, assumed all sales of the Thompson submachine gun leaving Mr. Richardson without a job. Federal Laboratories also sold Reising submachine guns (Later), tear gas guns and Smith & Wesson revolvers.

Upon leaving Auto-Ordnance, Mr. Richard-son wrote a letter to the company president Walter B. Ryan, Jr., asking if he could keep, or purchase, the Thompson he used for his sales demonstrations, because “I have become so attached to the Thompson Sub-Machine Gun, that I feel almost as if it was a part of me.” In a letter from the Auto-Ordnance president dated October 30, 1930, Mr. Richardson was told that he could keep Thompson serial number 9962 and the hard case and magazines free of charge if he would provide a letter stating that he would not sell or dispose of the Thompson without the written approval of Auto-Ord-nance. The other demonstration Thompson, serial number 9964, and associated equipment in Richardson’s possession was returned to Auto-Ordnance.

The Fate of Richardson’s Thompson

Edward Richardson passed away in 1946 at the age of 73. The fate of his demo Thompson, serial number 9962, was a mystery until recently when the gun resurfaced. Unfortunately, Mr. Richardson’s Thompson was never registered, and, therefore, it could not be transferred to an individual or a dealer. Thompson SN 9962 could only be transferred to a government agency, a qualified museum on an ATF form 10 or turned in and destroyed. Fortunately, the Thompson was donated to the Virginia War Memorial, in Richmond, Virginia, a division of the Virginia Department of Veterans Services. The provenance of the submachine gun since leaving Mr. Richardson’s possession remains unknown. The Thompson was presented to the museum with the accessories Mr. Richardson used in his demonstrations; the hardcase, two 20-round magazines, an 18-round shot magazine and a 50-round drum.

As expected Richardson’s Thompson, being fired in an untold number of demonstrations, appears well-used. One unique feature on Thompson SN 9962 is a modified front sight mount that is dovetailed for removable inserts. Since the compensator pin must be removed to change out a standard, compensator-mounted front sight, this modification made the change of front sights much easier and quicker. Most likely Richardson had several front sight inserts calibrated for longer and shorter ranges used in his sales demonstrations.

The Model 1921

The original run of Thompson guns were manufactured to very high-quality standards, common of the era. The 1921 model had a fine Colt blue finish and walnut furniture. Originally, the 1921 models were equipped with a vertical foregrip. There were no Cutts compensators fitted. All Colt-made Thompsons were manufactured in this configuration. The Colt Thompson without a compensator became known as the 1921A Model in Auto-Ordnance sales literature.

The Model 1921AC

Introduced in 1926, the 1921AC model was simply a standard Model 1921 with the optional Cutts compensator fitted to the muzzle. A factory-installed compensator was a $25.00 option. The receiver markings were not changed.

The Military Models 1922-1923

During 1922, a “new” military model was introduced as the Model 1922. The 1922 military model was a 1921 model refitted with a longer 14.5-inch barrel, a bipod and a horizontal foregrip. The 1923 Model featured a heavier barrel, and to increase the effective range, a new special cartridge was offered. The new .45 caliber cartridge was called the Remington–Thompson. It featured a 250-grain projectile in a longer .998-inch case. Muzzle velocity was 1,450 feet per second. The concept of the Thompson military models proved unsuccessful, and few of the 1922-1923 Models were built. The idea was abandoned shortly after it was conceived.

The Model 1927

The Model 1927 was a semiautomatic-only carbine and is one of the rarest variations of the early Colt Thompson Guns. The Model 1927 was, again, created from existing 1921 models. The unique feature about the 1927 model was that it was made into a semiautomatic-only weapon. The conversion was accomplished by redesigning a few internal parts. The full-auto markings were neatly milled out of the receiver and remarked. The Model 1927 was available with or without a Cutts compensator.

The 1928 Navy Model

The most prolific Colt-manufactured Thompson model was the 1928 Navy Model. Like the others, the Navy Mod-els were made from existing 1921 model Thompsons. It was conceived as a result of the Navy Department’s request to have the rate of automatic fire reduced from 800 rounds per minute to approximately 600 rounds per minute. This was accomplished by redesigning the actuator by adding a steel block. This made the assembly 4 ounces heavier and, along with a redesigned recoil spring and buffer pilot, slowed the rate of fire to an acceptable level. All 1928 Navy Models had the numeral 1 (in the 1921 designation) over-stamped with the numeral 8 to alter it to read 1928. Vertical or horizontal fore-grips were fitted. The words U.S. Navy were also stamped into the receiver on many of the converted guns. The U.S. Navy endorsement proved to be a very good marketing tool as the “1928 Navy” was the best-selling model.
•••
Special thanks to Jesse Smith, Curator of the Virginia War Memorial’s Historic Col-lection, and Dr. Lawrence Heiskell.
References
The Ultimate Thompson Book, Tracie
L. Hill, Collector Grade Publications, 2009.
American Thunder III, Frank Iannam-ico, Chipotle Publishing, LLC, 2005.