McCormick's Rifle Collection

Holland and Holland Shotgun
12 gauge
England 1898

Holland and Holland made shotguns primarily for English royalty and upper classes. Col. McCormick purchased this shotgun in the 1890s. Although not an avid hunter, he shot a Polar Bear in 1901 on Akpotak Island, located off the coast of northern Quebec, Canada.

W. W. Greener Shotgun
12 gauge
England 1878-1880

W. W. Greener was a British maker of high-end shotguns during the middle 1800s to early 1900s. This double-barreled shotgun has an exclusive feature called Treble Wedge system that increased safety, accuracy, and durability.

Cantigny Farm manager Eddie Edwards kept this shotgun in his Cantigny home in the early 1950s.

Westley Richards Shotgun
12 gauge
England 1911

Westley Richards had tremendous success making specialized weapons for wealthy clients, but they also mass-produced weapons for the English military.

Soon after Col. McCormick purchased this triple-barrel shotgun in 1911, he sent it back for repair. McCormick stated the gun frequently jammed. Westley Richards technicians, however, found nothing wrong with the weapon and returned it.

Winchester Model 1886 Rifle
.45 caliber
USA 1886

The Winchester Model 1886 is a lever action weapon. It operates through a lever mechanism that helps load, fire and eject cartridges. Its design and reliability inspired other Winchester models like the Model 1895, also seen here in Freedom Hall.

The Model 1886’s reputation as a frontier weapon combined with Col. McCormick’s enjoyment of outdoor adventure, explains why this weapon was brought here.

Winchester Model 1895 Rifle
.30 caliber
USA 1897

President Theodore Roosevelt often used a Winchester Model 1895 rifle on his many hunting expeditions. His use of the rifle, as reported in newspapers and magazines across the U.S., made the Model 1895 a popular weapon among hunters and collectors like Col. McCormick.

Savage Model 99 Rifle
.303 caliber
USA 1914

Like the Winchester Model 1886 in this case, the Savage Model 99 functioned as a lever action rifle but also had several unique features like a rotary magazine and a cartridge counter.

In a February 1950 letter to the Savage Arms Company, Col. McCormick requests a new Savage Model 99 to replace the one he lost ‘forty or more years ago.’ He states the rifle ‘fired a very effective cartridge to shoot birds in trees.’

Springfield Armory Model 1870 Rifle
.50 caliber
USA 1870-1871

With a Model 1870 rifle, bullets could be loaded automatically and not shoved down the barrel with a rod like a muzzle-loading rifle commonly used until that time. This innovative feature allowed quicker firing and increased accuracy. Because of limited production, Springfield Armory Model 1870 is a valuable collector firearm.

Springfield Armory Model 1873 Rifle
.45 caliber
USA 1888

Because of its heavy use in America’s Wild West-era, the Model 1873 grew into a pop culture item in Western-themed movies and television. Most U.S. military units after the Civil War used the Springfield Model 1873 until replaced by the Springfield Armory and Rock Island Arsenal Model 1903.

Remington Model 81 Rifle
.35 caliber
USA 1936-1955

Also known as the Woodmaster, the Remington Model 81 was the first mass-produced semi-automatic rifle in the U.S. The Woodmaster evolved into several versions, with each modification improving its durability and accuracy. Eventually, the Winchester Garand M1 replaced the Model 81 when the U.S. entered World War II.

Winchester (Garand) M1 Rifle
.30 caliber
USA 1940

Every branch of the American military used the Winchester Garand M1 rifle in World War II. Factories produced over four million Garands during that time. The U.S. Army’s 1st Division carried these rifles throughout the war. American soldiers and sailors used the Garand M1 until the 1970s.

Mannlicher-Schoenauer Rifle
8.47mm caliber
Germany 1945-1955

Countries like Greece and Austria-Hungary issued Mannlicher-Schoenauer rifles to their soldiers in World War II. In America and most of western Europe, they were upscale hunting rifles. This rifle has a shorter barrel than the standard model and thus called a ‘carbine.’ Carbines offered hunters better maneuverability while on the hunt.

Arisaka Rifle
65mm caliber
Japan 1933-1940

Arisaka rifles were bolt action weapons commonly used by the Empire of Japan in World War II. Like many other weapons in Freedom Hall, a Tribune reporter arranged the purchase of this rifle and then brought it to Cantigny.

Mosin Nagant Model 1891 Rifle
7.62mm caliber
USSR 1945

Russian soldiers fighting in World War I used the Mosin Nagant Model 91 as their primary weapon. By the early 1930s and into World War II, the Model 91 evolved into an effective sniper rifle.

Markings on the rifle’s receiver indicate it was made in the Izhevsk Mechanical Plant in 1945. This factory is in the western Russian city of Izhevsk. Founded in 1942, the facility continues to make military and civilian weaponry.

Mauser Model 98 Rifle
8mm caliber
Germany 1900

The Mauser 98, often referred to as the Mauser Gewehr 98, was a German bolt-action rifle developed in 1898 as the standard service rifle for the German infantry until the end of World War I. The Model 98 is a magazine-fed, controlled-feed bolt action rifle. A 1951 inventory mentions this weapon displayed in this room.

Rock Island Arsenal Model 1903 Rifle
.30 caliber
USA 1913

Springfield Armory Model 1903 Rifle
.30 caliber
USA 1904

When Col. McCormick fought with the U.S Army’s 1st Division at the Battle of Cantigny in World War I, he probably had an M1903 rifle by his side. The M1903 was the standard issue rifle for all U.S. Armed Forces in World I. Replaced by the Winchester M1 Garand rifle by World War II, it remained as an effective sniper rifle into the Vietnam War in the 1970s.