Mike Petrov’s book covers the first forty years of the 20th century, ending at the onset of World War II. He offers a compelling rationale for stopping there. The period covered, however, illuminates a landscape of knowledge sparsely explored in previous books. The American custom gunmakers primarily adorned the 1903 Springfield military bolt action with the wood and metal enhancements they commanded in their skill sets.
In the twenty chapters, German-trained Gunmakers, such as Ludwig Wundhammer and Fred Adolph, appear prominently in this seminal history. A number of others originate in the German American immigrant community. A tantalizing fact regarding Paul Jaeger, Dietrich Apel’s uncle, appears on p. 79. Paul Jaeger worked with the R.F. Sedgley Company until it ceased operations. Then he went on to found his own company in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania. We hope our editor, Dietrich Apel, will find the time in his overwhelming schedule to share the Jaeger family history with the GGCA community! I am confident author Petrov would welcome such information.
The book includes two chapters on the “German Connection.” These chapters add critical information desired by GGCA concerning German sporting arms imported to the U.S. Especially useful is a list of German arms makers and their American agents and retailers. The Franz Jaeger Company of Suhl is one among twelve German makers on the list.
