The Galleries
- Robert E. Petersen Collection
- Ancient Firearms - 1350 to 1700
- Road to American Liberty - 1700 to 1780
- A Prospering New Republic - 1780 to 1860
- A Nation Asunder - 1861 to 1865
- The American West - 1850 to 1900
- Innovation, Oddities and Competition
- Theodore Roosevelt and Elegant Arms - 1880s to 1920s
- World War I and Firearms Innovation
- WWII, Korea, Vietnam and Beyond - 1940 to Present
- For the Fun of It
- Modern Firearms - 1950 to Present
- Hollywood Guns
General Merriam's Mauser (Oberndorf, Germany) M1934 General Officer's Pistol
Chrome plated example with original US General Officers pattern holster. This example was presented to General Merriam by the superintendent of the Mauser factory.
In April of 1945, then Lieutenant Colonel Merriam commanded the 82nd Reconnaissance Battalion, scouting ahead of the 2nd Armored Division. When his lead tank entered the city of Detmold, site of one of Germany's largest armament works, it was met by a civilian representative of the factory who announced that the factory superintendant wished to surrender.
Although were still falling all around, when Merriam drove in to the factory grounds, the superintendant, factory manager and the workers were lined up waiting for him. The superintendant made a speech of surrender and then presented Merriam with the Mauser pistol in this display. This story was related in "The Last Battle" by Cornelius Ryan.