Colts and Winchesters
As mentioned in an earlier section, a favourite uncle of mine taught me at an early age to shoot with, and appreciate, early firearms such as Winchester Rifles and Colt Revolvers. This sparked an interest that remains to this day.
The interest in Winchester Rifles in particular is twofold : First, my (late) Mother's maiden name was Winchester. Secondly, I had both the fortune and misfortune to be in San Fransisco during the October 1989 Earthquake, which took many lives and destroyed hundreds of homes and buildings, one of which I unfortunately happened to occupy during a Conference !
The day before the Earthquake, a colleague and I visited the home of Oliver Winchester, founder of the Winchester Repeating Arms Company, in San Jose. Arriving at the top level of the massive home, we were surprised to see the walls devoid of lining, and the rooms in disrepair.
My colleague and I were informed that this damage was due to an earlier Earthquake, not knowing that on the very next day, we ourselves would experience a much more violent Earthquake of 9.2 magnitude !!!
Most of the Colts shown below are variations of my favourite, the Navy Colt !
