Police Unit Mark Research Results
 

Some of you are aware that I have been developing a database of German police unit marks from the period 1900 to 1936. That database has reached over 1,200 marks and I have been using it to research this fascinating and confusing topic.

To date, I have published articles on seven research topics in AutoMag and have posted them for downloading at http://members.aol.com/donmaus1/Weim...e_Unit_Marks/. Because of file size limitations on this site, I have had to delete the earlier postings. If anyone wishes a copy of one of the deleted articles, email me and I will send you a copy by return email. Note, however, that the older articles are becoming somewhat outdated as I accumulate more data and learn more about this subject.

While you may have these articles from issues of AutoMag, the downloaded copies are better, particularly the quality of the photos. The download copies also retain the font size adjustments that were lost in the process of reproducing them in AutoMag. The files are numbered in the order the articles were written:

1. Weimar Prussian Police School Marks - from February 2005 AutoMag (DELETED)
2. H.P. = Hessische Polizei?? - From March 2005 AutoMag (DELETED)
3. Landj�¤gerei Unit Marks - From July 2005 AutoMag (DELETED)
4. Berlin Schutzpolizei Unit Marks - From August & September 2005 Auto Mags (DELETED)
5. Prussian Police Unit Marks 1900-1936 - From January & February 2006 Auto Mags (DELETED)
6. Prussian Schupo Unit Marks - Parts I to VII - Series beginning in May 2006 Auto Mag (DELETED)
7. Saxon Police Unit Marks - Revised - To be published in future issues of AutoMag

These files are in .pdf format, so you will need the Adobe Reader proram to open them. You may download a free copy of this program from Adobeâ??s web site at http://www.adobe.com/


IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS FOR DOWNLOADING FILES: (You will get garbage if you don't pay attention!)

* RIGHT click on the desired file.

* Click Save Target As

* In the Save As window, select the location on your hard drive where you want it saved

* The Save as type: at the bottom should indicate â??Adobe Acrobat Documentâ?�

* Click the Save button

* Browse to the file on your hard drive and double click it. It should open in Acrobat Reader

* Enjoy!

I will very much appreciate your comments and criticisms. You may post them to this thread or email me at donmaus1@aol.com. Also, please send me any data you may have on German police unit marks.

Don, this is going very well, please take my congradulations so far on your work!

:)

Thanks,Ed. I've got a great map site for you: http://www.ieg-maps.uni-mainz.de/maps3.htm

Looks like this thread hasn't been replied to for a while,
but I thought you might be interested in this front strap marking on my pistol. If you want to see more pics of the pistol look for my thread under new owners, comments and curiosity.


http://forum.lugerforum.com/lfupload/dwm15frtstrap.jpg

Sandman1915

I wish I was more proficient at posting pictures, I would share in detail some of what I got, then again our camera just does not give close up and clear resolution.....I am at the mercy of Mrs. PL for all of it, and she is not tickeled about the collection as I thought she would be, and even though I got her a new Buick a few days ago, now she wants Ed's 'stang....oh well.

Don,

See my latest posting under "please identify the unit".
Hugh

Note that I have added my Landj�¤gerei Unit Marks article to my FTP site for download. Download instructions are in the post at the top of this thread.

Don,

I noticed that you said that you had not received any examples of Trier marked pistols. Are you only interested in 29 DWM's? From the tables it looks like all of your examples for Landj�¤gerei marked examples are 29 DWM's. If that is not what you are specifically looking for, I have a 1918 DWM that belonged to the Trier District.

Steve,

Thanks very much for your reply.

On p. 4 of the article I note that there are three Landj�¤gerei Lugers that are not 1929 DWMs. I am very interested in any others, especially if it belonged to the Trier District. Please post details on this pistol and, if possible, a photo of the grip strap mark. It is probably very rare.

UPDATE ON LANDJÃ??GEREI UNIT MARKS
 

I want to thank all forum members who have sent me additional data on these marks. As of today, I have added 22 marks to my table. Most of these fall within the expected ranges of weapon numbers but four change some of the conclusions:
* L.P.30. on a 1929 P.08 - This provides a number in the apparent "gap" of numbers from 1 to 200 from Potsdam. I now think these gaps are statistical artifacts.
* L.A.402 on a police bayonet - This extends the range of recorded numbers from Aurich by another 100, bringing their apparent arsenal to four times their manning level!
* L.T.129. on a 1918-dated DWM P.08 - Trier lives!!! This is the first such mark I have seen.
* L.Kg.315. on a late 1930-manuf. Sauer Beh�¶rden with Sunburst K police acceptance.

Don,
I try to open the file as you listed and I get eror mgs. what version of Adobe did you use to create them ?

thanks
Jim

I have recently posted my article â??Berlin Schutzpolizei Unit Marks,â?� published in the August and September 2005 issues of Auto Mag on my FTP site for downloading. Please see the lead post in this thread for instructions for accessing this site and downloading files. Please follow the downloading instructions or you will get garbage!

Enjoy, and please send me any information on police markings you may have. My database has now exceeded 900 records but Iâ??m greedy.

Another article
 

I have recently posted my article â??Prussian Police Unit Marks 1900-1936,â?� published in the January and February 2006 issues of Auto Mag on my FTP site for downloading. Please see the lead post above for instructions for accessing this site and downloading files. Follow the downloading instructions or you will get garbage!

There is a correction to this article that should be noted:

There are reporting errors for the two pistols listed in section S of the second table and tentatively identified as being from the Police Directorate of Dortmund. The marking on the M1900 Browning is on the left side of the frame and is actually K.P.D.DR No 39, where the R is slightly smaller than the D and is not followed by a period. The mark on the Dreyse is P.D.Dr. No 72 as reported except it is stamped on the front grip strap. (Thanks to NAPCA member Dick Roback who owns this pistol.) The location of the mark on the Dreyse is inconsistent with Prussian markings and the abbreviation DR is unlike other Prussian city abbreviations. Some have suggested Dresden. At this point, the best I can suggest is to ignore these marks and the discussion of them.

I hope you enjoy it!

Don, thanks for posting these, it is a mark of a true historian wiling to share like this!

:cheers:

Ed

I was alerted to a problem with the original upload of this article. It has been corrected and should download OK if the instructions are followed.

I have recently posted Parts I and II of my series of articles â??Prussian Schupo Unit Marks,â?� published in the May and June 2006 issues of Auto Mag on my FTP site for downloading. In order to make room for this file, I have had to delete earlier articles on Police Schools and the H.P. mark. Please see the lead post above for instructions for accessing this site and downloading files. Follow the downloading instructions or you will get garbage!

I have recently posted Parts III and IV of my series of articles on Prussian Schupo Unit Marks on my FTP site for downloading. To make room for this file, I had to delete two more of my earlier articles.

In the future, I will be posting articles for download once I am satisfied with them and will not wait until after they appear in print in AutoMag. I understand the articles will ultimately appear in AutoMag.

I do not have any idea how many people are making use of these articles. If you download one, please send me an email at donmaus1@aol.com letting me know. If you have any comments, pro or con, I would love to hear them. I will use this information in deciding whether or not to attempt to write a book on these markings. Thanks very much.

I have now posted Parts V, VI and VII of my series or articles on Prussian Schupo Unit Marks on my FTP site for downloading. I had to delete two more files to make room.

This concludes my research on this topic. Part VII is a summary of the results.

Don
Have been reading your papers. I am in awe of the effort you have made. This is true professional research. Thank you for sharing with all of us. The best to you. Bill

Don,
Old age prevents me from remembering if I sent these to you before so.
Sneak 3519u grip strap marked L.Ar 136. Stock lug partially ground off
Police holster marked S. Ar. II. 1441 Bill

Bill,

Thanks very much for the kind words and for the data. I don't have access to my database right now so can't tell if I already have these.

Saxon Police Unit Marks
 

I have posted an article on my research into the meanings of Saxon police unit marks that may be downloaded according to the instructions at the head of this thread. I believe I have made significant gains in understanding these markings but significant uncertainties still exist, particularly about markings from the Bautzen administrative district. I will welcome any comments on this work.

I have no idea how many people, if any, are downloading these articles. If you have downloaded one or more of these articles, please send me an email or Private Message (no sense cluttering up this thread). I enjoy doing this but if no one is benefitting, I'm wasting my time.

Don, my database shows I have 1-7, and now 9... Did I screw up and call 8 something else?

Ed

Possible error

I have very, very recently come to believe that the markings SP.Bn. and S.P.Bn. that I identified in my most recent article as being from the district of Bautzen in Saxony may not be Saxon markings at all but may be from the Free and Hanseatic City of Bremen. This latter identification is very preliminary and I will be researching it further. However, I wanted to alert you to my wavering opinion before anyone took my earlier identification to the bank!

When I began publishing articles on my research, I vowed not to get into endless cycles of updating them each time I obtained new data or improved my understanding. I plan to update the information from all of the articles when I begin writing a book. However, I have broken that vow for my most recent article on Saxon police unit markings. I have become convinced that the markings S.P.Bn. and SP.Bn. are not Saxon and have revised the article accordingly. I have substituted the revised article on my FTP site for downloading. If you downloaded the original article, please download and substitute the revised version.

Change in article distribution

I have decided to distribute future articles on police unit markings via email. I recently sent an email to this effect to all whom I believe may be interested in receiving these articles. The distribution list includes those who have assisted me with data, photos, etc. I'm sure, however, that I have missed some of you who have helped and I apologize. If you did not receive the initial email and wish to be added to the list, please send me an email at the address below and include your first and last names. I will add you to the distribution.

I hope this will prove to be a more effective means of distribution.