Our country’s leaders should have a firm understanding of the Constitution, but we know how that goes. Plenty of Presidents have cherished and protected the Second Amendment while others…not so much. Luckily, within the last 46 Presidents, we’ve had a fair number of gun owners — gun owners who were soldiers, lifelong hunters, or just appreciated a good firearm. Listing every President and their gun of choice would be extensive. So, let’s focus on more than just the guns of United States Presidents, but those guns that fall into the really cool category.
Abraham Lincoln and His Henry Carbine
Abraham Lincoln famously entertained both Spencer and Henry carbines and their creators at the White House. Both manufacturers aimed to curry favor with Lincoln and the Union Army. As part of that demonstration, Lincoln was gifted a Henry carbine, specifically a gold-mounted rifle with intricate scrollwork and marked serial number “6”.
The Henry rifle was the first practical lever action rifle. These metallic cartridge weapons held 15 rounds of .44 Henry rimfire and were known as ‘that damned Yankee rifle that can be loaded on Sunday and fired all week.” It got that name because the presentation to Lincoln must have left some kind of impression upon him. The Ordnance Department purchased 1,700 Henry rifles and issued them to cavalry units.
Abraham Lincoln’s Henry is in the National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian. It was honored with the NRA’s first National Treasure Gold Medal Award in 1998, making it the finest-made, historically significant firearm in the country.
President Grant’s Pair of Remington New Model Army Revolvers
President Grant, leader of the Union Army during the Civil War and career soldier, occupied the position as the 18th President of the United States. He oversaw reconstruction, for better or worse, and seemed to have had a term more akin to fighting a war than presiding over a country. Perhaps it’s appropriate he was gifted a pair of Remington New Model Army Revolvers.
The Remington New Army was the second most issued sidearm of the Union Army. Grant’s pair weren’t plain revolvers but featured intricate engravings with scroll patterns, bands, and floral motifs. These beautiful revolvers wore white grips with engravings of Grant as a Major General. The entire package was presented in a gorgeous box adorned with accessories. Their serial numbers were “1” and “2”.
Remington New Army revolvers came from the Model 1858 revolver and were percussion guns chambered in the big .44 caliber ball. Ultimately, many went on to be converted to .46 rimfire and .44 Colt at the advent of metallic cartridges. They were well known as sturdy and reliable revolvers.
Theodore Roosevelt’s Winchester 1895
Picking one gun from Teddy Roosevelt would be tough. The man was a soldier, hunter, statesman, and, of course, President of the United States. He was a larger-than-life man who loved to shoot and hunt and was quite good at both. He owned tons of firearms, but his favorite seemed to be his lever action Winchester 1895 chambered in .405.
He named the gun “Big Medicine” and it certainly fits the big stick he often spoke about. The Winchester 1895 series used an integral box magazine instead of the traditional tubular design. This allowed the Winchester 1895 to fire spitzer-style rounds, which were often much more powerful than the traditional lever gun cartridge. The .405 Winchester was one such round.
Theodore Roosevelt hunted around the world with this gun, taking it as far as East Africa. This rifle wore a Maxim suppressor, which was likely custom-made for the .405 cartridge. This certainly helped cut the noise and likely some of the recoil when he dispatched Big Medicine.
John F. Kennedy’s M1 Garand
President Kennedy is often viewed as a President with a tragic ending. Unfortunately, his military service is rarely a point of focus. President Kennedy was itching to get into combat in World War 2 and went as far as employing his father to falsify his medical records to get him into a PT Boat in the Pacific. Once there, he earned a Navy and Marine Corps achievement medal as well as a Purple Heart.
It’s not a big surprise that he later ordered an M1 Garand from the CMP (or, more appropriately, its precursor). He ordered the rifle as a Senator and paid $169. He didn’t even get a cool guy discount! The gun was delivered to his senate office, which I imagine wouldn’t work well today.
The M1 Garand famously served the United States throughout World War 2 and Korea. It was the first massively successful semi-auto rifle to serve a modern military force. General Patton called it the “greatest battle implement ever devised.” President Kennedy likely used the rifle in training and had a few on the PT boat. In retrospect, President Kennedy’s M1 is no different than a veteran purchasing an AR-15 these days.
Richard Nixon’s Colt 1911
You can argue this one doesn’t count, but it’s such a great story. Ole Tricky Dick left office in disgrace but actually accomplished a lot as President. President Nixon didn’t purchase this gun nor did he seem to have any special affection for the M1911. He was a Commander in World War 2 and likely handled one every now and then as a sailor.
How did he come into possession of this M1911? Well, Elvis showed up to the White House one day carrying a presentation box and inside sat an M1911. Elvis intended to gift a World War Commemorative Colt M1911 to the President. Naturally, this raised a bit of a stink with the Secret Service. A rock star with a gun in the White House might be an issue and the Secret Service accepted the gun on Nixon’s behalf.
This Commemorative Colt wore a nickel finish with wood grips and was packaged with seven .45ACP rounds that were also nickel-plated. Elvis once obtained an Agent-at-large badge from the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs. Apparently, he thought the badge meant he could carry drugs and guns anywhere. However, if he made it to the White House with a pistol, I guess he might not have needed a badge for that.
Grover Cleveland’s Colt 1883 8-Gauge Shotgun
I’m a shotgun nut and, while I don’t know much about Grover Cleveland, I know a bit about shotguns. Grover Cleveland was the only President to leave office and be elected for a second Presidency, so that’s neat. He is also the only person ever to own a Colt 1883 8-gauge double-barrel shotgun, making this selection especially unique amongst the guns of United States Presidents.
Colt only produced one 8-gauge shotgun in this particular model — and it was for President Cleveland. The 8-gauge cartridge was a bird hunter’s gun used for throwing tons of shot into the sky to take down waterfowl en masse. Cleveland loved hunting and hunted often before, during, after, and then once again as President.
As you’d imagine, this Colt 1883 was adorned with beautiful scrollwork and engravings. It had the highest grade wood stock and forend. It was a box lock shotgun with internal hammers. The gun is absolutely beautiful. 8-gauge has fallen out of favor today but still sees use in Africa and as industrial shotguns for blasting kilns.
George W. Bush’s Glock 18C
Listen, if I’m ever President, you’ll be able to do an entire article on the guns I own because there will be some crazy stuff. After all, George W. Bush didn’t go through the NFA rigmarole to obtain a Glock 18. He was gifted the gun by the Delta Force soldiers who captured Saddam Hussein hiding in his hole. That’s right, the Glock 18C originally belonged to Saddam.
If you think I’d have crazy guns as a president, make me a dictator and things will get wild! Interestingly enough, the gun was unloaded at the time of Saddam’s capture. The Glock 18C is a wild gun, because it’s a machine pistol capable of select-fire. Flip the selector on the slide and it goes from “bang” to “bang, bang, bang” real quick.
The Glock 18C is not necessarily a practical choice, but it stands out a fair bit in the guns of United States Presidents. The gun currently sits in the George W. Bush Presidential Library, so you can see it if you so choose.
The Guns of United States Presidents
46 Presidents have covered 246 years of Freedom. Along the way, they’ve owned some pretty sweet guns. Many are currently in museums and, if you get a chance, they are worth a look. While most Presidents have been gun owners, only a few have owned something truly unique and interesting.
