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| U.S. Military Model 1917 Rifle Cal. .30-'06, (M1906 ball: 150 grain bullet with 2700 fps muzzle velocity. Bolt action, 6-round internal box magazine, 5 rd. stripper clip loading 9 lbs, 46.3 in., 26 in. barrel, 10.3 lbs with attached bayonet (1.1 lbs) and oil & thong case (.2 Lbs) Sights: Rear folding leaf battle sight aperture on folded leaf set for 450 yds aperture on raised leaf graduated from 200-900 yds. in 100 yd. increments and 900-1600 yds. in 50 yd. increments, no windage adjustment. Front blade with protective ears. Barrel - five groove rifling , left hand twist, 1 in 10 rate of twist Manufactured by Eddystone, Winchester and Remington-UMC from 1917-1919 |
U.S. Rifle, Caliber .30, Model of 1917
In 1915, a massive rifle plant was built in Eddystone on land owned by Baldwin Locomotive. Baldwin constructed the plant on provision its buildings would be absorbed by Baldwin after the war to expand an existing, adjacent locomotive factory. Production of the Pattern 14 rifle began in 1916.
With U.S. entry into the war on April 8, 1917, the Pattern 14 rifle was altered to chamber the U.S. .30-'06. cartridge. With three existing factories, the adopted conversion made possible rapid wartime production to arm U.S. soldiers in World War I. Designated the Model of 1917, this rifle saw wider use than the standard Model 1903 Springfield. (The latter rifle continued in production at the government arsenals at Springfield MA and Rock Island IL. )
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| Rifle with accessories including bayonet and ammo |
By end of the war on Nov 11, 1918, 74% of combat soldiers in the Army Expeditionary Force were armed with a Model 1917 rifle. Fifty-three percent of these M1917 rifles were made at Eddystone.
From August 1917- Nov 9, 1918 the Eddystone plant manufactured 1,181,908 rifles. This constitutes 38% of all rifles used by American combat troops. (Total being the M1903 rifles on hand at the beginning of the war added to the total combined wartime production of M1903 and M1917 rifles) .
More American soldiers in World War I were armed with an Eddystone-made rifle than any other weapon.
Notes: The M1917 "Enfield" was a development of the British Enfield Pattern 13 trial rifle chambered in an experimental .276 caliber rimless cartridge. With the outbreak of World War I in 1914, , the Pattern 13 was modified to use the standard rimmed .303 cal. cartridge and adopted as the Pattern 14. The P.14 was produced solely in the U.S. under contract to Britain.
The contracted manufacturers were Remington-United Metallic Cartridge Co. , Utica NY, Winchester Repeating Arms Co., New Haven CT and Remington Arms Co. of Delaware, Eddystone PA. Remington Arms of Delaware was a Remington subsidiary specifically created to produce the rifle in Eddystone. In 1918, this Remington subsidiary was absorbed by Midvale Steel & Ordnance Co. of Nicetown, Philadelphia PA.
Rifle Stock Manufacture in Eddystone: Now and Then
by Kurt Sellers- Major, U.S. Army (Retired)
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| Sole surviving building of Eddystone Rifle Plant |
Constructed by Baldwin Locomotive in 1915 and
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| Eddystone Rifle Plant Wood Working Facilities Extract from 1917 fire insurance Map 83 of the Eddystone Munitions Plants. Edited for clarity. |
The surviving building is about 730 feet long and 86 feet wide. It retains its original steel frame and roof trusses. Much of original roofing, brick interior walls and hollow terra cotta tile outer walls also remain.
Nearby are remnants of the 1.4 miles of rail track that once transported materials within the rifle factory grounds. These lie parallel to Simpson Ave.
Click here for more information on the plant and the rifle