Before Concealed Carry
 

I found a thread that I really enjoyed about handgun choices in the 1980's (http://www.glocktalk.com/forums/show....php?t=1235405) and it made me wonder: did many handgun owners carry them in public before states began to issue concealed carry permits? Many of us have had permits since we were 21. But those of you who were old enough to buy handguns before concealed carry was allowed, did you ever carry them? If so, when and where? And what would the legal ramifications have been where you lived? Please give those of us who weren't involved some detail of what the issue was like back then.

I don't know what the penalty was for concealed carry before licenses were available in Florida, but it was against the law and I respected the law. My handguns were kept at home in those days, and IIRC had to be unloaded for transport to the range. (Actually, I don't remember using designated ranges back then, either - we would go out into sand pits, where we had deep sand backdrops (prehistoric dunes) 20, 30 feet and more in height, and set up targets and shot to our hearts' content.)

I'm an old fart and have been a gun nut since I was a kid. In the old days I always had a pistol in my car or truck, but didn't carry concealed day to day. I always had a gun when camping, fishing, horseback, etc. Still do.
I think that the world is a more dangerous place now than it was 30 or 40 years ago. Especially the urban areas. That's why there's more concealed carry these days.

I bought my first pistol, a Colt 45 Combat Commander, when I was 22 in 1976. I don't recall there being a law against carrying at the time, and this was California. It was pretty much unheard of. I would keep the pistol in my car but I didn't have a holster for it so I never carried it on me. Didn't even think about it at the time.

concealed carry of weapons goes back many centuries. its in the bible, older documents, ect.
i have CC a weapon since i was pretty young. The laws have recently started to catch up.

Glock Talk frowns upon the discussion of performing illegal activities, past, present or future.

Crime statistics don't bear that out. Besides, aren't the CCW laws states have passed made us safer? That's what the NRA says.

I live (and have always lived) in GA, I bought my first centerfire pistol in April of 1984 at the age of 25. A few months later I applied for a carry permit and maintained it for the next 15 years. I let the permit lapse 'cause I had no handguns at the time. Got my current CCW 4 1/2 years ago when I got back into handguns. So, I do not remember a time when there was no permit/CCW to be had.

I have been a Police Officer since I was 19, I am 46 now, so legal concealed carry has been an option for me literally my entire adult life. But with all the talk of pocket guns these days, it also reminds me that I have remained true to my thoughts on preparedness. Some of my more common off-duty guns have been....Colt 1911's from OACP's to Gov't Models, full size Glocks, S&W 4516's, HKP7M8's, Browning Hi-Power's, etc.

I remember even 40 years ago my dad had a permit to carry. Back then holsters were limited at best. He carried an old British bulldog 32 in his back pocket with a little notepad in front of it because thats all he had at the time. He worked a second job at night and after saving some money graduated to a Walther ppk and carried that the same way in his back pocket for many years. He travelled at night and it saved his behind many times.

When I was growing up in SoCal carrying a concealed pistol was a misdemeanor for the first offense.

You would be in less trouble if caught carrying a pistol than a knife that met the description of a dirk/dagger which was a felony.

Now I would never break the law :whistling: but if I had ever felt it necessary to carry a weapon I would have carried the nice blue steel S&W Jframe that I inherited from my mother.

I believe the laws have changed since then.

Regards,
Happyguy :)

That is true, but the media makes it seem as though the viciousness of the attacks is often greater than the past.

Add to that the way the economy is going and that the handouts may soon stop and I wouldn't be surprised to see a sharp uptick in violent crime statistics in the near future. Best to be prepared, regardless.

Regard,
Happyguy :)

By and large, the two main groups of folks that carried weapons on their person back in the day were cops and criminals. Law enforcement didn't blink an eye at a driver with a rifle in the back window of their truck or a pistol in their glovebox. On their person was a different story. You have to realize, there wasn't any phallic "look at me" affect to having a handgun back then. Not that I saw, anyway. 1 out of every five trucks dropping kids off or picking kids up at school had a hunting rifle or shotgun in a back-window rack. Before permits became prevalent, the availability of quality holsters was very slim. Part of my pickiness regarding proper belt mounted holsters stems from 25+ years ago, and at times having to make do with one clip holsters, uncle mikes, etc., because nothing else was readily available. It baffles me that, with the veritable plethora of good holsters available these days, novices still become fascinated with clips and trigger shoes.

My two brothers and I would often ride our bicycles out to a local shooting spot just outside Tucson's eastern city limit to go shooting. We each had a .22 rifle and I would also have a .32 Beretta. Got stopped by deputy sheriff once, who wanted to know where we were headed. He came by the wash later to give us some pointers. I was 16, and my brothers were 14 and 12. :supergrin:

Until concealed carry was legal we just open carried. No problems, no panic in the streets, no harrassment from the police.

There are times when laws don't matter and need to take a back seat to one's safety. A perfect example is a societal breakdown. In the late 60's, I did conceal a handgun for a few days when there were racial riots taking place (after King's murder). I did not wish to have happen to me what was happening to some other people.

Other than that, one is best advised to adhere to the law as you stated.

Quoted for truth and wisdom.

Washington state has had legal open carry forever, and shall issue since around 1960 or 1961, and my dad said obtaining the concealed weapons permit, now called concealed pistol license, was the same process it is today, except no fingerprinting back then. Just fill out the form, and get the permit in a few days. Holster options were very limited, and there was only one gun store around, which is still open by the way, and you were limited to one size fits most holsters. And don't even think about gun belts that weren't duty belts.

So carrying a gun used to be a much bigger inconvenience/hassle than it is now. Most people with permits 30 40 50 years ago, including my dad, just kept their guns in the glove box, and put them on before going out into the woods.

I think you're missing the point here. You can do as you like within or beyond the laws as you see fit. Just don't talk about it on Glock Talk. Might be worth your time to give the TOS another read.

I know what you're saying and I am not missing the point. I understand and respect the rules and policies of this site. I also understand and respect honesty and truth. I was simply pointing out an exception, but please believe me when I say that one is nearly always better served to abide by the laws of their locale.

Looks like trolling to me. Poster only has 4 posts and this is what comes up? Maybe I'm a bit paranoid, but that looks like anti-gun probing...

CCW was passed here while I was in high school. I have heard some of the older gun guys and police officers say that back before CCW was legal it wasn't uncommon to find otherwise law abiding citizens with a gun in a pocket or a purse. If the person was of good reputation and not breaking any laws other than maybe a traffic offense, the concealed weapon was often ignored by the officer. I also know a lot of older guys that always kept a firearm in the vehicle but didn't carry on their person.

I have had a legal "pistol permit" as issued by the local sheriff for 40 years. I always carried concealed, and was always legal.

As a young boy, I open carried my .22 rifle on many occasions on the way to the woods.

Florida before shall issue
 

Keeping a handgun in a car has always been legal in Florida as long as it was securely encased. Before Gov. Martinez signed Shall Issue, each county had their own permit system. Palm Beach, Broward and Dade county had very strict permit requirements. Most everyone kept a gun in their car. I always had my BHP in an Uncle Mike's holster in the glovebox.

I so not routinely cc. In 1979 I was a seminary student working nights as a guard in a shipyard. That first summer I got shot at. I found and bought a Colt Combat Commander .45 ACP which I stuck in my pocket and carried. It never occurred to me that I needed anyone's permission to have a gun. Three years later, I graduated and left New Orleans. Lately have been giving thought to qualifying for cc. Not yet made up my mind.

Getting shot at changes one's whole perspective on what is and is not allowed by our servants. Glad you made it through.

That's all well and good as a theory but GT's terms of service still dictate it's not to be tolerated as a topic of discussion here.