Original Item: One-Of-A-Kind. This is one of those once in a lifetime finds, a set of coveralls that once belonged to Jean Cantius Garand. Also known as John C. Garand, a Québec-born designer of firearms who created the legendary M1 Garand, a semi-automatic rifle that was widely used by the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps during both World War II and the Korean War.

We received the coveralls (smock, shop coat) indirectly from his daughter's, Janice Kay Garand Premont, estate sale. She passed away in 2020 in Galveston, Texas and her obituary can be found at this link. The set of coveralls show extensive wear, use and does have some tearing present but that adds honest beauty to the item, all evidence of him actually wearing these while working. The material is a soft canvas with the appearance of faded denim and does not have any manufacturing labels present.

Constructed from 1930s period grey denim, the front left of the coveralls has a lovely red embroidered “Bursting Bomb” insignia just below the name J.C. Garand. The back side of the coveralls spanning from shoulder to shoulder is SPRINGFIELD ARMORY embroidered in red with a yellow border. All of the embroidery work is complete and still easily discernible. Garand's name also appears to be written ink on the interior neck.

All buttons are Vintage United Carr Snaps and are correctly back marked and date from the 1930s. They are all present and functional and can be used as intended, but as with any clothing of this age, it’s best not to work the hardware too much. Most of the wear present is in the shoulder areas,an some the tearing is present in these locations. There are oil and grease stains scattered throughout which adds to how beautiful the work smock is and what it was used for.

A true piece of American History!

Approximate Measurements:
Collar to shoulder: 10"
Shoulder to sleeve: 23”
Shoulder to shoulder: 18.5”
Chest width: 20.5"
Waist width: 21"
Hip width: 27”
Front length: 47"

Garand was one of twelve children (six boys and six girls) born on a farm near St. Rémi, Quebec. His father moved to Jewett City, Connecticut, with the children when their mother died in 1899. All of the boys had the first name St. Jean le Baptiste, but only he went by the first name Jean. The other boys went by their middle names. Several of his brothers were also inventors. The children were employed in a textile mill where Jean learned to speak English while sweeping floors. Jean became interested in guns and learned to shoot after working at a shooting gallery. Jean learned machinist skills while working at the textile mill, and was hired by Browne and Sharpe, a Providence, Rhode Island, toolmaking company in 1909. Later, he found employment with a New York toolmaking firm in 1916, and resumed rifle practice at the shooting galleries along Broadway. Garand became a naturalized United States citizen in 1920.

Pronunciation of the name "Garand" is often disputed, being pronounced variably as /ɡəˈrænd/ or /ˈɡærənd/. Descendants of John Garand and his close friend General Julian Hatcher generally agree that it is the latter, rhyming approximately with 'errand'.

Garand's fondness for machinery and target shooting blended naturally into a hobby of designing guns, which took a more vocational turn in 1917. That year the United States Army took bids on designs for a light machine gun, and Garand's design was eventually selected by the War Department. Garand was appointed to a position with the United States Bureau of Standards in Washington D.C. with the task of perfecting the weapon. The first model was not built until 1919, too late for use in World War I, but the government kept employing Garand as an engineer with the Springfield Armory starting from November 4, 1919 until he retired in 1953.

In Springfield, Massachusetts, Garand was tasked with designing a basic gas-actuated self-loading infantry rifle and carbine that would eject the spent cartridge and reload a new round based on a gas-operated system. Designing a rifle that was practical in terms of effectiveness, reliability, and production, stretched over time; it took fifteen years to perfect the M1 prototype model to meet all the U.S. Army specifications. The resulting Semiautomatic, Caliber .30, M1 Rifle was patented by Garand in 1932, approved by the U.S. Army on January 9, 1936, and went into mass production in 1940. It replaced the bolt-action M1903 Springfield and became the standard infantry rifle known as the Garand Rifle. During World War II, over four million M1 rifles were manufactured. The Garand Rifle proved to be an effective and reliable weapon and was praised by General MacArthur. General Patton wrote, "In my opinion, the M1 rifle is the greatest battle implement ever devised."

In the late 1940s and early 1950s, Garand had designed and built a prototype bullpup rifle. It fired the same cartridge as the M1, but the magazine, action and shape were completely different. It was a select-fire design, and had a firing rate of about 600rpm. When Garand retired in 1953, the second version of the T31 was incomplete, and remained so. The project was scrapped, and the gun was retired to the Springfield Armory museum in 1961.

Garand never received any royalties from his M1 rifle design despite over six and a half million M1 rifles being manufactured as he transferred all rights regarding his inventions to the U.S. on January 20, 1936. A bill was introduced in Congress to award him $100,000 in appreciation, but it did not pass. Garand remained in his consulting position with the Springfield Armory until his retirement in 1953.

M1 Garand
The M1 Garand or M1 rifle is a semi-automatic rifle that was the service rifle of the U.S. Army during World War II and the Korean War.

The rifle is chambered for the .30-06 Springfield cartridge and is named after its Canadian-American designer, John Garand. It was the first standard-issue autoloading rifle for the United States. By most accounts, the M1 rifle performed well. General George S. Patton called it "the greatest battle implement ever devised". The M1 replaced the bolt-action M1903 Springfield as the U.S.' service rifle in 1936, and was itself replaced by the selective-fire M14 rifle on March 26, 1958.