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Posted: 6/20/2004 4:50:58 PM EDT
The Bushnell Smith Case
J. Bushnell Smith was a well-known gunsmith and custom ammunition loader, who had a residence with an adjoining 4 room frame shop at Weybridge, Vermont. At 11 a.m. on July 16, 1948, I received a wire from his father stating that Bushnell Smith had died in a fire at his shop at about 10 that forenoon. I phoned the Director of Public Safety of Vermont and asked him to let me know what had happened when his men had finished their investigation. A short time later he phoned me stating that his investigators were "on the ropes," and inviting me to come and see for myself and help his men find out the answers. The Chief Fire Marshal of the State met my plane at Burlington and I was at the scene of the fire by 6 p.m., with still some daylight left. Smith's body was found in the lathe room of his shop, in or near the doorway to a room where he had five 150 lb. cans of surplus small arms powder stored, or 750 lbs. altogether (you know where this is going  ). The shelves in another room were stacked with 20lb., 5 lb., and 1 lb. cans of various kinds of small arms powder, and shed against the wall contained large drums of kerosene or fuel oil. It is needless to point out that the powder in such quantities should have been in a magazine. Smith had been adjusting a trigger mechanism which had been giving him premature discharges, and a few moments before the accident had been firing through an open window at a target in the woods behind the shop. The rifle, a .30-06 , was found under the body. From a careful evaluation of all the evidence it became apparent that Smith had had an accidental discharge, and that the bullet had gone through the open door into the next room and into one of the 150-lb. cans of rifle powder, which had ignited instantly and had set off the other 4 cans. The resulting burst of flame through the open door had simply cooked Smith before he could move, and had dropped him in his tracks. Other members of his household phoned the fire department, which arrived about 15 minutes later. At that time loaded cartridges were popping off, and they were rather afraid to go near, but in spite of that fact they quickly got two streams of water on the fire and extinguished it with much of the shop still standing. An examination of the rooms where the powder was strored revealed no sign of any explosion. The powder cans were mostly split open along the seam or bulged, but the only damage to the building was from fire. Smith used a large number of primers in his reloading operations, and the room where he died had the shelves stacked with them, in the original containers, just as they came from the maker. Some of the shelves containing the primers had burned through and collapsed, and the packages were charred, but apparently none of the primers had gone off, indicating that as they are packed for sale to hand-loaders, they do not constitute a hazard. ETA: Hatcher's Notebook, p.528-9 |
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Posted: 6/20/2004 4:52:55 PM EDT
[#1]
Smart man
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Posted: 6/20/2004 4:58:18 PM EDT
[#2]
Dang, i wish i had 750 pounds of gunpowder. Musta been nice to live in the day when you could get war surplus for pennies.
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Posted: 6/20/2004 4:59:32 PM EDT
[#3]
Like almost all AD's, he knew better but was sure it couldn't happen to him.
Lessons to learn that many refuse to. |
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Posted: 6/20/2004 5:03:14 PM EDT
[#4]
Moral of the story, Don't keep Smokeless propellant in the line of fire as "Murphy may pay you a visit"!
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Posted: 6/30/2004 7:37:51 PM EDT
[#5]
No kidding--gives a much magnified meaning to "Never point your muzzle at anything you are not willing to destroy." 
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Posted: 6/30/2004 7:42:04 PM EDT
[#6]
Dupe
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Posted: 6/30/2004 7:49:12 PM EDT
[#7]
HS1 |
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Posted: 6/30/2004 8:02:07 PM EDT
[#8]
Holy moly. Swift justice for breaking the 4 rules!!!!!!!
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Posted: 6/30/2004 8:02:35 PM EDT
[#9]
TBK - this was a ten day old thread, you must of been really digging around in the archives, eh?
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Posted: 6/30/2004 8:09:54 PM EDT
[#10]
That's a.m. right? Pretty sure about that one, but,
"magazine"? definition and advantage? |
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Posted: 6/30/2004 8:28:30 PM EDT
[#11]
Nah, followed a link from another thread. I never go looking for old stuff. 
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Posted: 6/30/2004 8:30:28 PM EDT
[#12]
I'd suggest a Google definition, but offhand, a powder magazine is a box or room with reinforced sides and a top that is much less secure in order to direct any combustion upward in a (presumably) more safe direction. |
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Posted: 6/30/2004 8:41:31 PM EDT
[#13]
Did the Google thing and got 'Welcome to Time.com'. Thanks, your definition reinforces my vague memory of the same meaning. |
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