Ithaca serial number question

[Del Hussey]

I recently purchased an Ithaca 1911 A1 serial # 209XXXXDC. It has black grips which appear to be identical to the brown ones on my other 1911 A1s. My question is what does the DC at the end of the serial number stand for?

I have been told that some U.S. Property guns were turned over for use by the OSS and the Diplomatic Courier service yet I cannot find out anything which explains the unusual suffix.

All of the other proof marks and inspection stamps are identical to those on issued Army models with the exception of the DC suffix.

Any help would be appreciated.

Information

Warning: This is a relatively older thread This discussion is older than 360 days. Some information contained in it may no longer be current.

[Johnny Peppers]

Quite a few 1911A1 as well as other military pistols went to the OSS during WWII, but the last thing the OSS would have wanted was a pistol linking it to the OSS. They had no special markings of any kind. As to the DC marking, it could have been added by most anyone, and I would doubt any military connection.
I would be curious as to any markings on the back of the black grips. There were no black grips used during WWII, and as far as I know none of the post WWII replacement grips were black. Maybe if there are markings identifying a manufacturer, they could be traced back to see if Ordnance actually bought them.

[Del Hussey]

I have removed the grips and they appear to have the same design as the military model but no ID marks as are on the US guns. I appreciate the quick response.

thanks again