USMC rifle with UNit marking

[Frederick303]

Gents, I have what appears to be a USMC M1903, at least it has many of the features one would expect with one (light colored park, marked bolt, hatcher hole, rock island gun, 12-29 barrel date).

I got it many years ago and in research at the time supposedlyit to be a SEABEE marked gun. The marking consists of stamped on the buttstock that shows when the action is facing out on a gun rack. The marking is 2B 116 , which I took to be 2nd Battalion, 116 rifle. I forget where I read such marked rifles were Seabee related, and cannot find any reference to it on-line now. It came back as one of the Greek return rifles, if that helps.

Now I am wondering if this is a correct interpretation. I just looked up the 2nd construction battalion and found the following:

"The Second Battalion was divided into the Fourth and Fifth detachment at time of commissioning In April. 1942, at Camp Allen. The Fourth detachment embarked at Norfolk and arrived at Upolu in the Samoan Islands, in May of 1942. One unit of the detachment was assigned to the Fifth Marine Defense Battalion on Funafuti, in April


1943. In July, the rest of the Fourth detachment moved to Tutuila, also in the Samoan group. The unit that was sent to Funafuti rejoined the Fourth detachment in January 1944. The second hail of the Second Battalion, known as the Fifth detachment embarked from San Diego, Calif. and arrived at Tutuila late in April. 1942. Two months later, this unit moved to Wallis Island, where they remained for a year, then rejoined the rest of the Second Battalion at Tutuila. The entire Battalion, with the exception of 116 men, arrived at Camp Parks on March 7, 1944. The rear echelon arrived in the States one month later for decommissioning."

So have any of the M1903 experts ever seen this kind of marking before and if so would be it be reasonable to believe it is a Seabee marked gun? I know it was not the pattern of the Navy and regular USMC to unit mark rifles, or so I have been lead to believe.

Thanks to anyone who might know. No offense will be taken if the marking has other meaning. Trying to put everything down so when my stuff is sold off the family will know what they have.

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.