Guns with a past: the guns of Grandy Pardue; for this lawman, only the .45 Colt would do!

American Handgunner, Nov-Dec, 2002 by Gary Paul Johnston

Through the years, we have seen the continuous revolution of the great handgun caliber controversy with strong support for virtually everything, from the smallest to the largest cartridges that can be carried. Right or wrong, good or bad, each one of these people has had their reasons for their choices. Grady Pardue was no exception.

Born in Texas around the turn of the century, Grady Pardue became interested in guns and shooting at an early age, and later worked as a deputy sheriff in a small town somewhere in West Texas. The gun he carried for duty was a Colt Single Action Army revolver in .45 Colt.

Made in 1923, this Colt SAA bears serial number 345184, but the replaced frontstrap was made in 1887, suggesting the original was damaged, or altered in some way. Although the .45 Colt cylinder looks to be original to the gun, the barrel is obviously a replacement, and since it's a factory 4 3/4" barrel, the gun may have had a longer barrel, or again, the original barrel could have been damaged.

Although the history of Grady's Colt SAA prior to his owning it may be incidental, what was done to the gun (presumably by him) is interesting. As was popular then, a Marble "gold" bead front sight was professionally fitted to the gun, possibly to provide a better sight picture as well as making the gun shoot to point of aim. This particular front sight replacement required the original be filed down, leaving only a short nub. The Marble sight came with a groove in its bottom and two holes drilled through it from side to side. Two hardened pins were also furnished. This sight was slipped over what was left of the front sight and tapped into place against the barrel. Using the two holes as pilots, the original front sight nub was then drilled and the two pins driven through both sights and peened. The result was a new custom sight that was as rigid as the original post.

While little else about this gun is known in connection with Grady Pardue, it shows signs of having been carried a lot, and it has also fired plenty of rounds. However, it remains in excellent shooting condition and is about as accurate as any .45 Colt SAA.

Southern Calif. Sheriff

During the Great Depression Grady Pardue moved to Southern California and was first hired by the town of Arcadia, then later by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office (LASO). Although he brought his Colt SAA with him, he didn't carry it on duty in California, but instead purchased a double action Colt New Service. While many of his fellow deputies carried .38 Special revolvers, Grady's New Service was chambered in the .45 Colt cartridge he was so familiar with.

Becoming well respected as a lawman, Grady Pardue's Texas roots and his sense of right and wrong made him a leader. Sometime around 1940, an incident occurred that catapulted Grady's reputation into that of a living legend. In the town of Arcadia, on Double Drive (now Santa Anita) there was a meat locker not far from where the old Pony Express Museum stood. Although the museum is long gone, the meat locker remained at least until several years ago, and may still be there.

One day while Grady was on patrol nearby, he received a call of a robbery in progress at the meat locker. As he pulled into the parking lot, Grady saw two armed men run out of the locker toward their vehicle. Drawing his big .45 Colt New Service, Grady ducked out of his patrol car as the pair opened fire on him from a distance of about 15 yards. As the suspects' guns blazed, Grady brought his Colt up and answered them both with his own big 255 grain .45 slugs. Grady's aim was deadly, and within seconds both robbers lay dead on the ground.

Although he was considered a hero, Grady didn't think much about it. He just happened to be in the right place at the right time and did his job. Continuing with the LASO for many more years, Grady retired sometime around the late 1950's or early 1960's, but his reputation lived on for many years with those who worked with him. Grady Pardue passed away in the early 1970's, and until now, no one with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office probably ever heard of him. Although there are no known photos of Grady, his two Colts remain in the collection of a fellow law enforcement officer who knew him. The real thing, indeed, and his guns speak for him.