The History of Suppressors: From World War I to Modern Operations

Hiram Percy Maxim, the son of another Hiram Maxim, produced the first practical and successful suppressor. His father created machine guns, but Maxim Jr. created suppressors. He was a brilliant man who saw a future where military adoption of suppressors was possible.

In 1910, he produced a suppressor aimed at equipping the Springfield M1903, the rifle of choice for the United States military.

This signaled the rise of suppressors in the United States Military. Today, we’ll examine the history of suppressor use by military forces from the earliest days of their invention to the modern world.

MAXIM made the world’s first suppressors. (maxim Silent firearms company)

The US Military and Suppressors: First Encounter

The first notable use of suppressors by the United States military happened before the American Expeditionary Force headed to Europe. General John Perishing was assigned to lead a punitive expedition into Mexico in response to a raid by Pancho Villa.

Suppressors were carried while hunting this man. (Library of Congress)

He had one section of snipers with silenced M1903 Springfield rifles. The suppressors were likely Maxim designs. Sadly, we don’t have any details on how this section was used or whether the suppressors made a difference.

World War I and Suppressors

World War 1 saw the clash of modern and old wars. Planes and motorized vehicles fought alongside horse-mounted cavalry. Machine guns sprayed lead into young Europeans, but soldiers still fought with knives and clubs when things got close. We also saw some very limited use of suppressors by British and German forces.

Suppressor use was very limited in WW1. (Army Ordnance Department)

They both experimented with suppressors on their rifles, typically for reconnaissance troops who would only fire when necessary. The United States ordered suppressed M1903 rifles, but they didn’t make it to the war in time. Like the BAR, they made it to the dock but not on the ship before the war ended.

→ Read the entire article on the Safariland website here:

External Web Site Notice: This page contains information directly presented from an external source. The terms and conditions of this page may not be the same as those of this website. Click here to read the full disclaimer notice for external web sites. Thank you.