WW1 US Signal Flare Gun

[Gildwiller1918]

Here is a WW1 Era US made signal flare (or Very) pistol. It is designated the Mark 3, manufactured by Remington Arms, which made 24,000 unit between 1915 and 1918. These were mainly made for naval use. The pistol was adopted for use by the US Army, however as with most other logistical support, mainly used French and British versions. It fired a 10 Gauge flare similar to a shotgun shell, one shot at a time. This model comes with the holster which has a metal hook made to attach the US made gear such as the pistol belt.

Flares could be stored in any number of fashion, from a canvas bag to a box, however some were stored in belts that were made in the same construction as a shotgun belt. Below is an example of such a belt with period flares in red, white and green. Flares were used for many reasons, such as to signify an attack, send reinforcements, troops in distress, when radio silence was required, illumination of no-man's land, etc. Flares would typically burn between 5-10 seconds, depending on flare type. 

[Gildwiller1918]

Found a period image of US soldiers from the 85th division playing around with a German Flare gun.