Quote:
Originally Posted by Icelander
Also, in the 1950s, could underage boys just buy a hunting rifle? That is, should Clayborn Allen's first deer rifle be bought at 18, when he became a voter, or can he have saved up and bought a rifle at sometime between 12-16?
I haven't found yet how the laws on hunting licences for juniors worked in Maine in the 1950s. I don't think that any laws would precisely forbid him from buying rifles in the 50s (yay, FREEDOM!) and, indeed, had imagined that he bought a .22 in that period, but a local proprietor of a general store might not be in favour of a boy buying a rifle obviously meant for hunting deer if it were against the law for him to go hunting.
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I don't know about Maine, but my dad grew up in California in the 40's and 50's, and he bought his first shotgun at (if I recall his stories correctly) age 12. He grew up hunting deer and ducks and snow geese and jackrabbits - underage hunting is very much a thing here in the U.S.A where kids as young as 12 often get deer licenses and go hunt deer (usually with their folks). It is harder for kids to buy firearms now (read, illegal) than it was back in the 1950's, but youth hunting is still generally encouraged. I would guess that Maine wasn't much different.
Luke