Help from gun folks?

[Tybee]

Hi, I had a question I thought some of you gun folks might be able to answer for me. I found an empty cartridge in my backyard which I assume is a bullet cartridge, brass, with headstamp WRA (Winchester Repeating Arms) and the number 45 beneath it. Does the 45 refer to the weapon or the year of manufacture? It is placed like the year of manufacture and all it has is 45, nothing about type of gun.

Cartridge is about 1 5/16 inches if that helps.

[Alan]

Hi, I had a question I thought some of you gun folks might be able to answer for me. I found an empty cartridge in my backyard which I assume is a bullet cartridge, brass, with headstamp WRA (Winchester Repeating Arms) and the number 45 beneath it. Does the 45 refer to the weapon or the year of manufacture? It is placed like the year of manufacture and all it has is 45, nothing about type of gun.

Cartridge is about 1 5/16 inches if that helps.

That is a 45 caliber cartridge, and it's fairly old. I believe Winchester stopped using the WRA stamp about 80 years ago.

[Tybee]

So not the year? I read that during wartime, they used the year.

There is no . before the number that I can see--probably does not make a difference?

Thank you so much for your help with this, Alan!
One more question--would this have fit a WWII Marine sidearm, which I read is the Colt 1911?

[ToomuchStuff]

It would fit a 1911, a Tommy gun (Thompson sub machine gun), or any modern forty five.

[Tybee]

It would fit a 1911, a Tommy gun (Thompson sub machine gun), or any modern forty five.

Thank you!