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A River Oaks, Houston, TX, attorney recently purchased and parked outside his home a fully functional World War Two tank.

Note: The original newspaper article claimed the tank was "fully functional" - but the main gun was disabled by drilling a hole through it prior to departing France.

To my untrained eye it appears to be a Sherman, but I am looking for a more expert opinion. Can anyone definitely determine the type and model of this tank, along with any other interesting specifications?

"The problem is there is no action [the Homeowners' Association] can take," said Buzbee. "They can ticket it or they can try to tow it, but the truth is unless I decide to move it, it's not going anywhere."

enter image description here

Presumably this is a serial number of some sort.

enter image description here

I'm not sure what these numbers represent.

enter image description here

More details, with thanks to called2voyage

Pieter Geerkens
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    It's a M4 Sherman but the exact sub-type might prove tricky to prove. – Steve Bird Sep 18 '19 at 14:41
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    Found info on it, but the quotes are not cited so I don't know if the source is good: https://www.texasguntalk.com/threads/texas-man-parks-sherman-tank-in-front-of-his-house.83171/page-4#post-1647420 – called2voyage Sep 18 '19 at 14:48
  • @SteveBird: I'll up-vote every answer that adds to the discovery. If I see any further news on it with additional good images I will post those. It occurred to me that the vehicle ID numbers might help in the discovery, so I excerpted those from the video. – Pieter Geerkens Sep 18 '19 at 14:49
  • @PieterGeerkens Found another source: https://www.texasmonthly.com/the-daily-post/complete-story-river-oaks-tank/ – called2voyage Sep 18 '19 at 14:53
  • @PieterGeerkens The auction details for the tank include the id number, and it matches up with Duke's research: https://www.artcurial.com/en/lot-1944-chrysler-m4a4-sherman-3114-46 – called2voyage Sep 18 '19 at 15:08
  • @called2voyage: That last link looks like a key part of any answer, so I haven't added it to the question. As already noted, I will upvote any and all answers that add to the information already known when posted. – Pieter Geerkens Sep 18 '19 at 15:16
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    The Texas Monthly picture is of a different model Sherman. – kimchi lover Sep 18 '19 at 15:33
  • @kimchilover The photo at the top of the article is an illustration for dramatic effect and not an actual depiction of the tank. – called2voyage Sep 18 '19 at 15:38
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    There's a (probably) exhaustive list of Shermans (Shermen?) with illustrations at http://www.tanks-encyclopedia.com/ww2/US/M4_Sherman.php – Amorphous Blob Sep 18 '19 at 17:07
  • @AmorphousBlob: That sounds like a valuable contribution to any definitive answer (hint hint), rather than a clarification request on the question. – Pieter Geerkens Sep 18 '19 at 17:31
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    Woot! Another reputation point, come to papa! :) – Amorphous Blob Sep 18 '19 at 21:13
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    It is not a "fully functional tank" as claimed in the question. In the newspaper interview the owner stated that "the main cannon was rendered inoperable as a condition of his bringing it to America" – user2705196 Sep 19 '19 at 15:09
  • @user2705196: Thank you - now corrected. I saw that note after writing the original question based on the first newspaper article, and neglected at the time to correct. – Pieter Geerkens Sep 19 '19 at 16:39

4 Answers4

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It appears from the auction details, that the serial number of the tank is 18688.

The serial number does appear on this list of known Sherman serial numbers compiled by Pierre-Olivier Buan (who has been cited as an expert on tanks of this era) and others.

The entry identifies the tank's type as M4A4(75), which was manufactured by Chrysler. The registration number entry varies from what's on the tank, but it is marked red, which means unconfirmed and possibly wrong. Randolph Duke, in the Texas Monthly article linked in the question, claims the original registration number was painted over. The notes say:

Comes from the range target, Salisbury Plain. Previously located at Coleraine, NI, UK and then in Normandy, France

The website with the list of Shermans has more information on this variant.

The M4A4 Shermans were equipped with a Chrysler Multibank engine; they have a lengthened welded hull. Only the 75mm version were built in the USA, but the M4A4 was also widely used as a basis for 17pdr Firefly tank by the British Army. The users were : Britain, France, China (Source : Wikipedia).

This variant was only manufactured by Chrysler (7499 units produced).

This tank has a 75mm gun, small hatches (protruding hoods), a 57° glacis and dry ammunition stowage bins. The M4A4s were only produced with the 3-piece differential housing.

There is a little bit more information at that link along with pictures.

Community
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called2voyage
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There's a (probably) exhaustive list of Shermans (Shermen?) with illustrations at tanks-encyclopedia.com/ww2/US/M4_Sherman.php. Disclaimer: A lot of models were so similar that it'd be a bit of a chore to try to match up the pics above with this page, though.

Pieter Geerkens
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Amorphous Blob
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The seams appear to all be welded, not cast, so it cannot be an M4A1, an M4 Composite, or an M4A6, according to the chart on this Wikipedia article.

It's got the 75mm gun, not the 76mm or the 105mm gun, which helps eliminate some models like the M4A3E8.

Also note the protrusions at the top of the front hull. The front of any of the "Jumbo" variants is flat, so this cannot be a Jumbo.

I think it might be a minor variant of an M4A3, based on the discussion on this site. I don't find it super convincing, but I think it's the closest we're going to get outside of scheduling a meeting with the folks at Bovington.

Ryan_L
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The numbers in the bottom photo 2nd armored divisions 66th armored regiment. the letter number on the opposite fender are most likely the company and appears to possible be company D the number after the dash would indicate vehicle number 12.

Standard American M4 company 1942 to fall 1944 Company command tank M4 Support tank M8A1 (M5 Stuart chassis with open top turret and 75 howitzer) 3 Platoons of M4s a Platoon consisted of 5 M4s so the tank company had 17 tanks plus a couple of soft skinned vehicles. The M8A1 was intended to provide smoke and indirect HE support. with the introduction of the M4105 in fall 1944 the M8A1 was replaced by the M4105 as supply allowed.

Bruce Norman
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