During World War I, licensed production of the British 8-inch howitzer Mark VI was undertaken by the Midvale Steel and Ordnance Company, located in the Nicetown neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

[6] The first publicity photographs of the M1-type 8-inch howitzer on its redesigned carriage appeared in 1931, but development was slowed by the Great Depression.

Like the British 8-inch howitzer of the First World War (and most other large artillery), the M1 uses a Welin screw for its breech.

It consists of a split trail with equilibrator assemblies, elevating and traversing mechanisms, a two-axle bogie with eight tires, and a single-axle, single-wheel limber for towing.

It was also adopted as a field weapon by a number of nations in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia and saw service in the Second Taiwan Strait Crisis and the Croatian War of Independence.