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BB&B Named & Numbered Purple Heart


DannyBMW
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I picked up this medal yesterday from a friend who has and antique store. He acquired it from the neice of the recipient. It was made by Bailey Banks and Biddle and is serialed 30819 on the rim of the heart. The name is "Leo J Regan". The neice stated that he died in 2008 in Mass and that he was in the Battle of the Buldge. Would it be possible for anyone to run a check on his name and try to track down his service record?

 

Thank you

Danny

 

 

 

post-8802-0-04328400-1409274860.jpgpost-8802-0-42461500-1409274888.jpg

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This is a 1932 contract piece and I would bet that it was awarded at least five years before the Battle of the Bulge. This was most likely awarded to a World War I veteran.

 

Allan

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Are you sure this medal didn't belong to Regan's father?? If the medal and box have the same number this one is an awfully early medal for a BoB casualty...I found one Leo J. Regan in the Army, but he didn't enlist until January 1944....I suppose he could have been in the Bulge by that date, but I'm skeptical. He was from Boston, MA.

 

 

 

Mark sends

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There's a WWI vet by the same name:

 

Leo J Regan County: Olmsted State: Minnesota Birth Date: 28 May 1898 Race: White

 

 

Mark sends

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There's a WWI vet by the same name:

 

Leo J Regan County: Olmsted State: Minnesota Birth Date: 28 May 1898 Race: White

 

 

Mark sends

 

That dosen't match up with what the neice said but it does make more sense.

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What state was the medal found in??? Also, it's easy to get stories mixed up if the dad and son had the same name....I've gotten things from nieces and nephews and the only thing they knew about their uncle was stories told around the table....

 

 

Mark sends

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What state was the medal found in??? Also, it's easy to get stories mixed up if the dad and son had the same name....I've gotten things from nieces and nephews and the only thing they knew about their uncle was stories told around the table....

 

 

Mark sends

 

The Niece lives in South Alabama and it was passed on to her from her mother.

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Can you show us the engraving?? The WWI style engraving is pretty distinctive....either way, there's a lot of "Heart-Smart" people on the forum and that would give a good clue as to when it was done.

 

 

Mark sends

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post-8802-0-35509000-1409277541.jpgpost-8802-0-84410000-1409277559.jpg

Can you show us the engraving?? The WWI style engraving is pretty distinctive....either way, there's a lot of "Heart-Smart" people on the forum and that would give a good clue as to when it was done.

 

 

Mark sends

 

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This is a 1932 contract piece and I would bet that it was awarded at least five years before the Battle of the Bulge. This was most likely awarded to a World War I veteran.

 

Allan

I agree with Allan, this is a WW I PH issued in the mid 1930's.

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Just checked the MN WWI bonus files and no Leo. There was a voluntary war service questionnaire mailed out to Vets in 1919, if he came back to MN he may have submitted it and it would contain info on being WIA.

 

I'll be in those files on Saturday and will check for you (if a hit I'll get copies). And I agree, this looks like a WWI heart.

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I agree , its definitely not for WWII. Based on the number range it was issued in 1932 or 1933 8-9 years before WWI began. It could even be for an earlier war. 1932 BBB PHs were issued Civil War vets who were still alive that qualified.

 

Kurt

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It is still a Great Medal and is a wonderful pickup from an antique shop, I wished the antique stores in my area had stuff like this in them. So far they have not.

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Here is another possibility. In WWI he served in the "1st Gas Regiment CWS"

 

attachicon.gifregan.JPG

 

I found this one also... Its hard to read but its a CW Pensioner from 1931.

Infantry, Reg 14 Co. B

post-8802-0-78688600-1409319171.png

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I found a 1918 newspaper causality listing that showed a fellow from NJ was wounded too. Might be the same NJ guy as above or a second one. This is another PH that is going to require ordering the award cards to sort out.

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I found this one also... Its hard to read but its a CW Pensioner from 1931.

Infantry, Reg 14 Co. B

That's the same guy I found too. The card is confusing because it says "CW Ser" after "1st Gas Reg." . It really means "1st Gas Regiment Chemical Warfare Service."

 

Those other regiments also existed during WWI and the Span Am war too.

 

Kurt

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Kurt,

Look at this web site.

 

http://www.fold3.com/document/23978266/

 

It clearly lists him as a civil war pensioner in service between 1861 and 1900 in the National Archives under the Collection Title "Civil War Pensioners"

 

Danny

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That list also contains pensioners from other wars, not just the Civil War. I do know that that notation is correct. "1st Gas Reg CW Ser" is 1st Gas Regiment Chemical Warfare Service. That regiment ONLY existed in WW1.

 

Kurt

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Here is a better copy. You can see he was discharged in Oct 1931. He was a WWI vet, not a Civil War vet. The 16th Infantry was part of the 1st Division in WWI and he could have belonged to both the 16th and the 1st Gas in WWI.

 

regan2.JPG

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Here is another example of a non Civil War vet in the database. He enlisted in 1919, discharged in 1920.

 

 

card.JPG

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