bunkerhillburning Posted January 17, 2017 Share #1 Posted January 17, 2017 This looks right to me but it is well outside my area of expertise. As far as I know this is an original US Navy Spanish American War Sampson medal. The name of the sailor engraved on the rim. The obverse of the ribbon has badly faded. Entire weight is 1/6 ounces, measures 3 5/8" x 1 9/16". Wanted to get opinions before offering for sale - thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunkerhillburning Posted January 17, 2017 Author Share #2 Posted January 17, 2017 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunkerhillburning Posted January 17, 2017 Author Share #3 Posted January 17, 2017 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunkerhillburning Posted January 17, 2017 Author Share #4 Posted January 17, 2017 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunkerhillburning Posted January 17, 2017 Author Share #5 Posted January 17, 2017 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunkerhillburning Posted January 17, 2017 Author Share #6 Posted January 17, 2017 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunkerhillburning Posted January 17, 2017 Author Share #7 Posted January 17, 2017 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarbridge Posted January 17, 2017 Share #8 Posted January 17, 2017 I'm not liking the engraving... and no rank...can you get a straight on shot? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunkerhillburning Posted January 17, 2017 Author Share #9 Posted January 17, 2017 Hold on. Try this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunkerhillburning Posted January 17, 2017 Author Share #10 Posted January 17, 2017 no - wrong shot, here it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KurtA Posted January 17, 2017 Share #11 Posted January 17, 2017 Agree with Robert. Naming not correct for this medal. Also, Henry A. Miller is not on the Mass rolls. And, only one Santiago bar is not correct. Should have multiple Santiago bars (different dates). Ribbon sew threading not original (not a big deal, but related to incorrect # of bars). So, I would say this is a messed-with Sampson. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KurtA Posted January 17, 2017 Share #12 Posted January 17, 2017 I should add the metal components look original. It's just not correct for a crewman on the Massachusetts. I don't think the engraving was done to deceive a collector. It looks rather old. Possibly Henry thought he should have been entitled to one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam R Posted January 17, 2017 Share #13 Posted January 17, 2017 I think the engraving is good. I have an identically engraved medal that was issued in 1932. The crew rolls in the Sampson Medal book are not 100% accurate. It's possible that Miller was only on board the Massachusetts long enough to qualify for the medal and just one bar. Miller's personnel file in St. Louis could confirm or refute a late issued medal with only one bar. (That's how I documented my medal as issued in 1932.) The problem will be finding the file for the correct "Henry A. Miller". You might have to examine dozens of files before you find the right one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam R Posted January 17, 2017 Share #14 Posted January 17, 2017 Here's the engraving on my medal from 1932. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KurtA Posted January 17, 2017 Share #15 Posted January 17, 2017 Adam- The naming on yours is more skillfully done. Compare "Henry" in post #6 to "William" in post 14. However, I like your theory on Henry not being on the Massachusetts long enough to qualify for the last bar or two. And, that may explain being omitted from the ship rolls. Perhaps he obtained a Sampson many years later and had it privately engraved (by a not so talented engraver). Kurt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam R Posted January 17, 2017 Share #16 Posted January 17, 2017 Perhaps the medal to Miller was engraved by the same man but a few years earlier before he perfected his craft? It's interesting to compare the LL in Miller with the LL in William. On all four letters the horizontal stroke seems to be very long; almost longer than the vertical. I can't say for sure that the engraving on both medals was done by the same hand. I just wanted to point out that's it's plausible and that Miller's medal may be good. Documents in his service file could probably settle it one way or the other. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam R Posted January 17, 2017 Share #17 Posted January 17, 2017 Just for reference, here's a carbon copy of the engraving order for Sumner's medals. This document was in his personnel file. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leatherneck72 Posted January 17, 2017 Share #18 Posted January 17, 2017 I think the engraving is OK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aerialbridge Posted January 18, 2017 Share #19 Posted January 18, 2017 Nice work, Adam. Leave it to you to have a validated example that even shows "LL" and "M" and "SEA" for comparison. You've removed the pall of suspicion on this Sampson and thanks for the education, as always. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunkerhillburning Posted January 18, 2017 Author Share #20 Posted January 18, 2017 Adam - after you posted your example I wondered about the similarity of the engraving. But I figured it was something I wanted to see rather than it being a fact. So, where do you guys think this leaves me in relation to selling it online? I'd have quite a description for the medal before it was up and running. Perhapes it best to sell here rather than eBay. I greatly appreciate the discussion and have enjoyed following. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam R Posted January 21, 2017 Share #21 Posted January 21, 2017 So, where do you guys think this leaves me in relation to selling it online? I'd have quite a description for the medal before it was up and running. Perhapes it best to sell here rather than eBay. Perhaps just include a link back to this thread so that a potential buyer can make his own assessment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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