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WWII 82nd A/B Ike- They Weren't All Audie Murphy


Allan H.
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I recently pulled out a number of uniforms from a closet at my parents' house that I hadn't seen in decades and this is one of them. This soldier served in the 82nd Airborne for most of their time in Europe and then evidently served on occupation duty after the war. Most of the original members of the 82nd ended up with as many as six overseas bars. This soldier didn't spent as much time overseas. As an infantryman in the 82nd who served in five campaigns, I would assume that he was a replacement in Italy. Odds are that he served in either the 504th or the 505th PIR. As both of these regiments earned six campaign stars, the fact that there is only a single silver star on the ETO ribbon leads me to this conclusion. He probably missed Sicily and thus did not deploy to North Africa.

 

The ribbons aren't flashy. There are no valor medals or even a Purple Heart, but you can bet that this soldier saw plenty of service. The top row of ribbons having the American Campaign and the WWII Victory ribbon lead me to believe that they were probably the last ribbons that he received. Getting them pinned on was good enough. Who cared about order of precedence at that time? Here you can see that both the parachute badge and the Combat Infantry Badge are pinned above the ribbons. It is not uncommon to see the CIB pinned to the pocket flap. In this case, the button behind the flap has been removed and the flap has been tacked down. This was probably done to avoid having circles on the pocket flap when the jacket was pressed.

 

 

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You can notice that the collar brass is domed. They are screw back and have been domed by hand. Both have been secured to the lapels with the securing washers rather than with the heavier nut usually used. This was probably done because the doming process might not have allowed the standard nut to get enough bite to the threads on the posts.

 

The Presidential Unit Citation is German made. It looks like there has been an oak leaf cluster on the ribbon at one time, but it isn't there any longer.

 

It is interesting to note that it is possible that the soldier served in the 325th Glider Infantry at some point as the 325th had a large number of parachute qualified troops assigned during the war. I would be more inclined to think that he was in one of the regular PIRs since he was jump qualified and was serving in Italy.

 

The lack of a ruptured duck discharge patch leads me to believe that he probably separated from the army individually rather than in a large grouping coming out of the separation centers. It has never had one sewn to the jacket. The soldier would have eventually earned a Bronze Star based on his award of the CIB, but the lack of a PH or BS ribbon on the Ike jacket is a testament to the fact that this soldier served, did his job, and was one of the lucky ones to have not been wounded, crippled, or killed in the bloody campaigns where he fought.

 

Thanks for looking. I hope to hear your thoughts.

 

Allan

 

 

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Great snag and post Allan. So much emphasis is put on Awards and Decs that jackets like this are passed over far too often. Beautiful all original Ike that belonged to a true warrior. That badge says it all...no extra swag needed!

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BigDogMilitaria

Cool uniform and thanks for taking the time to point out all the little parts of the uniform, and what is special behind them. Great education for everyone.

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Great Ike, Allen! Reminds me of my grandfathers, spent the whole war from North Africa to Germany with the 505th and Div HQ. No wounds or valor awards just a man who went when his country called.

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No jump stars on his wings? Seems odd for an infantryman in the 82nd to have not jumped at least once. Of course, it could be that he simply never chose to buy a set of wings with the jump stars on them.

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Collectors need to note that finding jump wings with stars is actually pretty uncommon until the occupation period. Yes, you will see stars on some wings prior to VE day, but it isn't nearly as common as collectors (and a plethora of souped up Ike jackets) might lead one to believe.

 

Allan

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