Images of Sailors wearing Pre-1946 Navy Good Conduct Medals.

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Period photos, drawings or paintings. Unidentified or identified sailors, as long as the original recipient is wearing it, and he earned the medal prior to 1946. And if it still exists, a picture of it alone or in a medal group.

 

The US Navy Good Conduct Medal, circa 1890

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Chief Gunner's Mate Thomas Eadie, wearing the Good Conduct Medal (apparently with one subsequent award bar), Navy Cross and World War I Victory Medal, at White House ceremonies on 18 December 1927, as President Calvin ("Silent Cal") Coolidge presents Eadie with the Medal of Honor. He received the medal for heroism in rescuing another man during diving operations on USS S-4 (SS-109). The Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Charles F. Hughes, is directly behind Chief Eadie.

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Chief Gunner's Mate Thomas Eadie.

[kanemono]

Here is a Navy GCM worn by Finn Outler on the USS Luzon, Yangtze Patrol.

[Adam R]

Great topic. I've found it very difficult to find early pics of sailors wearing their actual GCMs, rather than just a ribbon bar, especially pre-WWII. It's even rarer to find such a pic along with the actual medal. This is one of the few such sets in my collection; to a musician on the USS New York. It's part of a group that also includes the Sampson and a West Indies campaign medal.

[Adam R]

Here's one to a gunner's mate. I owned the medal for many years before I found the photos of the recipient on Ancestry.

[Jay V]

Adam R

Awesome GCM's and photos,Thanks for sharing.

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Great photos, Adam, thanks for posting them. Here's a couple more MOH recipients wearing their pre-'46 GCMs and other medals/awards.

 

Chief Water Tender John King (1865-1938) and you're not seeing double.

 

Chief Pharmacist Robert H. Stanley (1881-1942), medal at far right next to his GCM, the scarce, enlisted man's Imperial Order of the Dragon, from his China Relief Expedition service.

 

[Salvage Sailor]

USS MONOCACY (PG-20) Asiatic Fleet, 2nd Division

 

She was sunk shortly after this photo was taken in 1938

 

Monocacy was at Kiuklang protecting American neutrality during the Japanese invasion of China, when on 29 August 1938 several mines exploded within 80 yards (73 m) of the ship, showering the gunboat with fragments. She was then held at the port until the Japanese completed sweeping operations some days later. She was decommissioned at Shanghai on 31 January 1939. The veteran gunboat was towed to sea and sunk 10 February 1939 in deep water off the China coast.

 

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Those old China hands like Outler and the Monocacy guy had a lot of style the way they seemingly, randomly pinned their medals. Interesting that both are electrician's mates. What all is the Monocacy sailor wearing besides his GCM, maybe Yangtze Service next to it, Expert pistol or rifle at the bottom and the VFW on the far right?

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Good Memorial Day weekend 2019 to all. I think this is a neat pre-WW II, studio photo of a proud Navy chief, with 4 good conduct awards, a WWI Victory Medal and his twin sons. It's interesting that with at least 24 years service, and wearing a chief's jacket that there doesn't seem to be a rate patch.

[joeclown]

Could the Chief with no rating be the Messman/Steward Branch, seeing as back in that day it was a racially segregated rating.

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That's what I was thinking, Joe, perhaps a messman or steward. So, I wonder if non-rated messmen/stewards would have worn a chief's jacket back in the 20s or 30s. Hard to believe with 24 years service and 3 GCMs he wasn't rated. And assuming he was a rated steward or messman, wouldn't he have had the old crescent moon patch for that rating? Did you notice, each of his bo'sun's mate kids have call lanyards going into their pockets.