Screamingeagles101 Posted May 12, 2018 Share #1 Posted May 12, 2018 Hello, I am very happy to present to you a D day grouping right out of the wood work. Yes! It was never in a collection before. It was taken right from the vets estate. The lot was purchased at the estate sale of Dr. Leon C. Hamrick. He was a U.S. Navy Corpsman during would war two. I am currently in touch with the daughter who is very nice. She still has her fathers uniforms and pictures. I’m trying to obtain the uniforms, however, she’s not sure she wants to give them up yet Leon was a Corpsman who stormed the beaches of Normandy on June 6, 1944. Months later, he found himself ashore the beaches of Okinawa, evacuating the wounded off the beach. I will let the obituary tell the rest of the story. The helmet It’s in great shape for what it went through. The inside is a bit pitted but it’s in solid condition. There are some scuffs and dings throughout the Helmet. The medal parts of the Chinstraps are very corroded but still pretty solid. The Corpsman’s name is painted on the front of the helmet. The pack I’ll be honest, I’m really not sure what the pack is.... it’s dated 1942. It also has his name on it. It’s really cool! Also shows a lot of wear. There looks to be some spots of blood on it. As the obituary states, “his cloths were soaked in blood” There is also a small bag that was part of the grouping. I’m also not sure what it is .... The following is just a clip of his war record from his obituary. BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - Dr. Leon C. Hamrick Sr. started saving lives early. He joined the U.S. Navy, trained as a pharmacist mate and at 18 was on an amphibious landing boat during the Allied invasion at Normandy Beach on June 6, 1944, treating the wounded. Soaked in blood and surrounded by wounded soldiers, all he had to offer was morphine tablets and caring hands. He was destined to be a surgeon. "He dealt with things with such dignity, always," said one of Hamrick's four daughters, Mary Bostock. Hamrick was later on board a ship under attack by the Japanese off Okinawa; he and other sailors burned oil on deck to create smoke to confuse kamikaze pilots. In October 1945, Hamrick's ship was hit by Typhoon Louise. "He said it was the strangest thing, that in the eye of the storm, it was completely still, then all these birds started dropping on deck," said his oldest daughter, Martha Boshers. "Two of them were alive. He picked them up and put them in a shoebox and nursed them back to health and let them go." Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Screamingeagles101 Posted May 12, 2018 Author Share #2 Posted May 12, 2018 https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180512/1639f155660b49a71e7af95243ef4bb8.jpg Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Screamingeagles101 Posted May 12, 2018 Author Share #3 Posted May 12, 2018 Again, I don’t have the uniforms YET & have no Idea what the small bag is for... Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Screamingeagles101 Posted May 12, 2018 Author Share #4 Posted May 12, 2018 Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frogskin7 Posted May 12, 2018 Share #5 Posted May 12, 2018 Saw this on eBay! great purchase Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sundance Posted May 12, 2018 Share #6 Posted May 12, 2018 Pretty darn great. Good luck with the uniforms. If there is no one in the vets family that really wants them (and not just to sell) perhaps the daughter will realize that they should be with someone who will treasure them and the memory of her dad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bugme Posted May 12, 2018 Share #7 Posted May 12, 2018 Did you see this obituary? It has several photo's: https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/pelham-al/leon-hamrick-6114303 also has the grainy war time photo shown below. Also thought it was appropriate that a Navy Corpsman would have the middle name of: Columbus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bugme Posted May 12, 2018 Share #8 Posted May 12, 2018 Also this one, a bit clearer but probably from right before he entered service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king802 Posted May 12, 2018 Share #9 Posted May 12, 2018 Great addition to your collection and some solid history. Rich Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Screamingeagles101 Posted May 12, 2018 Author Share #10 Posted May 12, 2018 Also this one, a bit clearer but probably from right before he entered service. Yes, I saw the pics. Really Awesome. He was 18 years old when he hit the beach. I’m curious to know what beach he was on. One of the pictures I posted says the LST he was on. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Screamingeagles101 Posted May 12, 2018 Author Share #11 Posted May 12, 2018 Anyone have an idea what the pack and bag are..? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cap Camouflage Pattern I Posted May 12, 2018 Share #12 Posted May 12, 2018 WOW! That's amazing, good find! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grant G. Posted May 12, 2018 Share #13 Posted May 12, 2018 Very nice grouping; what is the lot number on the helmet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clohesey Posted May 12, 2018 Share #14 Posted May 12, 2018 I was bidding on this helmet group. The seller canceled the auction, and obviously agreed to a back door sale... nice... Congratulations... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Screamingeagles101 Posted May 12, 2018 Author Share #15 Posted May 12, 2018 Very nice grouping; what is the lot number on the helmet? Lot# is 632B Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Screamingeagles101 Posted May 12, 2018 Author Share #16 Posted May 12, 2018 I was bidding on this helmet group. The seller canceled the auction, and obviously agreed to a back door sale... nice... Congratulations... Yes, sorry about that. This grouping would have went way over what I could have afforded so I took a shot at it and it worked out. Thank you. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stealthytyler Posted May 13, 2018 Share #17 Posted May 13, 2018 Congrats. Was watching this one. He was Foxy 29. It sold for $1000 I believe. The helmet may have been issued and worn on Okinawa instead of Normandy. No way of knowing for sure. I owned a Foxy29 helmet before and it had a red cross on it. Period photos also show the use of small Red Cross for Foxy groups. Either way, nice pickup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
USMC-RECON0321 Posted May 13, 2018 Share #18 Posted May 13, 2018 I was bidding on this helmet group. The seller canceled the auction, and obviously agreed to a back door sale... nice... Congratulations... Yes, sorry about that. This grouping would have went way over what I could have afforded so I took a shot at it and it worked out. Thank you. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Interesting,,, Did you include that same statement in your offer to the seller to get her to cancel bids and end the auction early? "That you knew it would have went way over what you could afford." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMariner Posted May 13, 2018 Share #19 Posted May 13, 2018 Seems kinda like scamming the vets daughter if you ask me, people that make back door offers ruin the fun for the rest of us! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Screamingeagles101 Posted May 13, 2018 Author Share #20 Posted May 13, 2018 I wasn’t dealing with the daughter. I bought it off a guy who bought it from the vets daughter ... he later gave me her info. She was more than delighted to hear it was being preserved & displayed properly to honor her father. Stop being sore... don’t tell me you’s never made an offer on an auction. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cap Camouflage Pattern I Posted May 13, 2018 Share #21 Posted May 13, 2018 I wasnt dealing with the daughter. I bought it off a guy who bought it from the vets daughter ... he later gave me her info. She was more than delighted to hear it was being preserved & displayed properly to honor her father. Stop being sore... dont tell me yous never made an offer on an auction. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk I have never made an offer on an auction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Username Posted May 13, 2018 Share #22 Posted May 13, 2018 There is always plenty of salt to go around when an auction is ended early thanks to a back door offer. In the end the seller is perfectly free to accept these offers, and there is no shortage of people offering them these days. I personally have made many offers for sellers to add buy-it-now options to their listings. But asking a seller to terminate an auction that already has bidders? This is something I don't like to see. Because not only is it taking advantage of a seller, it's robbing honest bidders of their chance to see the auction through. We all know this auction would have ended at a far higher price if it was allowed to proceed, which is what makes this especially frustrating. Even more so for those bidding on it. But... this kind of thing is certainly commonplace on eBay. While I don't like to see it happen, I can't be upset at Screamingeagles101. We all know he's become very passionate and knowledgeable about collecting, and he certainly will appreciate this great grouping. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swmdo Posted May 13, 2018 Share #23 Posted May 13, 2018 In the Navy your field gear is issued and you return it when you get out of the unit. At least during my time. So using the same helmet in different theatres would not be unusual. In particular if you want one that fits, and is ready for your needs. If your in a ground or beach unit imagine having to get a new helmet for every operation or field equipment....that would be a lot of wasted time and annoying to boot. That’s why we have sea bags and issued items. Now if you change units that’s a different beast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dogsbody Posted May 13, 2018 Share #24 Posted May 13, 2018 Very nice items and M1. Congrats. I do hope you respect the daughters indecision about parting with the uniforms. Rene Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill47 Posted May 13, 2018 Share #25 Posted May 13, 2018 Interesting,,, Did you include that same statement in your offer to the seller to get her to cancel bids and end the auction early? "That you knew it would have went way over what you could afford." +1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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