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WW1 Presidential Wounded in Action certificate, need help


Kb123
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Hey all,

I saw this on a shelf at a Goodwill and knew that I had to save it from being destroyed or torn up. I did some research on it and Im not 100% sure its real but did find the man that it belongs to. If anyone could help educate me on what it is or who he was that was be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advanced!

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tdogchristy90

Do you have photos?

 

These were given out to US soldiers wounded or killed during WW1. They are kind of the precursor to the modern Purple Heart.

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Do you have photos?

 

These were given out to US soldiers wounded or killed during WW1. They are kind of the precursor to the modern Purple Heart.

 

 

Yep! Sorry about that, I didn't realize the file was to big before I hit post

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Glad you could save this. The document does indeed honor the veteran for being wounded in action. He would also have worn a "wound chevron" on his uniform left cuff to also indicate his wound. I have no clue as to how many of these still survive today, but i would bet the bulk of the original issued certifiacates hit the trash bin many years ago. After 48 years of collecting WWI artifacts I have only 1 of these from a local veteran. MHJ

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tdogchristy90

It looks good, although there is usually a 2-3in boarder all the way around. It looks like yours was cut off. What did goodwill want for it?

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Glad you could save this. The document does indeed honor the veteran for being wounded in action. He would also have worn a "wound chevron" on his uniform left cuff to also indicate his wound. I have no clue as to how many of these still survive today, but i would bet the bulk of the original issued certifiacates hit the trash bin many years ago. After 48 years of collecting WWI artifacts I have only 1 of these from a local veteran. MHJ

 

 

Thanks for the info. This is the first one I've seen and to find it at a Goodwill of all places. In my research into his name I came up with a few others with the same name but only one with a draft card to it and it linked him to Lake County, Illinois

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It looks good, although there is usually a 2-3in boarder all the way around. It looks like yours was cut off. What did goodwill want for it?

 

 

On the back someone penciled in dimensions so I assume at one point it was trimmed and framed up. I found it at one of their outlet stores where you can buy everything by the pound, so I want to say this equaled out to about 10 cents.

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Very nice find. Rainbow Division stuff is always intersting -- Walter Szajna appears to have been a Polish immigrant from Pennsylvania.

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Very nice find. Rainbow Division stuff is always intersting -- Walter Szajna appears to have been a Polish immigrant from Pennsylvania.

 

 

Good to know, thanks!

I don't know to much about the Rainbow Division so I'll have to do some reading on it.

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Heres one of mine, note the date, 5 days before end of war. Had these over 30 years stored in plastic box, last year had them matted and framed with museum non acid paper and light deflecting glass, not cheap but worth it.

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That's a fantastic display, definitely worth the money. The date can really keep a person humble, especially knowing the war was over so shortly after he was killed. Thanks for sharing that!

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Thanks, very sobering. I’ll post the wounded one tomorrow. Lots of collectors avoid paper, always leaf through boxes at shops and flea markets. Somewhere have an original cease fire telegram dated November 11th....or son already has it?

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I love looking through paper, I'm a fan of the large font bold newspaper headlines. I have some framed up and others stored away, mostly WW2, but I like to try and pick them up if it was a significant event

 

Looking forward to seeing your post

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Years ago I bought a uniform grouping (32nd Div.) from a neighbor; uniform with wound stripe, and other items, BUT he would not sell the wound certificate because he thought W. Wilson had hand signed-the paper and it was not a printed signature.

Illinigander

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tdogchristy90

Here is mine. Lester Peterson, gassed at Meuse-Argonne. It has since been framed. You can see the boarder I was talking about that's usually cut out on these.

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