Spanish American US Navy Enlisted Uniform Yeoman 2CL, Samuel Claude Sessions

[topdcnut]

Mike,

 

On the chevrons 1886-97 the chevrons were one piece of cloth with navy thread and padding behind each stripe. 1897-1905 individual chevrons still stitched through the face of the stripe no padding. and in 1905 to the mid 50's each stripe was sewn down with an overlocking stitch which apears on your uniforms rating badge, and of course the eagle differences.

 

Hope that helps, John

 

Also todays boatswain mates make thiers out of the line used in the shot line guns used to pass line between ships but I do not know the line dia. off hand.

[SGM (ret.)]

Hi all!

 

Thanks for the replies. I'm getting quite the education on the rating badges. Sarge Booker sent me a couple links by PM to his earlier postings in the Ranks and Ratings section, but thanks to everyone else too. (I can't believe that I never even looked into that section on the forum- go figure!)

 

John, if you ever decide to part with one of your lanyards, please keep me in mind. 'Til then, I'll keep practicing my 5-line flat sennit and Turk's head knots!

 

Thanks for the billet number explanation, Steve. I'll correct that neckerchief error as soon as I can. Such a simple thing, but now the written instructions that I was trying to follow seem so clear...

 

It's actually pretty nice to get out of your "collecting comfort zone" every now and again. I've had a ball diging into some new things.

 

v/r

Mike

[SGM (ret.)]

Hi again all,

 

I've been fortunate enough to receive some more items from the family of Samuel Sessions. These included several medals, numerous photos and tintypes, and a bunch of documents (which included two books on the Span-Am War that belonged to Sam and have inscriptions written by him in the frontspieces).

 

I also got some time to get QED4 some snap shots of the un-hemmed shirt tails. So, over the next few posts, I'll show the up-dated grouping with some of the nicer items and information about Sam's service.

 

As it turns out, he was a "double" Span-Am War vet, having served in the US Army (as a member of Company B, 2nd South Carolina Volunteer Infantry) and the US Navy (from 1902-1905, part of the extension of the official war period which included the Phillipines Insurrection).

 

The ephemera items document this service record, as well as Sam's brief period as a member of the "Columbia Volunteers," a group that formed and drilled in January, 1918 with the anticipation (unfortunately, thwarted) of enlisting as a "company" in WW I.

 

At some time (the precise date is yet to be determined), he joined the United Spanish War Veterans (USWV), and served as a member and held several office positions until his death in about 1962.

 

The fist attachment shows the shirt tails that interested QED 4 and Steve (sigsaye). I believe that this uniform was in fact worn with the shirt tails tucked in. The tintype posted in one of the earlier posts shows, on close inspection, the glint of the pants buttons (look near his hand). In addition, the attachment below shows that the shirt tail was cut with "pinking" shears (creates a zig-zag cut edge) which was then followed by a single line of straight stitching. There is no indication that the shirt ever had any kind of draw-string or other hemming. This is, in my opinion, the way the shirt was manufactured. Finally, the shirt tails are longer than the crotch of the pants and whould have presented a very "un-military" appearance if worn un-tucked.

 

However, I remain open to other ideas on this.

[SGM (ret.)]

Of the other items that I've since received, Sam's medals are perhaps the most interesting here on the forum.

 

The picture below shows a "Souvenir" medal purchased at "Camp Cuba Libre, Jacksonville, Fla, 1898." Company B, 2nd SC Vol. Inf. spent a few weeks at Camp Cuba Libre before passing through Savana, GA on their way to occupation duty in Cuba. In the center of the reverse of the medal, on the brass disk, in nearly microscopic lettering, is the Lord's Prayer.

 

I couldn't believe it until I put the medal under magnification that the engraver was able to fit this text in a space only slightly bigger than a 1/2 inch in diameter.

[SGM (ret.)]

The next medal is the US Army of Cuban Occupation Medal. This medal was established around 1918 and was awarded to veterans who applied and paid for it. (It was awarded free to those who were still in the Army.)

 

The medal is numbered on its rim. Although not illustrated, I also have the original single clutch ribbon.

[SGM (ret.)]

Next up is Sam's Spanish-American War Service Medal. In much the same manner as the last medal, this one was also established around 1919 and was awarded to vets who applied and paid for it.

 

This medal is also serial numbered on its rim, and again, although not shown in this collage, I have the original clutch single place ribbon.

[SGM (ret.)]

Sam was also very active in the United Spanish War Veterans organization. I have numerous documents (newspaper clippings, correspondence, membership cards, etc) that give some of the details of his activities.

 

He was a member of the David Dubose Giallard Camp #4, Columbia, South Carolina until his death in 1962. During his membership, he served as the Camp Commander (Adjutant?) ca. 1956-57 and as the Department of South Carolina Commander ca. 1958-59. These periods are based on incomplete information, but are about right.

 

Finding information on the membership medals has been pretty hard since the USWV no longer exists. I would appreciate any info that other members would share about the details of the different medals.

 

I believe that the ribbons with the pale blue edges signifies "Camp" duty or positions and the ribbons with the red edges indicate "Department" duty or position. The rank insignia at the top of the device (acting as the hanger) may indicate actual "command" position, while the same insignia on the ribbon may indicate former "ranks." The wreath around the medal may indicate that the wearer was serving as the unit's "Graves Registration Officer." Finally, there are two different sizes of the medals. The larger medals may be for "formal" occasions or indicate actual "command."

 

The medal below is a full-sized medal. The rank insignia is for a Department commander. This medal has had the standard ribbon (a miniture US Flag) replaced by a piece of heavy weight, rose and yellow silk. My assumption is that Sam used an actual piece of a Spanish flag presumably captured and divvied-up by his regiment while in Cuba. But that is speculation.

[SGM (ret.)]

This next medal is also a full-sized medal. I believe that this one was the one Sam wore when he was the DD Gaillard Camp #4 commander.

[SGM (ret.)]

This medal is a small-size (about two-thirds size of the full-size) medal.

 

I believe that this one signified Sam's former postion as the Department commander as well as his "current" duty as the department's "Graves Registration Officer." This would fit with the ephemera that included dozens of obituaries of Span-Am War veterans who were citizens of South Carolina. It appeared to me that he was keeping careful track, and there are also several USWV letters addressed to Sam requesting up-dated information on vets who had passed away over some time period.

 

Having said this, though, if this is not correct, please feel free to correct me.

[SGM (ret.)]

This final medal is also small-sized and I believe that it was worn by Sam indicating his former position as "Camp" commander and "current" duty as the camp's Graves Registration Officer.

 

Again, if anyone else has any information of these USWV membership "medals" (badges, really), please don't hesitate to chime in.

 

BTW, Big Sarge Booker, I did use the illustrations you posted down in the medals forum to reason out some of the significance of these USWV medals. If I got it wrong, the errors are mine, and I appreciate your sharing the info.

 

If there's enough interest in this grouping, I'll post some more images tomorrow of some of the ephemera items.

[SGM (ret.)]

Following up the posts from yesterday, here are a few more items from the grouping, as it has grown.

 

Below is a collage of several tintypes and photos of SC Sessions. Most are obviously from his service in the Navy. However, the cabinet photo in the upper right shows a young, dashing Sam as he enlisted in Company B, 2nd SC Vol. Inf. The hand-written inscription on its reverse states that the date is 1898 and that he is 16 years old.

 

In the lower right is the hand-written inscription on the card cover of the tintype in the upper center (Sam and his shipmate in whites).

[SGM (ret.)]

Next is a collage of images from a book that belonged to Sam: "South Carolina in the Spanish-American War" by General J.W. Floyd, the Adjutant General of the SC State Militia. It was published by the author in 1901 and lists every member of the state militia in each unit mustered for the war.

 

Shown are the cover, the title page, the several hand-written inscriptions that Sam made in different places in the book, and finally, Sam's name listed in the roster of Company B, 2nd SC Volunteer Infantry.

 

Interesting is the inscription with his pension munber.

[SGM (ret.)]

Next is a collage of images from Sam's first edition copy of Friedel's "The Splendid Little War." In itself, the book is not especially rare, but what makes this copy so interesting are Sam's hand-written inscriptions noting his military service.

[SGM (ret.)]

Next are images of the obverse and reverse of a Pensacola Navy Yard Gate Pass, issued to Yeoman SC Sessions by the XO of his ship, the USS VIXEN.

 

This pass was laminated at some time in the past by the family. The hand-written note on the reverse asking anyone who finds the pass to return it to the owner is pretty interesting. Although hard to see, there is a raised seal in the obverse lower left corner.

[Croix de Guerre]

FANTASTIC! Thank you for taking the time to post a wonderful group! I'm kind of a closet Span-Am guy, so this was very appreciated!

 

I have a WWI Navy group and it has the clothing strings as well. The image I'm including isn't Span-Am but what the heck?

[SGM (ret.)]

The last item I'd like to share is a leather (!) souvenir post card from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The reverse is addressed to one of Sam's relatives in Columbia, SC, but doesn't appear to have actually been posted.

 

The ship shown on the obverse is the USS AMPHITRITE, a Patrol Yacht (PY) in the same class as the USS VIXEN (PY-04).

 

If anyone would like to see more detailed images of any of these artifacts, please ask, and I'll try to oblige.

 

Finally, if anyone has any information or comments, especially on the correctness or accuracy of any of the information that I posted, don't hesitate to offer up your info. In particular, the details about the USWV membership medals (badges) are still a bit mushy for me. It seems that the best info available has only been published in some special medal collector periodicals which are nearly impossible to access.

 

At any rate, I hope someone else out there has found this interesting.

 

v/r

Mike

[SGM (ret.)]

FANTASTIC! Thank you for taking the time to post a wonderful group! I'm kind of a closet Span-Am guy, so this was very appreciated!

 

I have a WWI Navy group and it has the clothing strings as well. The image I'm including isn't Span-Am but what the heck?

 

Thanks for the kind words, Croix de Guerre! I'm glad someone else had found this as interesting as me. BTW, any info on the picture you posted? It looks like there's something embroidered on the bottom edge of the sweater.

[sigsaye]

Hi again all,

 

I've been fortunate enough to receive some more items from the family of Samuel Sessions. These included several medals, numerous photos and tintypes, and a bunch of documents (which included two books on the Span-Am War that belonged to Sam and have inscriptions written by him in the frontspieces).

 

I also got some time to get QED4 some snap shots of the un-hemmed shirt tails. So, over the next few posts, I'll show the up-dated grouping with some of the nicer items and information about Sam's service.

 

As it turns out, he was a "double" Span-Am War vet, having served in the US Army (as a member of Company B, 2nd South Carolina Volunteer Infantry) and the US Navy (from 1902-1905, part of the extension of the official war period which included the Phillipines Insurrection).

 

The ephemera items document this service record, as well as Sam's brief period as a member of the "Columbia Volunteers," a group that formed and drilled in January, 1918 with the anticipation (unfortunately, thwarted) of enlisting as a "company" in WW I.

 

At some time (the precise date is yet to be determined), he joined the United Spanish War Veterans (USWV), and served as a member and held several office positions until his death in about 1962.

 

The fist attachment shows the shirt tails that interested QED 4 and Steve (sigsaye). I believe that this uniform was in fact worn with the shirt tails tucked in. The tintype posted in one of the earlier posts shows, on close inspection, the glint of the pants buttons (look near his hand). In addition, the attachment below shows that the shirt tail was cut with "pinking" shears (creates a zig-zag cut edge) which was then followed by a single line of straight stitching. There is no indication that the shirt ever had any kind of draw-string or other hemming. This is, in my opinion, the way the shirt was manufactured. Finally, the shirt tails are longer than the crotch of the pants and whould have presented a very "un-military" appearance if worn un-tucked.

 

However, I remain open to other ideas on this.

I must appologize, I was absolutely wrong. The jumpers were still worn tucked in at this time. They came out in the 1905 regs. Are there four small buttons on the inside of the front of the neck opening? At this time, there was a small "dickie" buttoned there when worn.

 

Again, sorry about that.

 

Steve Hesson

[wingman68]

You did very well its a nice bit of kit for its age and looks to be in relatively good condition considering its age and storage conditions, I love it.

[SGM (ret.)]

Hi Steve,

 

Yes, there are four small internal buttons (one on each side of the lower end of the neck opening and one near each shoulder) for the "dickie" you mention. (On this example, there's actually only one button still present, but the stitches are there for the other three.)

 

I appreciate your observations, though. The discussion about blousing, tucking, or wearing the tails out prompted me to dig deeper into the subject than I might have otherwise, and so I've enjoyed it all the more.

 

Wingman68,

 

Thanks for the kind words.

 

For all,

 

One correction I'd like to make in the post with the leather post card: The USS AMPHITRITE was a monitor class ship, not a patrol yacht. It was the Guantanamo Bay station ship for most of the period of Yeoman SC Sessions Navy service. The USS VIXEN, Sam's ship, was a patrol yacht (PY-04), and according to the history I've been able to dig up, had brief periods when it was a tender for the AMPHITRITE.

 

Mike

[sigsaye]

Hi Steve,

 

Yes, there are four small internal buttons (one on each side of the lower end of the neck opening and one near each shoulder) for the "dickie" you mention. (On this example, there's actually only one button still present, but the stitches are there for the other three.)

 

I appreciate your observations, though. The discussion about blousing, tucking, or wearing the tails out prompted me to dig deeper into the subject than I might have otherwise, and so I've enjoyed it all the more.

 

Wingman68,

 

Thanks for the kind words.

 

For all,

 

One correction I'd like to make in the post with the leather post card: The USS AMPHITRITE was a monitor class ship, not a patrol yacht. It was the Guantanamo Bay station ship for most of the period of Yeoman SC Sessions Navy service. The USS VIXEN, Sam's ship, was a patrol yacht (PY-04), and according to the history I've been able to dig up, had brief periods when it was a tender for the AMPHITRITE.

 

Mike

Yeah, I went back and looked at your photos more closely, and could see that the jumper was actually bloused (the reason they were so long.) Then re-checked my old regs and it was in "05 when it changed, (also the dickie went away). I had been working on an article about ames 1860 cutlass' at the time and had a photo of SAW Sailors doiong cutlass drill on the peir and they were tucked in tight. Don't know why I got lost and quoted the next gen regs.

 

Beutiful uniform by the way, Thanks again.

 

Steve Hesson

[SGM (ret.)]

Hi all,

 

I've been working on refining my display for this grouping and thought that I'd post a picture of the medals and badges as they will be shown.

 

This is an inexpensive, pre-made shadow box from a chain crafts store. (I actually hit them while they were running a sale and picked this box up for about $11.)

 

The medals are held to the nappy backing material using self-adhesive velcro (a 6 x 1/2" strip provided with the box). The velcro is cut into tabs about 1/2" square, stuck to the end of a piece of black ribbon about 1 x 1/2". This is then folded over long-wise and fastened with a hand stapler about 1/8" down from the fold. The medal clasp pin is passed through the fold, closed, and then the medal is attached by the velcro to the backing. (Easy and quick; completely reversible and allows for rearrangement at any time.) The ribbon protects the medal from the adhesive on the velcro; the velcro is plenty strong enough to hold the medal in place.

 

I have several such shadow boxes and have found this to be a space-efficient method of display for my area.

 

Mike