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WW1 US army sleeve insignia regulations?


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world war I nerd

Also, Some AEF Divisions adopted a symbol which was later changed to something else. For example, the 77th Division which hailed from New York initially chose a star placed upon a shield as its insignia (left). But by the late October of 1918 when GHQ asked every AEF Army, Corps and Division to submit designs to be considered for a shoulder sleeve insignia, the 77th Division opted for an image of the Statue of Liberty because it better represented the heritage of that division (right).

 

Therefore it's possible to encounter two completely different shoulder patches worn by members of the same division.

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world war I nerd

These are probably what would be described as the "issued" WW I, 77th Division insignia.

 

They were machine embroidered onto rolls of OD wool cloth (left). Each soldier would have been issued with two images cut from the roll: one for the service coat and one for the overcoat ... shoulder patches were not authorized to be worn on the OD flannel shirt, although they do occasionally show up on that garment (center).

 

It was then up to the individual soldier to either trim the OD backing cloth down to a suitable size and either sew them on himself or have somebody who was more proficient with a needle and thread do it for him. Some would have trimmed all of the OD backing cloth away, leaving only the insignia. Some would have opted to leave a small border of OD cloth the frame the insignia and others preferred to cut the background cloth into the shape of a circle, oval or rectangle before attaching it to the service coat or the overcoat (right). So it's even possible for the regulation insignia to appear on the service coat in a number of different ways.

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This thread is terrific, thanks for all the work, world war I nerd!

 

The sailors and Marines that served only on ships during the war were authorized to wear one gold War Service Chevron for every six months served at sea. However, the Navy chevrons were worn point up and were on a dark blue wool background. As shown in the attached black and white photo. I do not know for sure, but it seems likely that the Navy also would have adopted a silver War Service Chevron for stateside duty. Anyone with more precise knowledge on Navy regulations regarding the types of War Service Chevrons and how they were worn, please add to the post.

There used to be a thread about this, but it has apparently disappeared in the reorganization of the forums. The USN rules for service chevrons were based more on those of the Royal Navy than the US Army, they were basically a minimum of three months and up to one year in the war zone, after which another three months qualified for a second chevron. You can read the pertinent orders here:

http://uniform-reference.net/insignia/usn/usn_ww1_service_chevron.html

 

Thanks again,

Justin B.

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world war I nerd

Hi Justin,

 

Thanks for the link to US Navy Wound and War Service Chevrons. I've been searching for that exact information!

 

Now if I could only find out if the Navy issued and or authorized a red discharge stripe similar to the Army. I've not paid as much attention to WW I Navy uniforms and photos posted on the forum and elsewhere, but I don't recall ever sing one with the discharge stripe.

 

Are there any WW I Navy Nerds out there???

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As WW I nerd has so expertly described and depicted, the same unit could wear varaitions of its sleeve insignia. Though not as different as the 77th Div, one other unit is the 40th Division. Most of us are familiar w/ the 12 rayed sun on a blue square turned on point (L). The command staff didn't like that and told the doughs to wear it flat like a square (M). The doughs thumbed their noses at the command staff and wore round patches ( R). Note the round one has 14 rays.....

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I realize the middle 40th Div patch in the previous doesn't look like much, but here is a smaller version of the same patch on a brassard. Now it's worn square.

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world war I nerd

Tredhed2 thanks for sharing the 40th Division photos. I must admit that the SSI of the 40th Division is one that I am least familiar with.

 

I do know that the 40th Division was the 4th AEF division to arrive in France, after the 1st, 42nd and 26th Divisions (the 2nd Division wasn't shipped over, it was assembled in France). Unfortunately, upon arrival in December 1917, General Pershing designated it as the 1st Depot Division (a replacement division) with more than half of its original personnel going to the 1st and 2nd Divisions. So if there was such a thing as the 'first 100,000 over' star worn above the War Service Chevrons, an original member of the 40th Division would certainly be qualified to wear one.

 

I've never seen a WW I SSI on a brassard before. Has anybody else?

 

Does anybody know anything about the brassard, like its purpose? Or has anybody ever encountered a similar brassard with another AEF organization's insignia on it?

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world war I nerd

I went and looked at what I have on the 40th Division insignia and all the photos showed the SSI to be sewn onto the uniform with the blue backing cloth shaped as a diamond. I had sever photos of loose insignia which, of course could have been sewn on either as a square or a diamond, or it could be cut into a circle.

 

Does anybody else have a 40th Division uniform with the SSI on a square or circle shaped background?

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  • 1 year later...
RegularsByGod

These period photos show both the small and large size rank insignia all being worn correctly on the left side of the cap's curtain; with the exception of Captain Rickenbacker who's wearing a British two button style overseas cap with his captain's insignia at the front.

 

Photo bottom left shows a great example of the 4th Division SSI with an Army of Occupation (3rd Army) patch added to its center.

 

This whole thread is super! Great work guys.

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  • 1 year later...

Good Morning,

 

I'm hoping you can assist me. I just recently acquired this World War I uniform. It has no Shoulder Sleeve Insignia indicating that the owner was a member of a particular Regiment or Division. However, it does have these interesting additions to the rank insignia and the service stripe. Does anyone have any information as to the meaning of the triangle and the small stripe? It is green, and while I believe there to be some fading, it appears that the original color was a bright Kelly green.

 

Thank you in advance for your assistance.

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Good Morning,

 

I'm hoping you can assist me. I just recently acquired this World War I uniform. It has no Shoulder Sleeve Insignia indicating that the owner was a member of a particular Regiment or Division. However, it does have these interesting additions to the rank insignia and the service stripe. Does anyone have any information as to the meaning of the triangle and the small stripe? It is green, and while I believe there to be some fading, it appears that the original color was a bright Kelly green.

 

Thank you in advance for your assistance.

 

If this is in the wrong place, please let me know. I'm brand new here.

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<p>Notice in the pictures posted of Officers, none are wearing a red discharge stripe. The red discharge stripe was only mandatory for enlisted men. I am always suspect of a put together uniform when I see an officers tunic with the red discharge stripe for it was seldom if ever worn by officers.</p>

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world war I nerd

LadyGI, rather than answer your questions regarding the green stripe & diamond here, I've written what I think I know about the unusual insignia on your service coat and posted it as a separate thread. You may find some of the answers you're looking for at the following link:

 

http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/286916-aef-special-duty-armbands-stripes/?p=2307977

 

If you don't mind, can you post an overall photo of the service coat with the curious insignia on the above link and let us know what type of collar discs are on the coat ... thanks, World war I nerd

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LadyGI, rather than answer your questions regarding the green stripe & diamond here, I've written what I think I know about the unusual insignia on your service coat and posted it as a separate thread. You may find some of the answers you're looking for at the following link:

 

http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/286916-aef-special-duty-armbands-stripes/?p=2307977

 

If you don't mind, can you post an overall photo of the service coat with the curious insignia on the above link and let us know what type of collar discs are on the coat ... thanks, World war I nerd

 

World War I Nerd,

 

Thank you so much for the fascinating information. Your Special Duty Armbands information is very interesting. I will be happy to take more pictures and give a better description.

I will post pictures to the Special Duty Armbands post.

 

Thank you again!

LadyGI

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  • 10 months later...

I do know that the 40th Division was the 4th AEF division to arrive in France, after the 1st, 42nd and 26th Divisions (the 2nd Division wasn't shipped over, it was assembled in France)

You are actually describing the 41st Division of national guardsmen from the northwestern states that was designated as the 1st Depot Division in France. The 40th Division was designated as the 6th Depot Division.

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world war I nerd

Lupercus, thanks for the correction.

 

When writing without consulting notes, I occasionally mix up the 40th & 41st Divisions in regard to which one was the 1st Depot Division.

 

My apologies to all for the error.

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