Found in Cedar chest

[B229]

 

Looks like the Croix de Guerre TOE (Theatre Operation Exterieur) fourragere. Colors are light blue and red.

 

I agree it certainly looks like that, but why would it be? That's for award to units operating in theaters outside of France and I do not believe any US units have ever received that award. The 28th Infantry certainly didn't. They were awarded the fourragere to the Croix de Guerre for service in France during WWI.

[capa]

It may have not been on the uniform-perhaps a souvenir, collected, or traded item?

[Squad leader]

 

I agree it certainly looks like that, but why would it be? That's for award to units operating in theaters outside of France and I do not believe any US units have ever received that award. The 28th Infantry certainly didn't. They were awarded the fourragere to the Croix de Guerre for service in France during WWI.

 

I agree with you ; that's not logical. That's probably a souvenir he brought back from Vietnam. Regarding the provenence, the Croix de Guerre TOE was awarded to the French soldiers who fought in Indochina until 1954. I assume he found one like this there.

 

Dan.

[B229]

 

I agree with you ; that's not logical. That's probably a souvenir he brought back from Vietnam. Regarding the provenence, the Croix de Guerre TOE was awarded to the French soldiers who fought in Indochina until 1954. I assume he found one like this there.

 

Dan.

 

Since he was supposed to be wearing the normal fourragere, he may well have been issued this one by mistake while in Vietnam. The unit may not have had a supply of the correct ones, so they acquired what they could locally. I'm sure the Vietnamese still had the TOE type left over from the French and maybe nobody knew the difference.

[jgawne]

That is a nice uniform, and one of the few 1/28th patches I actually believe was in Viet Nam. The 28th (The Lions of Canitgny, 'The Wupus Cats', - or more recently 'The Black Lions") is a very good unit, first combat unit to land in France in WW1, first to go into action under American command, served under the 8th Infantry Division in WW2, then later transferred back to the 1st Inf DIv.

 

The book "What Charlie Company Did to Us " deals with the 1/28th. Maybe not his exact time period, but worth reading anyway. The 28th Association is still going, although just about all of the WW2 vets are gone, but there are still a lot of Viet Nam era veterans around who may well recall him.

As to the cord? who knows. Maybe he was used to having one and when he left the unit he just put on whatever he could find to spiff it out. We'll probably never know unless one of the vets has an idea.

[jgawne]

Oh yeah, the other really good 28th in Viet Nam book to read is "The Beast was out there." by Shelton (I think). It's the 2nd Battalion/28th , but still really well worth reading.

[TrenchfootJoe66]

Wow. a super shirt loaded with Viet made insignia. Very cool. The Black Lions are a famous unit to boot !

[Bob Hudson]

This would be the perfect shirt to display using one of those large deep shadowbox frames made for sports jerseys. Not only is it a legacy of your grandfather's service, but it also has a bit of monetary value, so it's worth protecting. You can get one for about $60 from a place like Michaels or on ebay.

[TrenchfootJoe66]

I couldn't agree more. That shirt is worth it and your family legacy is of course priceless. It's a shame that your grandfather struggled with the war long after he came home. And even more of a shame that he didn't live long enough to come to terms with his service and be able to say proudly that he served in Vietnam. Maybe you can give him some long over do credit from the rest of us.

Joe sends

[gwb123]

Great find. All I can add is this was probably the uniform he wore when he returned home from Vietnam. As noted above, it was typical to sew unit patches onto the pockets when travelling. But this is the first khaki shirt I have seen with both the Battalion and Division patch.

[patches]

Ah Ha! This French Rope found with this Khaki shirt bears a strong resemblance to this Vietnam War era French Rope in it's faded state.

 

Remember this one on the 199th Inf Bde (sep) coat?

http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/202194-vietnam-199th-infantry-brigade-uniform-shoulder-cord/

[ryksem]

That is a nice uniform, and one of the few 1/28th patches I actually believe was in Viet Nam. The 28th (The Lions of Canitgny, 'The Wupus Cats', - or more recently 'The Black Lions") is a very good unit, first combat unit to land in France in WW1, first to go into action under American command, served under the 8th Infantry Division in WW2, then later transferred back to the 1st Inf DIv.

 

The book "What Charlie Company Did to Us " deals with the 1/28th. Maybe not his exact time period, but worth reading anyway. The 28th Association is still going, although just about all of the WW2 vets are gone, but there are still a lot of Viet Nam era veterans around who may well recall him.

As to the cord? who knows. Maybe he was used to having one and when he left the unit he just put on whatever he could find to spiff it out. We'll probably never know unless one of the vets has an idea.

I did read that book! Just this year! He did know some of the guys the book is about actually too. He was in Vietnam from September '68- September '69. That book is a good read though.