Mess Kit Utensils History

[sgtpeter]

Fair Disclosure - I am not the original author of this content. All content is copied directly from the US Army Center for Military History paper by David C. Cole titled U.S. Army Field Mess Gear updated July 2009. If you don't have it already, it is great, high-level, concise document about all aspects of Field Mess Gear. You certainly won't find all the nuances and variations, but it has enough information to to get started. The paper can be downloaded from this link.

 

Pre-1874

 

Prior to 1874, procurement of eating utensils (knife, fork, and spoon) was up to the individual soldier. On some occasions, such items were, purchased and distributed by a benevolent commander, purchased by company funds, or in the case of a volunteer regiment, contributed by a support organization at home. Such cases were, however, the exception rather than the norm.

 

 

 

This set was used by a member of the 10th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War

 

 

[sgtpeter]

This set was used by a member of the 21st Maine Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War

 

 

[sgtpeter]

1875 Utensils

In 1874 the Infantry Equipment Board recognized for the first time the need to issue field mess equipment to the soldier and recommended the knife, fork, and spoon manufactured by Lamson, Goodenew & Co. of New York. The report was approved and forwarded to the Chief of Ordnance on January 4, 1875. These items are illustrated in Ordnance Memoranda No. 19, Infantry Equipment, published in June 1875.

 

The fork was iron cast in one piece and the tines ground to shape. It was marked U.S. or occasionally U.S.A. on the underside between the tines and the handle.

 

 

 

 

[sgtpeter]

Knives were made of cast iron in one piece with the blades polished and sharpened. The letters U.S. were marked on the blade.

 

 

[sgtpeter]

Spoons were stamped tin plated steel and were generally marked U.S. on the top of the handle, occasionally the mark was set horizontally.

 

 

[sgtpeter]

Utensils were manufactured or contracted for by Watervliet Arsenal from 1875 to 1890 and by Rock Island Arsenal from 1875 to 1902. Other known contractors include: Steward & Montgomery; Hibbard, Spencer & Bartlett; Manhattan Supply Company; Meriden Cutlery Company; J. W. Stewart Co.; and Lamson, Goodenew & Company.

 

National Guard units of the various states were, for the most part, not issued field mess equipment during peace time. At summer camps, meals were prepared in mess halls or catered so field mess kits owned by the states were kept in storage or in many cases never acquired at all.

 

During the mobilization of 1898 for the War with Spain the Quartermaster Corps purchased non-standard utensils in order to provide for the volunteer force. The items purchased were generally as close as possible to the Army pattern, but were not marked U.S.

 

Spanish-American War contingency utensils

[sgtpeter]

1902 Utensils

From 1902 to 1910 Rock Island Arsenal became the exclusive manufacturer of utensils for the U.S. Army. The forks and knives were stamped steel with tin plating. The knife was stamped, formed, tempered, and plated, and then an aluminum handle was cast on the tang.

 

1902 Utensils – the knife is marked R.I.A. U.S. 1907

 

 

[sgtpeter]

Spoons and forks were marked on the back of the handle with R.I.A. over the year of production. These marking were often very faint and are difficult to see. Knives were marked on the side of the handle. With the passage of the Dick Act in 1904, federal and state items were no longer differentiated by their markings.

 

M-1910 Utensils

Based on the recommendations of the Infantry Equipment Board of 1909, M-1910 utensils were similar in appearance to those of 1902. The fork and the spoon were stamped-formed form corrosion less metal consisting of an alloy of brass and nickel. The blade of the M-1910 knife was shortened, but made in the same manner as previously. Rock Island Arsenal was still the exclusive manufacturer of these items. Production for the M-1910 utensils began in 1911. The new utensils continued to be marked in the same location as the previous items.

 

M-1910 Utensils – the knife is marked R.I.A. U.S. 1911. The markings below the U.S. on the fork and spoon is G I, stamped by a National Guard unit to indicate that they were federal and not state issued items.

 

 

[sgtpeter]

During World War I contracts were let with commercial manufacturers to make the M-1910 pattern utensils. The fork and spoon were stamped steel with tin platting. The knife was made in the same manner as at the arsenal with a cast aluminum handle.

 

M-1910 utensils made during World War I

 

 

[sgtpeter]

Known contractors for M-1910 forks include: R. Wallace & Co. (1917 and 1918); Wallace Brothers Company (WB/W 1917 and 1918); William B. Durgin Company (WBD 1918); Charles Parker Company (C.P.C. 1918); and Rock Island Arsenal (R.I.A.).

 

Known contractors for M-1910 spoons include: R. Wallace & Co.; National Enameling Company (NEC 1917-1918); William B. Durgin Company (WBD 1918); Charles Parker Company (C.P.C. 1918); Wallace Brothers Company (WB/W 1917 and 1918); and Rock Island Arsenal (R.I.A.).

 

Known contractors for M-1910 knives include : American Cutlery Company (AC 1917 and 1918); Hinkley Manufacturing Company (H.M.1918); International Silver Company (1918); Landers, Frary & Clark Company (L.F. & C. 1917 and 1918); and Rock Island Arsenal (R.I.A.).

 

M-1926 Utensils

Based upon wartime lessons learned, the Army adopted a new pattern of utensil in 1926, but because of the large quantities of older patterns on hand production did not begin until 1941.

 

The new utensils were to have openings made in the handles so that the items could be slid onto the handle of the meat can for cleaning. They continued the requirement for corrosion-less materials to be used and the knife to be manufactured in the same manner as the previously.

 

Specification USA 28-15, dated 23 March 1934 required that M-1910 utensils be modified to conform to the new pattern but evidence indicates that only a very few were ever modified, so the M-1910 utensils remained in service into World War II.

 

By the beginning of World War II responsibility for the design and contracting of field mess equipment was Jeffersonville Quartermaster Depot. Specification JQD-2 dated 3 September 1941 changed the material of the fork and spoon to tin plated steel and required that the knife handle be made of resin plastic. However, only one company, Landers, Frary & Clark Company was successful in producing the knife with the resin handle, so the Quartermaster Department authorized the pattern 1934 knife to be produced as a substitute standard.

 

Pictured above (top) is the pattern 1934 knife with an aluminum handle and the pattern 1941 knife with black resin handle.

 

 

[sgtpeter]

The known contractor for the knife, M-1926 with resin handle: Landers, Frary & Clark Company (L. F. & C. 1941). Known contractors for the

substitute standard knife, M-1926 (pattern 1934): Landers, Frary, & Company (L. F. & C. 1941); Burns (1943); Goodall Company (1943); I. P.

Hyde (1943); International Silver Company (IS 1942); Also Diamond (Australia) (Diamond logo and undated); and Gregsteel (Australia).

 

Known contractors for the fork and spoon M-1926: Diamond Silverware Company (Diamond logo 1942) International Silver Company (IS 1942) Silco USA Division of International Silver Company (SILCO); National Silver Company (1942); Oneida Ltd. (Oneida 1942); and R. Wallace & Sons Company (W 1941, 1942).

 

On May 2, 1943, Specification JQD 349 for Fork, M-1926; and Specification JQD 350 for Spoon, M-1926, changed the material from tin to silver plate.

 

The M-1926 spoon and fork in silver plate as specified in 1943.

 

 

[sgtpeter]

Specification JQD 349A for Fork, M-1926; Specification 350A for Spoon, M-1926; and Specification JQD 2B for Knife, M-1926, all dated 2 August 1944, changed the component of the utensils to corrosion resistant steel, except for the handle of the knife.

 

The M-1926 spoon and fork in corrosive resistant steel

 

 

[sgtpeter]

Known contractors for the fork and spoon M-1926, Corrosive resistant steel are: Diamond Silverware Company (<DS>1944-1945); International Silverware Company (1944-1945); Silco USA Division of International Silver Company (SILCO) (1945); National Silver Company (1945); Oneida Ltd (1945); and R. Wallace & Sons Company (Wallco 1945).

 

Fork, Field Mess; Spoon, Field Mess; Knife, Field Mess

Specification MIL-F-284A (1950), changed the nomenclature of the M-1926 corrosive resistant steel utensils to: Fork, Field Mess, Spoon, Field Mess, and Knife, Field Mess. Specification MIL-F-284C, dated 1962, changed the knife to a one-piece stamping, and shortened the tines of the fork by .6 of an inch. This proved to be the last pattern of Army utensils to be issued.

 

New nomenclature: Spoon, Field Mess; Knife, Field Mess; and Fork, Field Mess pattern of 1962

 

 

[sgtpeter]

Known contractors for the knife, fork and spoon M-1926, corrosive resistant steel (post 1950): SKOCO; United Cutlery (U.C.); and Silco USA Division of International Silver Company (SILCO).

 

Specification MIL-F-284E Notice 2, dated February 2002, cancelled the specification and ended field mess utensils in the U.S. military. Plastic utensils are now provided with each meal.

 

*******************

 

That's it for the report. I'm sure there are plenty of variations that aren't documented here.

 

Peter

[world war I nerd]

Excellent information on a relatively overlooked piece of equipment.

 

Thanks for posting.

[doyler]

I agree.One of the best posts I have seen for a long time.Great information.This topic should be pinned.

I know I will refer to it often.

Thanks for taking time to post this very informative thread.

[gunbunnyB/3/75FA]

awesome detective work to dig out a paper on a item which to be honest doesn't get the respect that it deserves.thank you.

[sgtpeter]

Thanks everyone.

 

When I saw the post from Bellasilva, I was surprised that the topic hadn't received much detail and I remembered reading that paper. This weekend I'll try to extract the information for the mess kits unless somebody else beats me to it

 

Peter

[bellasilva]

Agreed, awesome reference material. Thanks a ton for posting it!

[gap]

I have a Silco blade marked knife with resin handle, so Landers, Frary and Clark was not likely the only manufacturer. Unless they sub-contracted the blades?

[Championhilz]

I have a Silco blade marked knife with resin handle, so Landers, Frary and Clark was not likely the only manufacturer. Unless they sub-contracted the blades?

I have a Silco blade marked knife with resin handle as well.

[BOLO]

I have a M1875 mess kit utensil knife marked "U.S.A." instead of the more common "US" it could possibly stand for US ARMY.

[BOLO]

M1875 mess kit gear

[Mac Cat]

Quote

Fair Disclosure - I am not the original author of this content. All content is copied directly from the US Army Center for Military History paper by David C. Cole titled U.S. Army Field Mess Gear updated July 2009. If you don't have it already, it is great, high-level, concise document about all aspects of Field Mess Gear. You certainly won't find all the nuances and variations, but it has enough information to to get started. The paper can be downloaded from this link.

 

 

Note:  The link from SgtPeter's first post on this thread has changed to:

 

History of the Army Museums &nbsp; Field Mess Gear

 

However, the applicable pages (p 37-43) are inserted in the posts above.

It's a good reference, but I'm still looking for the original US Government contracts for dates and specifications.

 

I have found some for the table china (plates, cups, etc.), but not the flatware.

[Mac Cat]

I collect WW-2 USN stamped flatware - the corrosion resistant (enlisted) sets, not the silver-plated (officer) pieces.

 

I recently came across a brand (Regal) and style that I am not familiar with.

I wondered if anyone can tell me anything about this set that is on eBay right now.

In particular, when it was manufactured.  (my guess is 1960+).