MasonK Posted August 1, 2015 Share #1 Posted August 1, 2015 Just received this in the mail this morning from the granddaughter of the Vet! Thanks goes out to a coworker who thought of me when he saw this. The vets granddaughter is his mother in-law, and she was going to put it into auction the day after my co-worker contacted me (local, not eBay). Thankfully she didn't, as the other items included in the auction went for pennies on the dollar. Group is named to Glenn L Niccum. It consists of his dog tags, named gas mask and M1917 helmet. Glenn served in a Machine Gun Company, in the 339th Infantry Regiment. Thanks to forum member Bodes for passing this info onto me. Helmet, which is British made, has a white camo application, and RUSSIA stenciled across the top. Gas Mask and Bag is complete, however the mask is a bit stiff. Written on the interior flap is GL Niccum, MG Co. Lastly, one of his dog tags; his granddaughter kept the other. There is a photo of him in uniform, however the granddaughter has to locate it (they are in the process of a move and it is packed away). In any case, I'm proud to be the caretaker of this Polar Bear's grouping, and I'm looking forward to the additional research on the vet! http://bentley.umich.edu/legacy-support/polarbear/getinfo.php?id=3873 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share #2 Posted August 1, 2015 Group shot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share #3 Posted August 1, 2015 Dog Tag Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share #4 Posted August 1, 2015 Gas Mask Name on flap Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share #5 Posted August 1, 2015 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share #6 Posted August 1, 2015 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share #7 Posted August 1, 2015 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share #8 Posted August 1, 2015 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share #9 Posted August 1, 2015 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share #10 Posted August 1, 2015 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uniformcollector Posted August 1, 2015 Share #11 Posted August 1, 2015 Incredible! That's amazing that it was with the family all this time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share #12 Posted August 1, 2015 Thanks, Uniformcollector! I agree. The vet passed away in 1947, and the granddaughter never met him. Likely passed down to her parent, then to her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigDogMilitaria Posted August 2, 2015 Share #13 Posted August 2, 2015 Love it! My Great-Uncle was a Polar Pear in the 339th! Always love seeing their stuff. Thanks for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anton67 Posted August 2, 2015 Share #14 Posted August 2, 2015 That is a really NOYCE helmet. Congratulations Eric. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 2, 2015 Author Share #15 Posted August 2, 2015 Thanks, gentlemen! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katieony Posted August 3, 2015 Share #16 Posted August 3, 2015 Very nice group...thanks for posting. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 3, 2015 Author Share #17 Posted August 3, 2015 Thanks, Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siege1863 Posted August 3, 2015 Share #18 Posted August 3, 2015 My grandfather was also a Polar Bear--337th Ambulance Company. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryM3 Posted August 7, 2015 Share #19 Posted August 7, 2015 Super nice group, really like that helmet!! Larry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 7, 2015 Author Share #20 Posted August 7, 2015 Thanks again, gentlemen! I'm actually going to be speaking with the son of the vet tonight. He has some additional information on the vets service, as well as some photos. Thought I'd share how I have the group displayed. Had a WWI uniform (patched to the 30th Division, but it works for now). Likely won't leave the gas mask on for long, as I don't want to strain the straps too much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Queen Posted August 8, 2015 Share #21 Posted August 8, 2015 Great grouping Eric. Material from the "Polar Bears" seems to be quite hard to find. I am not trying to hijack your thread but I just wanted to mention to everyone that the like you provided is a really good name research tool for his unit. I picked up an old VFW cap from a guy from this unit which had a name in it and I was able to find him on this website. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Queen Posted August 8, 2015 Share #22 Posted August 8, 2015 L.A.Watts Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Queen Posted August 8, 2015 Share #23 Posted August 8, 2015 Here he is Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 9, 2015 Author Share #24 Posted August 9, 2015 Nice cap, Eric! The website is great, and has some nice period photos in their archives, as well. Although credit for providing the link should go to forum member Bodes, as he is the one who turned me onto the site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted August 9, 2015 Author Share #25 Posted August 9, 2015 Thought I'd share some of the info obtained from my discussion with the son of the vet. Niccum was initially sent to Camp Custer in Battle Creek, MI for training, prior to his overseas deployment After training, he was sent to England where he was issued a Lee Enfield. From there, he was transferred to Archanelsk. Apparently upon arrival, he was issued a Mosin-Nagant. I assume the Enfield was for additional training, and the Nagant was his service rifle. The son couldn't confirm. According to the son, Niccum's final rank was Sgt. Sometime while in North Russia, he sustained a knee injury as a result of a building explosion from an aircraft bombing, however continued his service. He remained in Russia until May of 1920, and spent approximately 2 years overseas. The son is going to be sending me scans of Niccum in uniform, as well as scans of photos Niccum took while in Russia. He's going to check if he has any duplicates of Niccum in uniform, and hopefully I'll be able to obtain an original. Although, the scans will be awesome in their own right. The son also has a piece of trench art Niccum made out of a French 75mm shell. I requested a photo of this as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now