a ww2 Civil Defense helmet of a different kind: painted 6th CB USN

[BROBS]

picked this up..

really cool helmet to me and these guys were in it from the beginning.. doing lots of work on Guadalcanal.

 

Just wanted to share here.

thanks,

-Brian

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that's all the pics I took of it.

You can just tell this thing has been wet with rain and salt spray.

When I saw it the first time I couldn't believe it.

-Brian

[BILL THE PATCH]

I like it, its different.

[bellasilva]

That's an awesome piece! I recently picked up a civil defense helmet repurposed and used by the FDNY (I'm guessing sometime in the 50's), painted red with an auxiliary fire decal on the front. Also named to the owner inside with his Hook and Ladder number. Thanks for posting

[BROBS]

No problem..

I'm sure a lot of these civil defense helmets got re-used for all sorts of things!

 

This one is a combat, non-combattant helmet?

 

A friend suggested that they may have been short on M1 helmets at the time the 6th would have been formed..

very early in the war.

 

http://www.history.navy.mil/museums/seabee/UnitListPages/NCB/006%20NCB.pdf

 

-Brian

[sgtdorango]

Cool helmet, i can just picture a CB wearing this while driving a bulldozer carving out a landing strip on some far off jungle island!....mike

[hink441]

That is a really nice find!! Never seen one before, I like it a lot!!

 

Chris

[BROBS]

Thanks guys. It was on eBay in a lot with some other items like a footlocker and other misc. unfortunately nothing was named, so I made an offer on the helmet and picked it up!

 

-Brian

[gwb123]

We keep calling these "civil defense helmets", naturally because that is one agency that made use of them.

 

But I think they are more properly government issued construction helmets, similar to civilian models that were use at the time.

[Ronny67]

I have 0 interest in these helmets usually. However, this one is very interesting.

 

Thanks for sharing.

[suwanneetrader]

In the 60's I worked for Cincinnati Gas & Elec and many of the old buildings still had Bomb Shelters (some were upgraded and stock was current but many were in disrepair with 1940's items in them. I remember one with falling apart cardboard containers (from wet and mold) that contained 100's of these white helmets. I believe the containers each held either 100 or 144 helmets. Richard

[Sabrejet]

Great helmet. I like it!