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1898-2008 Rank marks of the Sea Services


hhbooker2
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:rolleyes: Here is an odd assortment of rank marks, commonly called shoulder boards, worn as early as the Spanish-American War of 1898 to the present by the United States Coast Guard, United States Maritime Service, United States Navy, United States Public Health Service, and the United States Revenue Cutter Service. First we see the rank mark for a Rear Admiral in the U.S. Maritime Service. :rolleyes: Sarge Booker of Tujunga, California ([email protected])

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;) Commodore, United States Navy, original rank mark later replaced with gold lace going vertically instead of horizontally as seen here. ;)

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thumbsup.gif World War One United States Navy Aviator Lieutenant's rank marks, original at top and "Museum Copy" below, worn on the overcoat. thumbsup.gif

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pinch.gif During the Second World War the United States Army operated the Army Transportation Corps which wore a naval uniform with rank marks like naval officers, but with the star replaced by a ship's wheel, etc.! pinch.gif

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thumbdown.gif United States Navy Reserve, rank marks for Warrant Officers. Bursting bomb with star in centre for a Gunner and a ship's crew with star for Machinst. thumbdown.gif

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crying.gif United States Navy, Dental Corps, Lieutenant Junior Grade, grey rank mark. crying.gif United States Coast Guard, Commodore rank mark.

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:blink: United States Navy, Medical Corps (maroon) Commander and Paymaster (white) Lieutenant rank marks. According to U.S. Navy Captain James C. Tily, author of "The Uniforms of the United States Navy" (1964), on page 194 stated: "CHANGES TO THE 1866 UNIFORM REGULATIONS: On March 11, 1869, General Orders No. 90, issued by Secretary of the Navy A.E. Borie just two days after he took office, foreshadowed things to come for members of the staff corps. One section of the order concerned the uniforms to be worn by staff officers. Medical officers were directed to wear cobalt bkue cloth around the sleeve, between the gold lace rank stripes. Paymasters were assigned white cloth as a corps indication, and engineers red." Captain Tily further states on page 199: When a staff officer ranked with a single-stroped officer, the colored cloth showed a quarter of an inch on either side of the gold lace. This method of indicating the officers of the staff corps was continued until after World War one, when the cloth was removed and the staff corps devices were placed on the sleeve in the same position as the star or the Line." On page 201 he said: "When Congress on March 3, 1871 rised the relative rank of medical officers, paymaster, and engineers and granted relative rank to chaplains and naval constructors, it was not necessary to issue a uniform change to cover the three groups of staff officers who had held relative rank prior to 1863. On March 21, 1872 a Circular directed that the uniforms for naval constructors and their assistants be the same as officers of the Line with whom they held relative ranks, with the same exceptions that applied to other staff officers. The star of the Line was omitted from the sleeves, and in lieu thereof, dark violet cloth was to be worn between the bands of gold lace." On page 205 he goes on to say: "A uniform was authorized for the Civil Engineers of the Navy in 1881, fourteen years after they had been given commissioned status, and six months from the day they had finally been given a relative rank. A Uniform Circular of August 24, 1881 described the disctinctive marks and devices as follows: The sleeve lace will be light blue velvet, etc." Page 207: After so many years of being distinguished by the absence of a corps device, in 1883, medical officer were directed to wear a 'spread oak leaf embroidered in dead gold, with an acorn embroidered in silver on it' as a corps device. This is the present-day insignia of the Medical Corps. The distinctive colored cloth to be worn between ths strips of gold lace was changed, from the cobalt blue assigned medical officers in 1869 to maroon." Page 222: "The 1899 regulation incorporated the changes ordered between July 1897 and May 1899. Instead of shoulder straps for the shoulders of the white service coat and the overcoat, shoulder marks were authorized." Staff officers wore colored cloth between the gold bands on these black stgiffened shoulder boards (rank marks). Page 233 goes on to mention: "In 1913 officers of the new Dental Corps were directed to wear orange velvet cloth between the gold sleeve stripes, and on their rank marks." As a note, the Medical Reserve Corps wore crimson instead of dark maroon cloth between their gold bands. On June 26, 1918, chaplains wore lustrous black cloth between the lace on their shoulder marks. Page 243: "A week after the Armistice ending World War One was signed, the Navy Department took the final step required to bring about uniformity in the dress of officers of the regular Navy. The 'Change in Uniform Regulations, No. 25' of November 16, 1918 removed the cloth of the various staff corps from the gold lace rank stripes of the sleeves and shoulder marks of all staff officers, and directed that the corps devices be worn above the upper strip of lace in the same position as the star of the Line." :blink:

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crying.gif United States Navy, Dental Corps, Lieutenant Junior Grade, grey rank mark. crying.gif United States Coast Guard, Commodore rank mark.
Sarge, Isn't the gray one Public Health Service?

 

Steve Hesson

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Sarge, Isn't the gray one Public Health Service?

 

Steve Hesson

 

 

:blink: STEVE: Quite correct, it is indeed United States Public Health Service like this scan of a U.S.P.H.S. Warrant Officer rank mark for a Signalman? :blink:

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  • 7 months later...
hhbooker2
;) Colour plate showing rank marks of the United States Navy.

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  • 1 year later...
:blink: STEVE: Quite correct, it is indeed United States Public Health Service like this scan of a U.S.P.H.S. Warrant Officer rank mark for a Signalman? :blink:

This is for a Quarantine inspector. This rank has recently been revived & you can see soft marks of these hard boards being worn around the greater NYC area.

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  • 7 years later...

Those individuals are civil service Quarantine Inspectors working for the Center for Disease Control (CDC). They are civilians wearing uniforms like the Border Patrol or Postal Service does. They've just adopted the old PHS rank insignia from years ago. PHS Commissioned Officers working as Quarantine Inspectors, and quite a few do, wear their normal PHS Commissioned Corps uniform.

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