WWII Merchant Marine Uniform Question

[Will]

This is the cuff of the uniform jacket of a WWII Merchant Marine officer.

As you can see, above the rank braid is the bullion embroidered insignia of the Army Transport Service.

 

Does anyone have any information about this?

I have never heard of the Army Transport Service using Merchant Marine personnel.

I think that the jacket, while dated 1944, was worn by the owner after the war, so perhaps this was an insignia that the Merchant Marine began using post-war?

 

Any help would be appreciated. I don't have any reference books that cover the Merchant Marine insignia of WWII.

 

Many thanks!

[RustyCanteen]

It's unusual to see an ATS insignia on a MM uniform, but USMM trained personnel often signed on to ATS operated vessels during WWII.

[Will]

Thanks, Admin, very much!

[Justin B.]

The US Maritime Service was the government training and standards organization for the US merchant marine. Merchant mariners licensed by the USMS could wear the USMS uniform but weren't required to, and many did not. This officer probably just added the Transportation Corps device to his existing uniform when he signed on with the ATS. The device above the stripes like that dates from 1944.

[Will]

Thank you, Justin. That makes sense, since the interior tailor label is named and dated May of 1944.

[VolunteerArmoury]

Or he very well may've been an ATS employee & bought a USMM coat without changing buttons for whatever reason. That is the case for one of my two ATS uniforms. A blue one like this had USN buttons but Transport on the sleeve. He simply wore what he bought & only added the ATS insignia without fooling with the buttons. My tan coat has ATS buttons on it except one odd ball nautical button. A caveat, I've had a CG gray uniform that had USN buttons but his blues had USCG buttons. He may've been a former USMM turned ATS & didn't change the buttons or he may've just bought what was available when he hired onto the ATS.

[senhoragua]

This is the cuff of the uniform jacket of a WWII Merchant Marine officer.

As you can see, above the rank braid is the bullion embroidered insignia of the Army Transport Service.

 

Does anyone have any information about this?

I have never heard of the Army Transport Service using Merchant Marine personnel.

I think that the jacket, while dated 1944, was worn by the owner after the war, so perhaps this was an insignia that the Merchant Marine began using post-war?

 

Any help would be appreciated. I don't have any reference books that cover the Merchant Marine insignia of WWII.

 

Many thanks!

 

As an addendum to what everyone else has written, I did a little research on the topic several years ago.

 

http://hawsepipe.blogspot.com/2011/02/us-army-transportation-corps-water_23.html <- this has collar brass, some boards, and a variation in cuff device.

http://hawsepipe.blogspot.com/2011/02/us-army-transportation-corps-water.html <- a cap badge

 

And yes, yours appears to be a U.S. Army Transportation Corps - Water Division coat, worn by a civilian Merchant Mariner. With the sewn insignia, the date would be late-war. The device on the sleeve is a re-used one from the collar flap of a USATC-WD enlisted crackerjack uniform (crafty).

 

The buttons are those worn for early-war U.S. Maritime Service (1941) prior to service insignia overhaul.- fwiw, I have seen various sea-service buttons being used on late-war USATC-WD coats; for the life of me I have not seen any specific to the division itself... old ATS, USN...