Need help with lapel pin ID

[Tenstone84]

I am searching for any information you can provided concerning this lapel pin. This pin belonged to my friends father who was a member of Company B, 285th Engineering Battalion in World War II. The pictures are a bit blurrry, but it's all we have. I figure someone will recognize the shape and configuration. If you have more questions, I can certainly try to answer them,

Here are the pictures I have:

 

Blown up image:

 

Thank you for any information you can provide, it is much appreciated.

[Rakkasan187]

Welcome to the forum..

 

I am seeing Military Police crossed pistols as collar brass and the shape of the unit crest is similar to the 757th Military Police Battalion... As mentioned the photo is somewhat blurry so this is pure speculation.. I cross reference MP unit crests in WW2 based on what I believe to be MP Collar brass. I am not seeing an Engineer castle as the collar brass...

 

Others with better eyes may be able to provide a more positive ID of the unit crest

 

 

 

Leigh

 

 

[Tenstone84]

Thanks for the reply Leigh and thanks for the welcome. That's a pretty close match, but my friend has no records of his dad being in the military police. Or any mention of it when he was alive. Here's a pic of him(red circle). The pic is labeled, "CO. "B" 285th ENGR. © BN. CAMP CAMPBELL. KY. 1944".

 

 

Here's the labeled part:

 

 

 

 

I can get more info on his service if needed. I'll ask my friend to send me a full pic of his portrait as that may give us more information,

 

Thanks again for the help!

[Indexred]

Thats Military Police collar brass in the photo, definitely not Engineers brass.

[Rakkasan187]

Try to get as much information as possible..

 

It could be that he (friends father) was transferred to (post war) or from (pre war) an MP unit into the Engineers..

 

If you can get a high res scan of the photo we may be able to further identify...

 

We will continue to assist you.. There are some great members here who have access to records and other information..

 

Leigh

[Tenstone84]

Admittedly, I should have compiled more information before I started this post. I'm in the process of obtaining more information from my friend, but he's busy with work right now, so I'll post more info as it comes to me.

 

I did a short text with him last night and I learned that his father, prior to being deployed to Europe, was guarding Italian POWs in the Red River Valley of Minnesota/North Dakota. My friend may have the name of the specific camp. I did a bit of research and found that there were about 20 POW camps in Minnesota during WW2. The camps he might have been posted to, that were in the Red River Valley of MN, were Warren, Crookston, Moorhead, Ada and Ortonville, MN. Possibly Grand Forks or Grafton, ND. Here's a map showing the camps:

 

 

So I was in error in claiming that he was never involved with the Military Police. Once again, my apologies for not getting enough info before I started. My friend has more info on his father and I'm also waiting to get permission from him to post his father's name. I have a document/write up describing his actions that earned him a Bronze Star in March of '45 while in Luxembourg.

 

So much more info will be incoming!

 

Thanks again for your help. I appreciate it, as does my friend.

[Salvage Sailor]

I'm seeing some sort of Lion or other beast with an open mouth on that DI

[patches]

I'm seeing some sort of Lion or other beast with an open mouth on that DI

+1

 

The scroll also appears to be ever so slightly different too, plus not seeing that Red Bar as in the 757th Military Police Battalion.

[Tenstone84]

Still in the process of getting more info. Thanks for the continued help and patience!

[patches]

We will have to be looking for a Military Police Battalion that was under the direct command of the 7th Service Command, but unfortunately Orders of Battle for WWII Service commands are hard to find.