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Study: USN WWII Gray Uniforms 1943-1949


Ricardo
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Stinger Gunner USMC
Here's my gray enlisted jumper with 3rd class S which is for shore patrol

 

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Very nice! This may be the first jumper ive seen with a rate

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ww1collector

I have a great trunk group to a flyer Lt.Jg. in air group 80-it has the gray uniform

 

Pic of my dress gray uniform

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Another pic of group

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Pic of the trunk which is full to the brim

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ItemCo16527

This is such a fantastic thread. Someone needs to turn it into a book. Great posts everyone :thumbsup:

 

I'm also seriously regretting selling the one gray uniform I had :crying:

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Here's a gray cap I picked up at an antiques store a couple of weeks ago:

 

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Looking through the pictures and original caps pictured here, it seems that bronze insignia was the exception rather than the rule. Interestingly, the Amico insignia seems to be identical to the silver version, just with a different finish. It's marked "Amico Sterling" & "Amico 1/20 10K GonS" on the reverse.

 

Bill

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Hi All,

Love that grey stuff! I have much of this pilots stuff, including his uniform order bill from when he was taking training at NAS Banana River, Florida. He went in on the V-5 program and was a PBM pilot. Look at the 1st uniform on the list and the cost.

Terry

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ww1collector

Well-the 2 grey shirts on the list posted by Terry K. would indicate that is the correct color shirt for the grey uniform. Now I need one. Dave

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Well-the 2 grey shirts on the list posted by Terry K. would indicate that is the correct color shirt for the grey uniform. Now I need one. Dave
You're right, just went back and noticed you had a khaki shirt under there. I really hadn't noticed before.

 

Steve Hesson

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Hi All,

Here are a couple of caps I have. One may be the aviators from the bill I posted, I can't remember, pi**es me off as I usually mark items or wright it down.

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Waves gray officer hat

 

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Jason

I beleive that is Navy Nurse Corps since WAVES Officers wore the same hats as the enlisted WAVES, just with Officer insignia.

 

Steve Hesson

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Hi Steve,

Thanks I wasn't sure. I have a blue hat similar to this one, but it has the gold chin strap and the nnc and acorn insignia. I thought they wore that, but wasn't sure if that was changed later in the war.

 

Jason

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Hi Steve,

Thanks I wasn't sure. I have a blue hat similar to this one, but it has the gold chin strap and the nnc and acorn insignia. I thought they wore that, but wasn't sure if that was changed later in the war.

 

Jason

I beleive they changed in 1944. This style hat was always NNC, just changed insignia.

 

Steve

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  • 10 months later...

I recently picked up a large lot of NOS WWII era naval insignia that included several of of these gray boards still in the boxes. Here are a few of the more unusual and nicer ones:

USCG Chief Warrant Officer, USPHS Captain (I know they had a different title, but don't have my books handy), USCG Captain, USN Line Captain.

Enjoy,

Vance

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I was just at the local antique store and they had a box full of Aviation Machinist Mate 3rd class ratings. They were dated on the back 1944 and still in the original cellophane. The box was original too and had a label on it with a contract number starting N140s. What would these patches go for? The shop was asking $5 each.

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  • 3 years later...
On 12/29/2008 at 6:31 AM, Ricardo said:

Here is a picture Admiral King in his grays, with a good look at the gray 5-star shoulder boards:

 

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The commander is ace submarine skipper Robert "Dusty" Dornin, note the four "lazy loops" of an aide to a four-star or higher officer. Note also that both officers have dispensed with the scrambled egg on the visors, a wartime measure which was authorized for all officers in service and working uniforms.

 

Another "war economy" initiative of King's was a black braid chinstrap for use in place of the gold. At a strategy conference in San Francisco, Admirals King and Nimitz emerged from a hotel, with raincoats over their blue uniforms. At the time, navy raincoats did not show any rank insignia, and King was wearing his cap with black chinstrap and plain visor. As the press moved in, a photographer shouldered the COMINCH-CNO aside, saying "Out of the way, chief, I want to get a shot of the admiral!" This may account for King wearing the gold chinstrap later in the war! (The anecdote is recounted in the biography of Chester Nimitz by E.B. Potter)

 

From: http://forum.uniforminsignia.org/viewtopic...9b701f08fed345d

 

My best,

 

Ricardo.

 

Here is a color picture of Admiral King in his grays standing in the background while General Marshall greets General De Gaulle at National Airport, Washington, D.C. - 1945, probably summer right after the Germans surrendered. I believe that is also General Arnold behind De Gaulle. It's looks like the Admiral is still wearing a black chinstrap but it could be gold and just obscured by the shadows.

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Commanding Officer of the US Navy Air Base at Fort Lyantey in North Africa.

 

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US Navy Air Base in North Africa. A Lockheed Ventura search plane gets a swabbing down from ground crew after returning from anti-sub patrol from Port Lyautey.

 

Not being very familiar with Naval uniforms, are the sailors on the left wearing a gray work uniform of this pattern?

 

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German U-Boat, U-858, surrenders to US at rendezvous off Cape May, N.J., after being escorted there by DE's for 1000 miles. Cdr. J. Norfleet, USN (Ret.), (left) accepts surrender of German Sub Captain, Thile Bode, While in center is Lt. R.H. Brown, USNR, Interpreter on USS ATR-57. May 1945

 

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Following are various color modeled shots of the slate gray uniform and accessories

 

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Commanding Officer of the US Navy Air Base at Fort Lyantey in North Africa.

 

 

I notice his brown shoes...isn't that an aviation working green uniform?

 

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I notice his brown shoes...isn't that an aviation working green uniform?

 

 

Maybe. Not only do I know next to nothing about Navy uniforms, but I'm also half color blind.

 

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Here is a color picture of Admiral King in his grays standing in the background while General Marshall greets General De Gaulle at National Airport, Washington, D.C. - 1945, probably summer right after the Germans surrendered.

Marshall and King are wearing four stars, so it can't be '45.

 

I notice his brown shoes...isn't that an aviation working green uniform?

It is, and so is the first one in post # 114. Cool flag on his "flag plane!" Those are great images, thanks for posting them!

 

Justin B.

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Marshall and King are wearing four stars, so it can't be '45.

 

Justin B.

The source where I got the pictures indicated it was 1945. I wondered myself, but when I looked at Marshall's stars I thought they were the five General Of The Army stars with the U.S. crest above them. But on closer look, you are right, he is wearing four stars. Thanks.

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US Navy Air Base in North Africa. A Lockheed Ventura search plane gets a swabbing down from ground crew after returning from anti-sub patrol from Port Lyautey.

 

Not being very familiar with Naval uniforms, are the sailors on the left wearing a gray work uniform of this pattern?

 

. I think those guys are wearing either OD coveralls or the very short lived OD dungarees. Like I've said several times, I much prefer the grays over the khakis and wish they had been retained with the khakis getting dumped
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  • 5 weeks later...

This is a fascinating topic.

Thanks to all the contributors.

I hope that there will be more info and photos posted.

Shemp

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Salvage Sailor

Some more from my photo archives

 

Period Photo - Landing Craft School 1944 ATB Coronado, CA (San Diego)

Note the officer on the left in light greys including the proper chin strap and black buttons on his combination hat

 

Landing Craft School 1944 ATB Coronado.JPG

 

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Salvage Sailor

The old and the new, Amphibious/Beach Master Training, Coronado, California 1944

 

Landing Craft School 1944 ATB Coronado 02.JPG

 

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