skinsfan Posted November 10, 2021 Share #1 Posted November 10, 2021 Hello,bought this from a distant relative of a member of our local Natl guard detachment back in the day(Hagerstown,Md)....It really caught my eye as it has corporal stripes painted on the side as well as being my stated local division more or less....was this a common practice?....It is an American made helmet and has a hole in the front with a shadow of what looks like a collar disk was there???...Thanks folks....I moved this from an incorrect forum,sorry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
644td Posted November 10, 2021 Share #2 Posted November 10, 2021 Nice lid. Do you any close up pictures of the insignia? marty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinsfan Posted November 13, 2021 Author Share #3 Posted November 13, 2021 here are two close ups...the ying/yang are blue/green although the blue looks white in pics..Scott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rhino Posted November 20, 2021 Share #4 Posted November 20, 2021 That's a nice find. Thanks for sharing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
everforward Posted November 21, 2021 Share #5 Posted November 21, 2021 I have found in my experience that for things such as this, photographic evidence is one of the best ways to authenticate something as it is purported to be…..easier said than done, right..? Prolly so. In the interwar period troop strength wasn’t as capacity for the National Guard, things were ‘kinda slow’ in terms of readiness and activity. So, you don’t see much going on in terms of soldiers taking personal liberties with their equipment….in fact, most of what they used was lent out and returned on drill weekends, not taken home. All that being said, here is a rare pic from the early 20s of some troops in the 183rd Infantry Regiment, VA National Guard, 29th Division….this shows what they did and what was allowed as a unit, which had to be sanctioned from a higher-up in rank (Company CO or Battalion level)……your mileage may vary. ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinsfan Posted November 22, 2021 Author Share #6 Posted November 22, 2021 well,it's a bit confusing,but the two sisters i got it from also sold me a ww1 mess kit with his initials and a stack of pre ww2(1940 mostly) manuals....he marked them all with name,rank(ssgt at that time) and 115th regiment....../he belonged to the local guard unit in Hagerstown,MD prior to activation....they had an old note saying he landed on Omaha on d+1.....I am thinking maybe they were a bit confused and the ww1 helmet belonged to his father possibly....or maybe he was much older when ww2 broke out hence the ww1 equipment and later just prior to ww2 manuals etc...she said she found a unit picture and will be forwarding it to me...that may clear some ,things up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikie Posted November 22, 2021 Share #7 Posted November 22, 2021 Nice helmet. Here is My Dad's M1917A1 he was issued when he joined the New York National Guard in the spring of 1940. He wore it until he was issued an M1 sometime in 1942. He sent it and the 1917 trench knife home to my grandparents as a keepsake. If this soldier was in the guard in 1940, he was probably issued a lot of WWI equipment that was eventually replaced over time after the war started. No idea if sending them home was allowed or not, but if my Dad did it, I'm sure others did it too. This soldier probably did he same thing with this helmet when he got his M1. Mikie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinsfan Posted November 23, 2021 Author Share #8 Posted November 23, 2021 no guessing who this one belonged to!....thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
everforward Posted November 25, 2021 Share #9 Posted November 25, 2021 On 11/22/2021 at 11:03 AM, skinsfan said: well,it's a bit confusing,but the two sisters i got it from also sold me a ww1 mess kit with his initials and a stack of pre ww2(1940 mostly) manuals....he marked them all with name,rank(ssgt at that time) and 115th regiment....../he belonged to the local guard unit in Hagerstown,MD prior to activation....they had an old note saying he landed on Omaha on d+1.....I am thinking maybe they were a bit confused and the ww1 helmet belonged to his father possibly....or maybe he was much older when ww2 broke out hence the ww1 equipment and later just prior to ww2 manuals etc...she said she found a unit picture and will be forwarding it to me...that may clear some ,things up It’s a great piece and who knows, that helmet may have been a keepsake from earlier times in the ‘guard….It would be great to see the unit pic when it’s available. It’s all interesting. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinsfan Posted December 2, 2021 Author Share #10 Posted December 2, 2021 will show it for sure...she is very busy so I will just have to be a little patient I guess Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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