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U.S. Army knit clothing from 1911 to 1918


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The 1911 Knit Service Cap & home knit helmets

 

Photo no. 28: Here recruits destined for the 33rd Division training during the bitter winter of 1917/18 at Camp Sheridan, Illinois, line up for a warm meal and a hot drink. The men all wear the long army overcoat over their wool service dress. Regulation olive drab wool gloves and the army issued 1911 Knit Cap or Toque is worn to help ward off the winter chill. The knit caps are being worn per regulations, under their campaign hats to protect the face and ears from the severe winter weather encountered by the men training in the American Midwest. Also of interest is the soldier near the front of the line who is wearing a non regulation, private purchase or home knit sweater.

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Photo no. 29: These images all come from various wartime publications and show a few of the many different styles of commercial and home knit headgear that were made for the men serving in France.

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Photo no. 30: This close up (taken from photo no. 10) shows a Doughboy wearing what could be the regulation 1911 Knit Cap, as well as the seldom seen rain poncho. After the winter of 1917/18 the ponchos were replaced in the front lines by raincoats because it was difficult to wear the gasmask satchel in the alert position with this garment. (Forum member, New Romantic)

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Photo no. 31: This Doughboy purchasing supplies from a canteen in Archangel, Russia is wearing a thick knit toque or balaclava rolled up much like a navy watch cap.

 

A lightweight worsted wool cap was recommended by an Infantry Equipment Board to go with the proposed new uniform. The recommended cap was designed to be carried in the pocket of the overcoat or the sweater, to be worn whenever the climate required, over the ears and under the campaign hat, when on the march and when sleeping. The 1911 Service Cap or Toque was adopted by the army at the same time as the wool service sweater and like the sweater it didn’t last very long. It was abolished as an article of equipment for overseas troops in 1917 and as a result very few of the regulation knit caps ever saw service in France. At the time they were discontinued the army had around 1,500,000 of them stockpiled in Quartermaster storehouses across the nation. Eventually the retired wool toques were put to good use when it was discovered that they could be sewn together and made into a woolen muffler which was still an article of equipment prescribed for the men of the A.E.F. The reworked toque/muffler represented a significant savings to Uncle Sam and were made at a cost of just twenty cents each, compared to the three dollar cost of the regulation woolen muffler.

 

To take the place of the discontinued army issued knit cap, knitters on the home front took it upon themselves to supply many different knit caps, helmets, balaclavas, stocking caps and toques on behalf of the men in the trenches. Of all the home knit garments the knit caps arguably show the greatest variety of styles, designs and shapes; everything from a simple knit headband that was worn to warm the ears to knit skull caps or helmet liners and elaborate stocking caps complete with attached mufflers were created for the soldiers by mothers, spouses, siblings, girlfriends and the thousands of other knitters who donated their time to make garments for the men going to war. A sergeant in the 6th Division’s, 318th Engineers, who had to make due with his oversized campaign hat envied the other soldiers, who had already been issued a donated knit helmet and wrote the following while on his troopship headed to France,

 

“Wish I had a knit trench cap. My hat is in the way in these narrow quarters and promises to be a nuisance later on. Many fellows have helmets the Red Cross gave them. Handy things too.”

 

Photo no. 32: When the lightweight worsted knit wool cap called a Toque was dropped as an article of equipment by the A.E.F. the soldier’s mothers, wives, sisters, sweethearts and the thousands of other wartime volunteers stepped up to replace this item by knitting an endless variety of caps, helmets and hoods for their men in far off France. (From left to right)

 

a. A knit Balaclava called a Toque by the army, which could cover the whole head and face leaving only the eyes exposed. These were often worn rolled up and were pulled down to cover the ears and face when necessary. This example was donated by the Red Cross and features a label sewn inside of the lower front portion.

 

b. This simple homemade knit skull cap, often called a helmet liner was designed to be worn under the steel helmet in combat.

 

c. An unusual home knit stocking cap which features an integral scarf knitted as part of the cap.

 

d. A cleverly designed home knit muffler which narrows at the center. This style of scarf not only conserved wool but made it less bulky while still providing the desired amount of warmth when wrapped around the wearer’s neck and it would also be much lighter when carried in a Doughboy’s pack.

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Photo no. 33 & 34: Many of the toques, balaclavas and trench caps were made with an extended front and back, neck flap designed to be tucked under the collar of the service coat.

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Photo no. 35: Military aviators frequently wore regulation and private purchase sweaters, caps, hoods, mufflers and gloves to keep warm while flying at high altitudes. This pilot is wearing a commercially purchased sweater and hood as part of his flight clothing. (Unknown forum member)

 

Photo no. 36: This early military aviator and his co-pilot are both wearing flight goggles; the co-pilot already has a natural fur coat to keep warm but the pilot must wear a double breasted canvas or leather flight coat. This style of coat was often worn by pre World War I pilots. He also wears a commercial knit wool hood instead of the usual hard shell, leather helmet that was also commonly worn by army aviators. Later the A.E.F. would issue a special wool hood designed exclusively for the pilots of the Air Service. The regulation pilot’s hood was made from soft olive drab wool and covered the entire face and bridge of the nose, much like a balaclava, leaving an opening only for the eyes. The hood was split below the nose which allowed it to be opened and folded back to expose the face. The eye openings as well as the edges where it was split below the nose were all edged in brown leather and the opening was secured by four black snap fasteners.

 

Photo no. 37: This cadet pilot wears a knit hood and leather moccasins. The Quartermaster kept stores of regulation moose hide moccasins for use in extreme climates. (Unknown forum member)

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The 1911 Service Muffler & home knit mufflers & scarves

 

Photo no. 38 & 39: Show here are three different examples of woolen garments produced during the war. First is a fur lined face and neck protector, followed by a simple knit cap and a plain, rectangular knit muffler, all taken from wartime catalogs which offered instructions, knitting patterns and supplies to volunteer knitters.

 

In the early twentieth century almost all of the army’s transport consisted of mule or horse drawn wagons and carts of various types and by 1911 the military still had fewer than one hundred motor vehicles scattered across America. Most of the supply wagons and motor trucks in use at the turn of the century had an open cab which exposed the driver to the elements. Because these vehicles exposed the drivers to the elements a Woolen Muffler was adopted by the army as an article of clothing in 1911. The uniform regulations prescribed the woolen muffler for military muleskinners, horse drawn ambulance and wagon drivers as well as the new motorcycle, motor car and motor truck drivers that now made up a small portion of the army. The regulation 1911 Wool Muffler issued was made from a high quality of closely woven olive drab wool or camel’s hair. The regulation muffler was sixteen inches wide and one and one half yards long and both of its ends were finished with a fringe.

 

When the A.E.F. arrived in France the majority of its transport was still powered by mules and horses and the A.E.F. uniform regulations continued to authorize a woolen muffler for the drivers of wagons, motor cars, trucks, ambulances and motorcycles, all of whom were frequently seated for prolonged periods of time exposed to the stormy weather of “Sunny” France. A corporal in the Quartermaster Corps, Motor Truck Company No. 443, noted this fact in a letter written home,

 

“It’s been raining all week. I drove a Packard truck which has no top and no lights. I sit in a puddle of water all the time.”

 

In addition to the truck and wagon drivers the woolen muffler was increasingly worn by military aviators of the Air Service, who also needed to be protected from the cold and damp when flying at high altitudes. Beyond the fringed muffler issued by the army many different woolen scarves and mufflers were sold by the usual commercial military outfitters and numerous other scarves of differing patterns, shapes and styles were knitted at home, many of which found their way into the packs of the American fighting men.

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Photo no. 40: Because the muffler was authorized only for A.E.F. vehicle drivers, home front volunteers took it upon themselves to knit this item for the common foot soldier. Just like all the other knit garments the scarves and mufflers appeared in an array of types, sizes and styles. (From left to right)

 

a. The smooth texture and fringed ends are apparent on this regulation army muffler which was issued by the Quartermaster Corps to qualified military chauffeurs, muleskinners, and wagon, truck and ambulance drivers as well as to motorcycle dispatch riders.

 

b. This muffler donated by the Red Cross is made from brown wool. It has ribbed ends and the mandatory “not to be sold” label sewn near one end.

 

c. This home knit muffler made of gray wool consists of a simple rectangular shape, lacking any details and is part of a three piece set.

 

d. Most of the Red Cross mufflers were made to a standard pattern approved by the army and that explains the similarity of the two Red Cross mufflers shown in the photograph. This example which is made from olive drab wool is nearly identical to the muffler on the left and features a slightly different Red Cross label stitched onto it.

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Photo no. 41: This detail from the woolen mufflers shown above, shows two of the many different labels used by the American Red Cross. The labels were required by the War Department to prevent the garments from being sold or traded on the black market and to prevent dishonest relief workers from cheating the soldiers. Most of the other charitable organizations had similar labels attached to their donated goods. There were many design variations of the Red Cross labels, however, they all noted where the item originated and featured a warning that the item was a gift and not to be sold.

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Photo 42: This reconstruction of a warmly dressed Wagoneer who is part of the 305th Supply Train, 80th Division. Here he takes a break to catch up on the latest news from a dog eared copy of the “Stars and Stripes” newspaper. The 1907 Winter Field Cap and the Red Cross muffler protect him from the raw autumn weather of Northwestern France. October, 1918

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Wool Service Gloves & commercial & home knit gloves & mittens

 

Photo no. 43: This soldier posing for the camera with his 1903 Springfield Rifle is wearing the pre-war machine woven 1911 Woolen Gloves, without seams. It is difficult to see the ribbed cuffs in the close up photo but the shorter length of the early gloves are plainly evident.

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Photo no. 44: The majority of woolen gloves worn by the Doughboys were issued by the Quartermaster Corps or purchased from commercial retail outlets both in the U.S. and in Europe. This was because the gloves were much more complicated to knit and for the most part only wool mittens and wristlets were home knit. (From left to right and top to bottom)

 

a. The quality of the machine woven pre war regulation seamless olive drab 1911 Woolen Gloves is evident, especially when they are compared to later examples shown on the right. Note their shorter length, short ribbed cuffs and the smooth wool texture.

 

b. The regulation sewn woolen glove was a wartime substitute, conceived to replace the more difficult to manufacture seamless woven glove which was currently in short supply. The un-ribbed glove was made longer than the seamless glove to provide additional warmth for the men. Note the poor shape of the pointed fingers and the coarser inferior grade wool.

 

c. The poor fitting ambidextrous glove was designed to be worn on either hand. These gloves were also sewn and featured a seam around the outside. Note that the fingers aren’t as pointed and that the row of stitching around the wrist has been moved closer to the edge. This style of glove first saw service in the final months of the war. They were made from an even coarser grade of sub standard wool which contained a larger percentage of low quality wool substitutes and reworked wool which was used with greater frequency on military garments late in the war.

 

d. A well made pair of home knit brown wool mittens with ribbed cuffs.

 

e. These khaki wool wristlets were donated by the Red Cross. The wristlets made during the war could be found in khaki, olive drab, mustard, gray and other shades of wool, however; they all featured a ribbed pattern and an opening for the thumb to pass through.

 

f. The overall appearance of the home knit and donated wristlets showed very little variation in their design with most appearing to be almost identical. This pair of home knit gray wool wristlets makes up part of a three piece set. The matching sets of a simple design were almost always home knit by a family member while other more stylish sets featuring more complicated details and were typically machine woven and purchased from specialty shops, department stores and military outfitters.

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Photo no. 44: These U.S. Marines have detailed to help with the 1917 Christmas mail in France are all wearing the 1912 Overcoat and the old 1912 pattern Winter Field Coat without the lower skirt pockets. A number of the men are wearing pre war seamless woven wool gloves.

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Photo no. 45: This reconstruction of a Gunnery Sergeant who has picked up an abandoned Chautchat automatic rifle from the battlefield; with the Skipper out of action, he is preparing to lead the surviving Leathernecks to the days objective of St. Etienne, which had been assigned to the 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Division, during the October, 1918, Champaigne offensive.

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Photo no. 46: These homeward bound “Black Yankees” as the French called the African American Doughboys, raise a cheer at having sighted the Statue of Liberty. They all appear to be wearing the late war substitute sewn or ambidextrous glove with the longer un-ribbed cuff which have been folded back.

 

In the years leading up to World War I a seamless olive drab Woolen Glove was standard issue for all American soldiers. The well made regulation 1911 Wool Service Glove was machine woven in one piece, which resulted in a smooth finish without any seams at all. The smooth wool glove featured a short ribbed cuff that ended just above the wrist. As the army grew in size during World War I so did its need for special clothing and it was discovered that there was a shortage of knitting machinery in the textile mills of America. It turned out that the available equipment was capable of knitting only one tenth of the seamless gloves required by the rapidly expanding army.

 

To make ends meet it was necessary for the Quartermaster Corps to adopt an inferior substitute woolen glove. The new glove was not woven on a loom but made from a poor quality of coarse olive drab knit woolen fabric. The woolen fabric was cut from a pattern into a top and bottom hand shaped piece. The two cut pieces were then sewn together and when completed, each glove had a noticeable seam that ran around the outside. The wartime production 1917 Sewn Wool Glove first arrived in France worn by replacements reporting for duty in the early spring of 1918.

 

After the first winter of the war a study was conducted of all winter clothing worn by the Doughboys to note any deficiencies and to determine how their function and performance could be improved. In an effort to provide more warmth for the Doughboys the cuff of the 1917 sewn glove was made longer than that of the 1911 woven glove and it was made to extend well beyond the wrist. Since the new glove was cut from knit cloth and not woven it featured a smooth cuff without any ribbing. The fit and quality of the seamed wartime production glove was poor and in actual service the sewn glove did not stand up to the hard usage required of them in the trenches. The palms wore out quickly and many split at the seams. These deficiencies caused the Quartermaster Corps to design, manufacture and issue an additional “over” glove in 1918, made of Canton flannel with the palm cased in leather. This over glove was meant to be worn over the seamed gloves in order to prolong their life. (If anyone has a pair of the over glove please post a photo)

 

In an attempt to further increase the life of the regulation woolen glove and to conserve wool a simplified, ill fitting ambidextrous wool glove was conceived in mid 1918. These gloves were made to comfortably fit on either hand and their design allowed them to be flipped over and worn on the opposite hand whenever the palm began to show wear. The 1918 Ambidextrous Glove was the final woolen glove issued for use by the Doughboys. They were introduced sometime in the late summer or early fall and saw service along side of the woven and sewn service gloves until the end of hostilities.

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Wool wristlets

 

Photo no. 47: Here a Marine corporal receives first aid for a minor foot injury. He wears the forest green wool Winter Field Uniform and is also wearing a pair of fingerless wool wristlets and the remains of his campaign hat, now without the brim.

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Photo no. 48: An example of the woolen wristlet taken from a period knitting catalog. Note the ribbed texture along its entire length, a feature that seemed to be common on all wristlets.

 

The Woolen Wristlet was one of the practical innovations that came out of trench warfare. The simple knitted tubes turned out to be much easier, cheaper and quicker to produce than the traditional woolen glove. Like many of the items used by Pershing’s Doughboys the wristlet was not an authorized article of equipment for use in the U.S. because of this they were not listed in any of the uniform regulations or specifications of the period. However they were issued by the army to the troops destined for duty in the trenches of the Western Front, as well as the organizations that were detailed for service in Siberia and Northern Russia The wristlets would have been issued at the same time as trench shoes, gas masks, steel helmets and overseas caps as part of the equipment for overseas service. A private first class in an engineer outfit noted the contents of the last parcel he received in the States and noted the issue of government woolen wristlets as well as other overseas equipment, just days before he boarded a troopship bound for the big European shoot out,

 

“Received package from Marge containing sweater, two pairs of socks, three bars of soap and candy…After chow drew sweater, wristlets and slicker. Had barracks bag marked.”

 

Many thousands of wristlets were also donated by the charitable and relief organizations or sold commercially and they were made by volunteer knitters and family members who sent them overseas to help warm the hands of the Doughboys serving at the front.

 

The wristlet was just a shapeless knitted tube, open at both ends with a hole near one end that was large enough for the thumb to pass through. The open end of the knitted palm extended down only as far as the first knuckle, leaving the bare fingers exposed. Some wristlets were made with a thumb hole at both ends so that they could be reversed when one side began to wear out. The wristlets were a useful item in trench warfare and always in high demand by the troops who served at the front. They not only kept the hand and wrists warm but they also allowed the fingers to remain unencumbered, making it easier for the troops to handle a gun, write messages or perform any other task that required any degree of manual dexterity.

 

Photo no. 49: This reconstruction is of a decorated Corporal who is a member of the “Harlem Hell Fighters”. This was the nickname of the 369th Infantry Regiment and at this time the 93rd Division made up part of the French 157th Division “Goybet”, which in turn was part of the 7th French Army fighting in the Alsace Sector during October of 1918. The corporal has donned a simplified 1918 Overcoat and a pair of woolen wristlets to help keep him warm.

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Non regulation stocking puttees

 

Photo no. 50: After the war Eddie Rickenbacker would be America’s most famous pilot. In this early photo he is holding an aerial bomb and wearing a pair of non regulation knit stocking puttees.

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Photo no. 51: These two military aviators are both wearing the commercially made stocking puttees. Note that one of the pilots wears a private purchase mackinaw style short overcoat while the other wears a non regulation long sleeved sweater with a button collar.

 

Another non regulation knit item worn by America’s servicemen over there was the knit Stocking Puttee. This garment appears to have been strictly a private purchase item and was available from the customary retail outlets. The stocking puttee was designed as a substitute for the regulation wool wrap puttees. The new recruits and draftees often found that neatly wrapping the puttees could be a time consuming, complicated and frustrating process which took some time to master. According to a newly appointed corporal in the 92nd Division,

 

“Everyone was troubled by the spiral puttees. How to get what looked like a roll of olive drab bandage wrapped around ones leg, that was the question.”

 

The stocking puttee consisted of a tapered knit tube that extending from just below the knee of the breeches, down to the top of the shoe. It had a horizontal raised pattern woven into the fabric that simulated the spiral pattern made by a wrapped woolen puttee. The fake woven puttee was much easier and quicker to put on than the traditional wrap puttees, as they were simply slipped over the stocking and pulled up until they covered the bottom edge of the breeches. A khaki cotton tape garter was then wrapped around the upper edge and tied to prevent them from slipping down, after which, the top of the stocking puttee was turned down to conceal the tape garter. When viewed from a distance the stocking puttee, surprisingly, resembled the regulation spiral wrapped puttee. The stocking puttees could also be worn under the issued spiral puttees as a leg warmer, providing an additional layer of clothing to help keep out the cold. The stocking puttees were rarely worn by front line troops, however, they did seem to be favored by aviators and other personnel who did not serve in the water logged trenches. The wearing of such an item would have been subject to the whims of the individual unit commanders.

 

Photo no. 52: Stocking puttees were devised by retailers as a shortcut to the complicated regulation spiral wrap puttees. The imitation knit puttees were not issued by the military nor were they made or donated by the Red Cross or home front knitters. The only way for a soldier to obtain this garment was to purchase it himself or to receive it as a gift. (Clockwise from left)

 

a. Each Doughboy was issued one, one quarter pound can of foot powder much like this one manufactured by Parke Davis and Co. to help keep his feet healthy.

 

b. The Squad Leaders Pouch was sometimes called a “squad housewife” because of its contents. It featured a web extension which allowed the pouch to hang below the meat can pouch in place of the shovel when attached to the haversack or to hang below the first aid pouch when it was worn on the belt. The regulation contents of the pouch not only included soap, adhesive plasters, adhesive tape and foot powder for the men’s feet, but also a screwdriver, an extraction tool for jammed cartridges, an oil bottle and extra rifle patches, all for maintaining the squad’s weapons, as well as a pair of scissors, three large needles, twenty common pins, eight safety pins, one spool of black, white and olive drab thread, one card of twenty four buttons for the wool flannel shirt and forty eight buttons for underwear all to be used by individual squad members as needed.

 

c. Another one quarter pound can of foot powder; this example was manufactured by the Manhattan Soap Co. and dated 1917.

 

d. The original cardboard container for the above can of foot powder also dated 1917.

 

e. A pair of non regulation brown wool, knit Stocking Puttees, designed to cover the calf from the top of the boot to the bottom of the breeches. Note the simulated ridges imitating the pattern made by regulation spiral wrap puttees.

 

f. Just like the stockings many soldiers purchased or received from home various non regulation toilet items and foot powder like this tin of Nathan brand Foot Ease foot powder.

 

g. If foot powder was not available substitutes such as this tin of Mavis brand talcum powder could be used instead to reduce the amount of friction on the foot when marching.

 

h. Adhesive plasters were small strips of gauze impregnated with plaster and were used much like a modern day band-aid to cover blisters or minor abrasions. Adhesive plasters were not issued directly to the troops by the army, but all medical personnel as well as squad leaders carried them in various sizes for use by the men. However; many Doughboys purchased their own pocket size tin of plasters like this example manufactured by Bauer and Black for their personal use.

 

i. Another brand of adhesive plasters used by the American soldiers in France was ‘Zinc Oxide’ plasters produced by the Hall’s Company.

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Photo no. 53: An exploded view of the stocking puttees and garters from the 1917/18 Wanamaker’s catalog.

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Military stockings

 

Photo no. 54: Another load of woolen stockings neatly bailed and ready to leave the knitting mill that manufactured them. Overseas the stockings will help to keep the Doughboys feet warm dry and healthy.

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Photo no. 55: The military could not always trust the soldiers to take proper care of their feet and to reduce the number of men falling out with foot injuries during a march, it became necessary to hold routine inspections of the men’s feet, especially after a long hike. Here regulars of the 6th Infantry undergo a foot inspection in Mexico in 1916.

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Photo no. 56: The “Soldiers of the sea” were subjected to the same foot inspection as the foot sore Doughboys of the army. Here a company of Marines sit patiently while the inspection is held.

 

Photo no. 57: This raw recruit has properly followed army protocol by laundering his soiled socks which can be seen hanging on the guy line of the squad tent behind him. Note the galvanized iron wash basin used for laundering the socks.

 

Good care of the soldiers feet had long been standard army practice and like the regulars that marched into Mexico and the State Militia men who patrolled the Mexican Border on foot, the greater part of troop movement in France was achieved by marching. The Doughboy’s marched many hundreds of kilometers wearing their hobnailed field shoes, during all kinds of weather through England, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Italy, Germany and Russia making the soldier’s foot, shoe and stocking as important as any mule, horse or motor vehicle and the army strived to keep them all in good repair. After all, a soldier who could not march was a soldier that could not fight and GHQ knew all too well that preventive maintenance was the key to keeping the Doughboy’s feet healthy and strong. These measures ranged from simple personal hygiene to the issue of specialized rubber footwear for use in the waterlogged trenches.

 

To help maintain the men’s feet overseas, before embarking each soldier was supplied with a one quarter pound tin of foot powder, compliments of the Medical Department and two extra pairs of wool stockings were provided by the Quartermaster Corps. Thus, the American Doughboy arrived in Europe carrying only four pairs of extra woolen socks in his haversack and most still wore the thin soled combination marching/barrack shoes on his feet. Once overseas he would be issued two pairs of heavy, hobnailed field shoes, often of French or British manufacture and additional wool stockings as necessary.

 

Two kinds of stockings were provided by the army, wool (heavy and light) and cotton. Woolen socks were preferred by the army for use in the field and they were considered to be superior over cotton because of their elasticity and because they were more absorbent than cotton however, cotton socks were issued for wear to soldiers in the tropics and other hot climates or whenever the wool stockings provoked abundant perspiration. In the U.S. the individual soldier was allowed to choose the type of stocking best suited for him, with wool being the most common. In France the foot soldiers of the A.E.F. were provided with stockings made exclusively of wool. A knee length lumberjack stocking was also provided on a limited basis to be worn under the hip and half hip rubber boots. Any Doughboy who wished to wear socks manufactured from any other material had to procure them outside of the military supply system.

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Photo no. 58: This group of aviators are all from the famous “Hat in the ring” squadron and they seem to favor the English style open neck service coat worn with a neck tie, over the closed neck regulation service coat of U.S. manufacture. Note that the right and left hand pilots are both wearing tall knee high stockings with the tops turned down over their wrap puttees and “aviator” style boots.

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Like the shoe it was necessary for a sock to fit the wearer. It was found that if they were too small they were not only uncomfortable but they wore out more quickly. When choosing the sock’s size, allowance had to be made for the shrinkage of the wool in washing and as a rule; the soldiers were issued wool socks one size larger than the size of the foot.

 

In France the Doughboys marched many miles carrying heavy loads across the mutilated, pockmarked fields covered with muddy shell craters and over the hard limestone roads of France wearing their hobnailed field shoes with the predictable results of abrasions, blisters and sore swollen feet. A footsore soldier from the 89th Division wrote about one of the many long hikes made towards Berlin or somewhere else,

 

“Onward we plodded, through mud and drizzling rain, carrying over 100 pounds on our backs. Thoroughly exhausted, our feet severely swollen and blistered, our backs all stiff and aching. Finally commands were given and rest awhile.”

 

To keep the Doughboys feet ready for immediate use military regulations required that the men rotate their two pairs of issued field shoes every other day. The pair that was not worn only added to the foot soldier’s load, as they had to be carried on or in the haversack. Also A.E.F. policy demanded that their wet, soiled or wrinkled socks had to be changed daily and the soiled socks were to be washed and hung to dry each night. In fact, the men were under orders to constantly have clean, dry socks inside their pack. However, these orders were often difficult if not impossible to carry out, especially when under fire in the front line trenches.

 

At the front the Doughboys were forced to wear their shoes for extended periods of time and it was not unusual for the men at the front to wear the same pair of shoes and socks for the duration of their stay in the battle lines without ever once removing them, not even to change their socks or for sleeping. Their shoes frequently remained on their feet from the day they hiked to the front until the day they were ordered to march out of the trenches, to a reserve billet somewhere behind the lines. A combat infantryman from the 1st Division remembered what it was like as the men in his squad came out of the line,

 

“We were an awful looking bunch. Some had not washed during the 3 weeks and none had shaven. Our clothes had dried off on the way out and they were stiff with mud. We hadn’t had our shoes off for 3 weeks and when we got to taking them off a blind man would have known it without being told. We were all tired and worn out. There was no place to bathe, only get some water in a tin can and get a sponge bath.”

 

The fact that the men had no choice but to stand or sit in the cold, wet, damp, muddy and sometimes frozen trenches for prolonged periods of time, combined with the lack of personal hygiene, presented the men with the very real danger of contracting a fungal infection of the foot called trenchfoot.

 

Ever since 1912 the army made it the responsibility of platoon leaders and company commanders to insure that the men in their command shoes were fitted properly and to make sure that their shoes, stockings and feet remained in serviceable condition at all times. This required them to inspect the men’s feet at regular intervals. This unpleasant but important duty was often delegated to the platoon and squad sergeants and the squad leaders were issued with a special pouch designed to carry additional soap, foot powder, adhesive plasters and tape to be used to care for the men’s feet. The Doughboy’s feet were examined for any signs of trenchfoot and for other minor injuries such as, blisters, corns, ingrown toenails, abrasions and excessive odor, any of which could later have an impact on the soldier’s ability to perform his duty. The stockings and overall condition of the boots including the soles were also checked for serviceability. A list of worn out boots, socks and any foot powder needed would be compiled and passed on to the company supply sergeant to organize their replacement. The usual results of these inspections were that the men were admonished to wash there feet more often, blisters were opened and swabbed with iodine, sores were treated and covered with adhesive plasters, and the feet were liberally dusted with foot powder.

 

Conditions of trench warfare meant that the Doughboys spent weeks in the muddy wet and sometimes frozen trenches; for the American soldiers at the front or on the march throughout France, having clean warm socks often made the difference between warm and cold feet. Poor hygiene and the endless kilometers of marching, not only took its toll on the men's feet and shoes but also on the stockings that they wore. Statistics show that the average soldier in the A.E.F. wore out one pair of stockings every twenty three days. Due to the constant wear and tear an endless need for replacement stockings was created. At the front socks were often in short supply and the Doughboys frequently had to mend or repair their stockings in the field. One resourceful rifleman in the 18th Infantry recalled how he had improved his well worn stockings,

 

“My socks were pretty well worn out; I unraveled some yarn off the top of one and mended them as best I could.”

The A.E.F. did the best it could to keep the men at the front supplied with proper socks and footwear but during the later stages of the war many of the divisions and regiments advanced so quickly that they literally outran the supply trains that had to wait for engineers to build roads across the scarred terrain of the lines of advance. The A.E.F. supply system although stretched to the breaking point did have sufficient stockings on hand but simply could not get them to the men who needed them the most and the soldiers at the front, chasing the Hun were, in many cases, forced to wear their shoes and socks until they literally rotted away. An unidentified infantry sergeant described the filthy appearance of his squad as they filed back to the rear for a much needed rest,

 

“Our socks were worn out; most of us were barefoot in our boots. We carried full packs, our clothes were crawling with cooties; we were so dirty you could smell us for a mile.”

 

Photo no. 60: The Doughboy’s regulation stockings wore out quickly and the army could not always keep up with the high demand. The charitable and relief organizations were quick to pitch in by sending millions of socks overseas. The soldiers at the front who were unable to receive adequate socks through military supply channels sometimes took matters into their own hands by requesting that family members send them socks from home or they purchased stockings from the local merchants whenever they could be found. If the soldiers were too far in front of their supply trains and could not be re-supplied, many of them had to resort to looting socks shoes and other necessities from the packs and off the feet of the dead soldiers scattered across the battlefield. Consequently the stockings worn by the Doughboys in France could be a mixture of regulation army issue, French issue; English issue, private purchase, home knit, German made and anything else that could be scrounged from the battlefield. The regulation socks issued by the army were universally gray in color while private purchase and home knit stockings were made in a variety of colors and materials including wool, cotton and cashmere; with khaki and olive drab colored wool being common followed by gray and navy blue, white and even red. (From left to right)

 

a. Light weight gray wool army stockings, manufactured during the war and named to L. J. Zutvern, serial number 3435247. The first three digits of the serial number indicate that he was in the 343rd Infantry Regiment, 86th Division.

 

b. A pre or early war style of regulation army light weight wool stockings.

 

c. Wartime produced regulation army wool stockings of medium weight.

 

d. A pair of well made home knit heavy weight gray wool stockings.

 

e. Heavy weight olive drab woolen stockings donated by the Red Cross.

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