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Who made the WWII navy corpsman pouches?


subsystem4
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subsystem4

Does anyone know where/who made the USN corpsman pouches? I have two 14-280 pouches, one that's mint, and the only markings on them are on the snaps, scovill i think.

I know they were components of larger medical supply "units" so were they subcontracted by the companies that sold the large sets to the navy?.

The last pattern(m1941 knapsack type) seem to have been made by the usmc quartermaster depot, but what about the 14-280 and 14-450 bags?

I read through the reference thread and other than the document posted by JerryK on the knapsack type, did not find that information.

 

Thanks for any info.

-Jason

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Does anyone know where/who made the USN corpsman pouches? I have two 14-280 pouches, one that's mint, and the only markings on them are on the snaps, scovill i think.

I know they were components of larger medical supply "units" so were they subcontracted by the companies that sold the large sets to the navy?.

The last pattern(m1941 knapsack type) seem to have been made by the usmc quartermaster depot, but what about the 14-280 and 14-450 bags?

I read through the reference thread and other than the document posted by JerryK on the knapsack type, did not find that information.

 

Thanks for any info.

-Jason

 

I cannot vouch for the complete accuracy of this, but I overheard a seller at SOS explain to someone--rather like he knew what he was saying--that the Navy medical pouches were made by prisoners at a federal prison. The seller goes by the ID of "themedicguy" on eBay, and has always seemed to generally know what he is talking about when he describes items.

 

Again, I do not claim that this is reliable info, but perhaps it is worth some discussion to either confirm or debunk this theory.......

 

Sorry I could not be more authoritative in my comments. The subject interests me as well.

 

Bagman

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Bob Hudson
I cannot vouch for the complete accuracy of this, but I overheard a seller at SOS explain to someone--rather like he knew what he was saying--that the Navy medical pouches were made by prisoners at a federal prison.

 

That may well be true: federal prisoners did indeed produce things for the US Government - they cannot produce things for sale to the public though.

 

Company History:

 

Federal Prison Industries, Inc., which is known by the trade name UNICOR, is a federal government-owned corporation that employs federal prisoners to manufacture and provide a variety of products and services, primarily to agencies of the U.S. government. More than 20,000 inmates are employed by UNICOR and work in a network of nearly 100 factories in 64 prisons in 30 states. Among the products made and sold by UNICOR are furniture, including office furniture and furniture for college dormitories; clothing and textiles, such as military uniforms; electronics equipment; and plastic and metal goods, including eyewear and traffic signs. UNICOR also offers services, such as data entry, printing services, and bulk mailing. According to federal law, the U.S. government is required to purchase UNICOR products before turning to the private sector.

 

Putting Inmates to Work: 1930s-60s

 

Federal Prison Industries, Inc. (FPI) was formed in 1934 during a period when social reform and economic recovery were priorities in the United States. At the time, federal prisoners were unproductive and inactive, and officials in the Department of Justice were concerned that this idleness was creating an increasingly dangerous federal prison system. To occupy the inmates' time and also to teach them job skills and a work ethic that would prove valuable upon their release, the Department of Justice lobbied for a program that allowed men and women incarcerated in federal prisons to manufacture goods for government use. Because President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal included the creation of a number of new agencies and programs and thus an expansion of the government, the Department of Justice argued that the federal prisoners would be filling a necessary niche.

 

Congress thus voted for the establishment of FPI, providing it with starting funds of $4 million. This seed money was the first and only appropriation the corporation received from the government, as FPI was set up as a self-supporting entity, functioning as part of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, which operated within the Department of Justice. Under provisions established by Congress, the corporation was guaranteed customers because government agencies were required to order and buy merchandise from FPI if the corporation manufactured the needed items. The corporation then invested any profits generated from the sale of products back into operations.

 

FPI grew slowly and steadily after its inception. Within its first two years of operation, FPI opened a number of factories, including mattress factories, clothing factories, wooden and metal furniture factories, and broom factories. By World War II FPI had a product line that included more than 70 categories and operated 25 shops and factories. FPI also had increased the number of federal inmates it employed. When FPI first began operating, in 1935, it employed about 2,000 prisoners, or 13 percent of the federal prison population. By 1940, FPI was able to employ about 18 percent of the population, and sales reached almost $5.4 million.

 

The corporation ramped up production during World War II, and 95 percent of the goods made during these years were for the war effort and included parachutes and weapons. Although FPI continued to employ about 3,500 inmates, production during the war tripled. During the 1950s and 1960s FPI expanded greatly and focused on construction projects. Inmate employees worked on the construction and renovation of buildings at more than half of the 31 federal prisons.

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Kevin M., No. 1 Bacsi aka "the medic guy" usually knows what he is talking about, esp. regarding US Military medical gear.

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Greg Robinson
The last pattern(m1941 knapsack type) seem to have been made by the usmc quartermaster depot, but what about the 14-280 and 14-450 bags?

Thanks for any info.

-Jason

 

This "POUCH H.C. LARGE" is made just like the early WW2 Phila Depot made USMC M1941 knapsacks.

 

Greg

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post-4-1244497024.jpg

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