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Custom Ribbon Bars--Any era!


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I want to share these but want to apologize up front for the lack of quality of the pics. I've tried different ways and can't get them any better. Anyway here goes:

 

This guys name is COL Russell George who served on the Mexican Boarder, WW1 and WW2 and according to the Army Register retired in 1946. This is the only piece I have of his. I found a business card in the pocket with his name which is how I identified it. His ribbons are sewn directly to his jacket

 

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Next is a WW2 Naval Officer with ribbons sewn directly to jacket:

 

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A couple more to come in another post later.

 

Dan

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Here is a another as promised:

 

This is DSC recipient COL Clair Thurston. He earned the DSC at the Remagen Bridge as a MP Major in the 9th Inf Div. He retired from active duty in the 1960's and then became a Major General in the Maine State Guard (not the National Guard). He passed away in the 1970's and I never knew him but I did meet his dear wife before she died and she gave me everything of his. I need to do a seperate post on the grouping.

 

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post-1227-1206324845.jpg

 

post-1227-1206324881.jpg

 

Dan

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Here is a another as promised:

 

This is DSC recipient COL Clair Thurston. He earned the DSC at the Remagen Bridge as a MP Major in the 9th Inf Div. He retired from active duty in the 1960's and then became a Major General in the Maine State Guard (not the National Guard). He passed away in the 1970's and I never knew him but I did meet his dear wife before she died and she gave me everything of his. I need to do a seperate post on the grouping.

 

post-1227-1206324803.jpg

 

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Dan

thought I would add this i found it on-line:

 

THURSTON, CLAIRE A.

Synopsis:

The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Claire A. Thurston, Major, U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy while serving with the 9th Infantry Division, in action against enemy forces from 7 to 13 March 1945. Major Thurston's intrepid actions, personal bravery and zealous devotion to duty exemplify the highest traditions of the military forces of the United States and reflect great credit upon himself, the 9th Infantry Division, and the United States Army.

Headquarters, Third U.S. Army, General Orders No. 146 (1945)

 

Nice uniform thumbsup.gif

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...Both ribbon sets are quite tall; the bottom one is almost 3/4 of an inch high; I guess to accomodate the two rows of stars but I've never seen another one of this height.

 

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Here is an official explanation for "fat" WWI Victory Medal ribbon bars:

 

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The source is AR 600-35, dated November 10, 1941, at which time the WWI Victory Medal was the only Army medal that would require this treatment (and the silver service star for multiples of 5 bronze service stars did not exist then). By the next edition of AR 600-35. dated March 31, 1944, silver service stars had been introduced and Army ribbon bar size was standardized at 1-3/8 in. by 3/8 in.

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Hey Jim2,

 

Thanks for adding the citation, nice touch. I do have the original with all his paperwork that his wife gave me. This guy was good, he saved evertyhing.

 

Dan

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The source is AR 600-35, dated November 10, 1941, at which time the WWI Victory Medal was the only Army medal that would require this treatment (and the silver service star for multiples of 5 bronze service stars did not exist then). By the next edition of AR 600-35. dated March 31, 1944, silver service stars had been introduced and Army ribbon bar size was standardized at 1-3/8 in. by 3/8 in.

 

Great info on the wider than normal ribbon bar! I had no idea there was actually an authorized reason for it and assumed he just did it on his own.

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Here is a another as promised:

 

This is DSC recipient COL Clair Thurston. He earned the DSC at the Remagen Bridge as a MP Major in the 9th Inf Div. He retired from active duty in the 1960's and then became a Major General in the Maine State Guard (not the National Guard). He passed away in the 1970's and I never knew him but I did meet his dear wife before she died and she gave me everything of his. I need to do a seperate post on the grouping.

 

post-1227-1206324803.jpg

 

post-1227-1206324845.jpg

 

post-1227-1206324881.jpg

 

Dan

We often see statements on this forum that question the authenticity of uniforms because of errors in the placement of insignia, especially on uniforms supposedly belonging to high ranking officers who are supposed to know better. However, I don't question the authenticity of this uniform for a second but I noticed that the general had his Purple Heart ribbon placed higher in precedence than the Army Commendation. I know that would be correct now, but in the 60's or 70's when I assume these ribbons were made, I think the ARCOM was worn before the PH. Also notice that his European-African-Middle Eastern ribbon has five bronze campaign stars instead of one silver. Just a couple of points to show that all questionable insignia placement is not necessarily a sign of a put together uniform.

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Hey seanmc1114,

 

Good catch, I never gave it any thought myself. All I can say is this is how I got the uniform. I don't doubt the authenticity either. I'll bet when I took it out of the closet in his widow's house, I was the first one to touch it since he hung it there. I firmly believe he took it off one day back in the 1960's, hung it up and there it stayed until I came along in the 1990's.

 

I did wonder why the Korean Citation is not on the same side as the PUC but like I say, that's the way Thurston put it on there so I left it that way. If you're wondering, the other blue and orange ribbon is one of a few State Guard longivity ribbons that were issued at that time.

 

Now that you mention the order of presendence, Ill check his medals when I get home. They are in a frame that he put together and I'll see which takes presendence, the PH or the ARCOM. I'll let you know.

 

Thanks again for your interest and I'll let you know about the full size medals.

 

Dan

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ItemCo16527
Hey seanmc1114,

 

Good catch, I never gave it any thought myself. All I can say is this is how I got the uniform. I don't doubt the authenticity either. I'll bet when I took it out of the closet in his widow's house, I was the first one to touch it since he hung it there. I firmly believe he took it off one day back in the 1960's, hung it up and there it stayed until I came along in the 1990's.

 

I did wonder why the Korean Citation is not on the same side as the PUC but like I say, that's the way Thurston put it on there so I left it that way. If you're wondering, the other blue and orange ribbon is one of a few State Guard longivity ribbons that were issued at that time.

 

Now that you mention the order of presendence, Ill check his medals when I get home. They are in a frame that he put together and I'll see which takes presendence, the PH or the ARCOM. I'll let you know.

 

Thanks again for your interest and I'll let you know about the full size medals.

 

Dan

The ribbons look good to me. The ribbon bar is custom-made, and frequently mistakes are made with the order of precedence. I have a set of custom ribbons in my collection, and the one row, from left to right, is [Purple Heart][Army Good Conduct][Army Commendation Medal]. It happens.

 

As for the ROK PUC, until the mid-1960's (1964/65?) the ROK and Philippine PUC's were supposed to be worn on the wearer's left pocket flap. Thereafter, they were worn above the right pocket with the American unit citations.

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Thanks Jef,

 

Good stuff to know about the PUS and ROK citation.

 

I did check all his medals that he framed and the way he set it up, he has the ARCOM taking presendence over the PH. I know this frame was put together no later than the late 50's or early 60's so it was correct for the time.

 

I still hope to post a picture of the framed medals as soon as time permits.

 

Dan

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Here are the medals, as you can see the Purple Heart is below his ARCOM in order of presendence. He has the Oak Leaf Cluster on his Bronze Star and ARCOM and decided to put two of each medals in the frame. The only medal engraved with his name is one of the ARCOM's. Two medals are numbered they are:

 

DSC # 13141

 

PH # 298287

 

As usual, my camrea is not doing justice so I'll hit some highlights starting at the top:

 

BS with 'V' and OLC.

ARCOM with OLC.

PH with OLC.

EAME Campaign with 5 battle stars.

Army of Occupation with 'Germany' bar.

Korean Service with 4 battle stars.

 

Also included in a seperate pic is the medal for the Military Order of the World Wars with two palms. He was a member of the MOWW and I believe the palm may indicate post or chapter commander? Hopefully another member here can help me with that one.

 

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Dan

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This is a WWI-WWI ribbon bar out of my collection. they are sewn on the back.

Original and in my possession.

Enjoy.

 

4starchris

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Here are more USMC ribbon bars out of my collection. Nicaragua Medal of Merit and Valor cross are of note on the bottom bar.

Original and in my possesiion.

4starchris

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Frank_Smith

Here is one to add to the list. It's very unusual to see member of the Army awarded the Yangtze Service Medal as well as the other foreign decorations. Frank

post-316-1206762814.jpg

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Here is one to add to the list. It's very unusual to see member of the Army awarded the Yangtze Service Medal as well as the other foreign decorations. Frank

 

 

Hey Frank !!

 

Nice ribbon set !! I believe members of the 31st Infantry were entitled to the Yangtze ribbon. I have a beautiful set of pre-WWII Dress blues to a Colonel who served with the 31st Infantry in China and he has the Yangtze ribbon among his ribbon bar.

 

Thanks,

 

Vic

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Here is one to add to the list. It's very unusual to see member of the Army awarded the Yangtze Service Medal as well as the other foreign decorations. Frank

What is the ribbon between the American Campaign and WWII Victory ribbons and what is the ribbon in the center of the bottom row?

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...I believe members of the 31st Infantry were entitled to the Yangtze ribbon....

Do you know more about this? 31st Infantry was temporarily detached from Manila to Shanghai from February to July 1932. The Yangtze Service Medal was authorized for Navy and Marine Corps service in Shanghai from March 1, 1930, to December 31, 1932, (link here). Is there a corresponding citation authorizing this medal for Army service in Shanghai?

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...What is the ribbon between the American Campaign and WWII Victory ribbons and what is the ribbon in the center of the bottom row?

The last two ribbons on bottom row are the French Croix de Guerre (WWII pattern) (link here) and the Belgium Croix de Guerre (WWII pattern) (link here). The ribbon between the American Campaign and WWII Victory Medals is an unofficial civilian commemorative decoration that occasionally appears among the ribbons of WWII (and WWI) veterans. Sample:

 

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Frank_Smith

Vic - You are absolutely correct! The 31st was entitled to the Yangtze Service Medal and that is where my guy received his. Although I saw the medals that go with this uniform, the family quickly claimed them when the veteran was about to sell them to me. The Yangtze was a proper wrap broach MNo. example. The veteran told me that the unusual ribbon bar was for the inter-allied victory medal. Obviously, I have never seen the medal before, but I've heard of the ribbon and there was a similar ribbon used for WWI. Frank

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  • 2 weeks later...
Stinger Gunner USMC

here are some of my "custom ribbon bars"

1st is my step fathers 46th Eng ribbon bar. it was custom made in VN.

2nd is a individual thread made Eto bar. both stars from the ETO have fallen off the bar.

3rd is a pre-war/early-war navy example with the star being held on by thread

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Stinger Gunner USMC

here is a USAF custom bar, beautifully done, with bullion silver star on the ETO and bullion aircrew badge. the bronze devices are not bullion, but thread.

2nd is from the uniform of US District Judge Robert Keeton, who was wounded and awarded the Bronze star during the sinking of the USS Liscome Bay. The bar looks like a pin on but it has actually had the pins removed and has been sewn on

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