2nd division Engineers     

90th/3rd Army     

Thank you jumpship

I believe his service number, 33315116, indicates that he was drafted.   He was stationed at the Hampton Roads Port of Embarkation, VA during some portion of 1943 to early 1944. During Aug 44, he was at the Army Service Forces Replacement Depot at Camp Reynolds, PA as a S/Sgt, with an MOS of 055 (Clerk, General) with Transportation Corps as his branch. During Oct-Dec 44, he was at the 1st and 8th Replacement Depots in Italy. How he ended up in Co A (based on CIB orders dated 20 Mar 45) 310th IR 78th ID from there, I don't know as the morning reports for 1945 are not yet available on the NARA site.   Dan

Hi Ken, I apologize, evidently I missed that he was a Captain too.  

Got this Col pin in a large lot. Initially, I thought it was a typical WW1 example, but now leaning towards the earliest examples. The Smithsonian has an example in their collection that is identical to this one. Unfortunately they have a lot of bad information on their acquisition records, so no help there.  Theres a current auction with period Col birds that would date from 1841-1847, and they are quite different. Ive attached a photo from the auction for comparison. 

A Jaunty Walter C. Calder USN,, Calder is a Seabee  note CB Diamond on cuff, the  37th Naval Construction Battalion,

Good evening everyone,   This pair just appeared in the mail today! It consists of two kepis/forage caps which I believe to be 1872-pattern examples, likely dating to the late 19th or early 20th century based on their construction, insignia style, and manufacturer markings.   The first kepi features crossed rifles with the letter “B” above "UC". The interior bears a maker’s stamp from “THE M.C. LILLEY & CO. COLUMBUS, OHIO.” Based on this marking and overall construction, the cap was likely produced circa 1880s–1910s.   The second kepi displays a wreath-style insignia with the number “409” in the center and "S V" underneath, suggesting it was used by the Sons of Veterans. The interior label reads “Marvin E. Hall – S.V.,G.A.R. Military and Society Goods – Hillsdale, Mich.” "S.V." meaning Sons of Veterans and "G.A.R." meaning Grand Army of the Republic. The cap was most likely manufactured sometime between the 1880s and 1910s as well.   Both pieces show honest age and wear, including cracking to the visors, separation, popped stitching, moth holes, and deterioration to portions of the leather sweatbands, but they remain excellent examples of early American military and veteran-associated headgear.   I am in no way an expert on these items, as pieces from this era are somewhat outside my usual collecting focus. Any help is appreciated, and if any of the information is wrong please help me out! I was only able to find one other example of these caps on this forum from 2014, so hopefully others know more about it than I do.   Thank you, Hayden

This photo is of Lt Col. Alfred Maybach who was KIA Nov. 1944 @patches

Kristian,  the good news is that we are only talking about a hat. It's very nice and part of a branch that we rarely see but the value isn't as much as a named Purple Heart. If it were me, I would message the man who posted the cap and say that the family would like it back. If you ever want to sell, we would pay the going rate plus 50%. This ensures that it comes your way. In the collecting world we always need to liquidate items to buy that special piece. It should come back this way. Good luck. (and I don't have any connection to the man who has it)