Collecting Militaria

[BabaYaga 15286]

46 minutes ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

The button collection is really special. That pic is a small piece of about 3 cases of a really beautiful collection of dug buttons. There's also a collection of assorted uniform accoutrement, company letters, pins, badges, memorial emblems, etc.  

Maybe the coolest piece is a revolver with silver plated pistol grip, and the Union officers name inscribed along the spine. (I've got an image of him during the war).  He lost it at the battle of Malvern Hill.

He died of his wounds in Louisiana. As he lay dying on the battlefield he gave his officers sword to a sergeant with instructions it was to be set home to his family.  I'm trying to get the sword from a collector now.  Knowing the Provenance of a piece always makes it much more fascinating.

Wow, that's pretty sweet.  If you could get that, I'd have a whole room dedicated to the items.  Those minie'-balls as especially impressive when you read up on their origin and how they impacted tactics in the war.  They were the true ancestor of all modern, stabilized bullets

Using Napoleonic tactics of clustered soldiers firing in unison due to the inaccurate round musket balls, firing and advancing in step - entire ranks of soldiers were mowed down by a new bullet that had a concave base, that would seal and stabilize down the rifle bore and was effective out to 500+ yards; while round musket balls were closer to 100+ because; like a baseball - would pitch and yaw in the air.  Soft lead, also flattened upon impact to devastating effect.  Weighing almost 500 grains...that's the equivalent of soldiers marching headlong into ranks firing at them with 45-70s.  Such madness.  

[Onboard 2.0 9083]

1 minute ago, BabaYaga said:

Wow, that's pretty sweet.  If you could get that, I'd have a whole room dedicated to the items.  Those minie'-balls as especially impressive when you read up on their origin and how they impacted tactics in the war.  They were the true ancestor of all modern, stabilized bullets

Using Napoleonic tactics of clustered soldiers firing in unison due to the inaccurate round musket balls, firing and advancing in step - entire ranks of soldiers were mowed down by a new bullet that had a concave base, that would seal and stabilize down the rifle bore and was effective out to 500+ yards; while round musket balls were closer to 100+ because; like a baseball - would pitch and yaw in the air.  Soft lead, also flattened upon impact to devastating effect.  Weighing almost 500 grains...that's the equivalent of soldiers marching headlong into ranks firing at them with 45-70s.  Such madness.  

Yeah, getting shot by a .58 cal Springfield (or any of the CW rifles was a devastating thing).  I had one years ago, and it kicked like a bitch when fired. The first modern war by many accounts. Land mines, trench warfare, rifled barrels, and 18th century medical technology all combined for horrific results.

[BabaYaga 15286]

12 minutes ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

Yeah, getting shot by a .58 cal Springfield (or any of the CW rifles was a devastating thing).  I had one years ago, and it kicked like a bitch when fired. The first modern war by many accounts. Land mines, trench warfare, rifled barrels, and 18th century medical technology all combined for horrific results.

The submarine.  Armored ships.  The Gatling gun.  Aerial recon.  The telegraph wire used as a battlefield advancement.  Ambulance corps.  So much more.  

Europe watched closely, many intimating it set the stage for the WWI tactics, that again, were outpaced by technological advances to devastating effect.  

[Onboard 2.0 9083]

13 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

The submarine.  Armored ships.  The Gatling gun.  Aerial recon.  The telegraph wire used as a battlefield advancement.  Ambulance corps.  So much more.  

Europe watched closely, many intimating it set the stage for the WWI tactics, that again, were outpaced by technological advances to devastating effect.  

Yep all true, but I thought the submarine was an earlier invention ?  

[BabaYaga 15286]

Just now, Onboard 2.0 said:

Yep all true, but I thought the submarine was an earlier invention ?  

You are correct

[Balcones 317]

On 9/10/2020 at 4:11 PM, Armybrat said:

Just have some of the stuff my Dad carried & used throughout the war from the Aleutians to The Bulge.

 

Great stuff!

[Reagan1k 3024]

I haven't seen a confirmation of this, but I've read in a couple of places that some obscure line in the most recent stimulus package will allow Korean lend-lease M1 carbines to be imported again.    Could be bullshit, but the market could certainly absorb more supply based on the demand at this point.  Prices have gone nuts on those suckers.

[mininghorn88 2275]

I have been doing a bit of re-arranging and updating my inventory recording of my collection and thought I would share a few new photos.

Stairwell leading up to War Room #1.  All of the pics on the walls are period photos, ads out of Life Magazine, or other period ephemera.  There are a couple of recent photos of WW2 sites that I visited.

War Room #1.  This mainly my "smalls room".  Headgear, patches, pics, books, medals, field gear, patches, etc.

War Room #2 (Uniform Room)

[baboso 6054]

I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess you aren't married.

[mininghorn88 2275]

40 minutes ago, baboso said:

I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess you aren't married.

Correct.  Was for almost 30 years.  However, the house was designed to accommodate my collection.  The hallway and upstairs room were approved by her at the time as a space for my collection.  I spread it out to the other room post-divorce.

[atomheartbevo 89618]

@mininghorn88 Did you buy out Colonel Bubbies in Galveston when they went out of business?

On a serious note, all of those unit photos - if any of them can be tied to actual units and/or dates, if you're willing to scan them in, or at least take sharp photos of them, I could get copies to various genealogy/military research sites so relatives might come across them, or at least get you in touch with them.  @Hornius Emeritus could probably help a bit (probably more than me).

I was lucky enough that somebody had a battalion photo of one of my great-grandfathers from 1919 and put the photo online (the site was focused on the unit's history from 1919 up through the 1970s).  While they didn't have the names of those in the photo, as soon as I found the photo while researching his unit, I was able to pick him out immediately.  Had one of his daughters look through a print of the the photo that I made and she picked him out as well.  We had a photo of his battery with names of the soldiers, and were able to provide the guy running the site with some of the names of those in the battalion from that photo.

[mininghorn88 2275]

4 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

@mininghorn88 Did you buy out Colonel Bubbies in Galveston when they went out of business?

On a serious note, all of those unit photos - if any of them can be tied to actual units and/or dates, if you're willing to scan them in, or at least take sharp photos of them, I could get copies to various genealogy/military research sites so relatives might come across them, or at least get you in touch with them.  @Hornius Emeritus could probably help a bit (probably more than me).

I was lucky enough that somebody had a battalion photo of one of my great-grandfathers from 1919 and put the photo online (the site was focused on the unit's history from 1919 up through the 1970s).  While they didn't have the names of those in the photo, as soon as I found the photo while researching his unit, I was able to pick him out immediately.  Had one of his daughters look through a print of the the photo that I made and she picked him out as well.  We had a photo of his battery with names of the soldiers, and were able to provide the guy running the site with some of the names of those in the battalion from that photo.

I am never so lucky to buy stuff at a bargain such as a going out of business sale!

Most of the unit photos do have the unit info and date. Some have info written on the back 

As time allows I could get them scanned or at least take a nice photo of the written info as a starter.

[Onboard 2.0 9083]

Holy shit that's amazing.

[TexasEd 8066]

This is not a photoshop.  This is the story as I remember it being told by the guy in the middle. (Facts be damned)

The first meeting of Roosevelt and Churchill in Aug 1941 (Before Pearl Harbor) was supposed to be a secret meeting so Roosevelt did not have a photographer travel with him.  Either once they got there or just before Roosevelt arrived at the meeting off the coast of Newfoundland he learned that the Brits had a photographer to document the meeting so he asked his party to get a photographer too.  Apparently Roosevelt's son was an Army officer and spoke up that he knew a guy.  So he connected with his buddy to fly out in a sea plane to their location and bring his camera gear. Once he had taken pictures of all the senior officers and others at the meeting Roosevelt motioned to the cameraman to come and pose for a picture while the two leaders continued to talk so he gave the camera to the President's son.  I was told that in most of the photos they are looking at each other in conversation. In this one you will see that they both looked at the camera.

The guy that flew out to take the pictures is my step Grandfather.  Retired as a full Colonel in the USAF and served through WWII, Korea, and early Vietnam.  In my family we call this picture the Big Three.

In the spirit of an old Texas-OU joke here is a bonus.  My stepfather was also a Colonel in the USAF and he threw a staff party at our house for his command.  This picture was hanging in the hallway and a LT stopped and looked at it then said to my stepfather, "Colonel, I recognize you in the picture but who are the other two?"

Cool article on the meeting:  https://www.politico.com/story/2017/08/09/churchill-fdr-meet-off-newfoundland-aug-9-1941-241372

Edited February 4, 2021 by TexasEd

[mininghorn88 2275]

24 minutes ago, TexasEd said:

This is not a photoshop.  This is the story as I remember it being told by the guy in the middle. (Facts be damned)

The first meeting of Roosevelt and Churchill in Aug 1941 (Before Pearl Harbor) was supposed to be a secret meeting so Roosevelt did not have a photographer travel with him.  Either once they got there or just before Roosevelt arrived at the meeting off the coast of Newfoundland he learned that the Brits had a photographer to document the meeting so he asked his party to get a photographer too.  Apparently Roosevelt's son was an Army officer and spoke up that he knew a guy.  So he connected with his buddy to fly out in a sea plane to their location and bring his camera gear. Once he had taken pictures of all the senior officers and others at the meeting Roosevelt motioned to the cameraman to come and pose for a picture while the two leaders continued to talk so he gave the camera to the President's son.  I was told that in most of the photos they are looking at each other in conversation. In this one you will see that they both looked at the camera.

The guy that flew out to take the pictures is my step Grandfather.  Retired as a full Colonel in the USAF and served through WWII, Korea, and early Vietnam.  In my family we call this picture the Big Three.

In the spirit of an old Texas-OU joke here is a bonus.  My stepfather was also a Colonel in the USAF and he threw a staff party at our house for his command.  This picture was hanging in the hallway and a LT stopped and looked at it then said to my stepfather, "Colonel, I recognize you in the picture but who are the other two?"

Very cool story and picture.  Keep the story alive.

[cabowabo 4484]

Love watching shit like this. 

 

[Alex Karev 1030]

Part of Family Civil War weapons

[Alex Karev 1030]

WWII D-Day 

29th Division Blue and Grey

1st Wave on Omaha, Normandy Beach invasion 

 

[Degenerate Gardner 4085]

Not really a collector per se, but I am the current steward of an heirloom sword from the Civil War made by Tiffany. Decorative etchings still cling to the blade. The more remarkable part to me is the paper document that has survived along with the sword: signed and sealed by the governor, memorializing my ancestor's induction into the 123rd NY infantry. As I kid I wanted to play with the sword of course. Now it's just humbling to behold.

[mininghorn88 2275]

3 hours ago, Alex Karev said:

WWII D-Day 

29th Division Blue and Grey

1st Wave on Omaha, Normandy Beach invasion 

 

Back story please. Based upon the PH ribbon he received multiple wounds.

Great grouping.

[Alex Karev 1030]

10 minutes ago, mininghorn88 said:

Back story please. Based upon the PH ribbon he received multiple wounds.

Great grouping.

Yes. My father was wounded 3 times. The last time was a  very serious wound in hand to hand combat. Only 3 men survived in his Company from D-Day until VE-Day. 

 

[Armybrat 40814]

Just found in the back of my closet these two old helmets my dad brought home from France in 1945...
 

 

 

[mininghorn88 2275]

42 minutes ago, Armybrat said:

Just found in the back of my closet these two old helmets my dad brought home from France in 1945...
 

 

 

Fantastic headgear! Are the liners still present?

Did your father have a story associated with them? I remember that he served in the Aleutians and fought in the Bulge? Do you know the units he served in?

[Armybrat 40814]

18 minutes ago, mininghorn88 said:

Fantastic headgear! Are the liners still present?

Did your father have a story associated with them? I remember that he served in the Aleutians and fought in the Bulge? Do you know the units he served in?

No liners, just the empty shells.

Don’t recall any stories about them, as might have just picked them up anywhere. 
Yes, he was in the Aleutian Campaign and in the Bulge (briefly). I’d have to consult with my older brother about Dad’s specific units.

[Lat22 4010]

I have a German helmet that my parents bought me at a CAF air show in Harlingen in 79 or 80. Still has the liner. I can’t put my finger on it right now but I know it’s still around. 
 

Also met Pappy Boyington (and Paul Tibbets) at these air shows. I was 12 or 13. 
 

Edited January 8, 2022 by Lat22

[Chad Fuck 17658]

I have a German helmet that my parent’s bought me at a CAF air show in Harlingen in 79 or 80. Still has the liner. I can’t put my finger on it right now but I know it’s still around. 
 
Also met Pappy Boyington (and Paul Tibbets) at these air shows. I was 12 or 13. 
 

So cool. I never made it to Harlingen for an Airsho, but it must’ve been something. I did do a couple Breckenridge airships back when they were a big deal. Man, when avgas was cheap you could put a lot of them in the air at once. Seems like they had all the Texans in the world at once during one show back in the early/mid 80s.

[Lat22 4010]

We lived almost two hours from Harlingen. We’d load up in the Suburban, do the air show all day , then go eat Chinese food in Pharr or at Garcias in Matamoros before driving back to Falfurrias. I guarantee you my dad was drinking Schlitz the whole time.  Amazing stamina. 😆

[Lat22 4010]

He would hand his beer to my mom when we went through the checkpoint though. 

[Chad Fuck 17658]

He would hand his beer to my mom when we went through the checkpoint though. 

Gotta keep up appearances.

[mininghorn88 2275]

On 1/8/2022 at 4:16 PM, Lat22 said:

I have a German helmet that my parents bought me at a CAF air show in Harlingen in 79 or 80. Still has the liner. I can’t put my finger on it right now but I know it’s still around. 
 

Also met Pappy Boyington (and Paul Tibbets) at these air shows. I was 12 or 13. 
 

I have two books signed and personalized to me not by a "Pappy" but rather a "Peppy".  None other than by R.E. "Peppy" Blount.  A former Longhorn great among other things.

[BabaYaga 15286]

Damn thread.

Used up all my pos rep....;)

[Armybrat 40814]

74 years ago, Camp Hood (now Fort Hood), Texas. Our quarters were the 1st floor, left - no insulation, no A/C.

In front of Dad’s 1941 Buick - I’m the smallest shaver.
 

[Your Mom 4805]

Anybody interested in owning this chest?  I bought it thinking it would be a good box for camp kitchen gear and food, or at least much cooler than a basic plastic bin. It’s made to carry medical supplies. I bought it on E-Bay. It is WAY too big for what I need and it’s heavy and a hassle to open and close. The cool factor isn’t enough to make me use it and it’s taking up space in my garage.  It’s big. Maybe 20” x 32” x 18”. Just a guess. Can measure when I get home. It has a nifty divider to separate the top and bottom halves.  It doesn’t appear to be very old to me. I doubt it’s of any historical significance other that being a cool manly looking olive drab box. 

I’d take any reasonable offer on it. I can’t remember what I paid for it.  Located in South Austin and I drive to Houston fairly often. 
 

[Armybrat 40814]

[Armybrat 40814]

Found this insignia in a box of old stuff. Anyone have a clue what military it belongs to?

I suspect it might be an enlisted insignia from Chiang Kai Shek’s Nationalist Army circa 1950s.
 

 

 

[mininghorn88 2275]

2 hours ago, Armybrat said:

Found this insignia in a box of old stuff. Anyone have a clue what military it belongs to?

I suspect it might be an enlisted insignia from Chiang Kai Shek’s Nationalist Army circa 1950s.
 

 

 

It's a cherry blossom, JSDF (Rikushichō) Corporal

[Horn_Spanker 524]

I know, it's Aggie, but it's also WWII.  I think WWII trumps the Aggieness?

Time to let stuff go.  What might these things be worth?  (ie. Craigslist, eBay etc.)

Circa. 1940.  Dude was TX A&M ROTC, early into the war, early KIA.

 

[mininghorn88 2275]

6 hours ago, Horn_Spanker said:

I know, it's Aggie, but it's also WWII.  I think WWII trumps the Aggieness?

Time to let stuff go.  What might these things be worth?  (ie. Craigslist, eBay etc.)

Circa. 1940.  Dude was TX A&M ROTC, early into the war, early KIA.

 

I know a guy that collects aggy “militaria”. He might be interested or at least may can give some type of value to it.

Is there provenance to the ID? That typically brings a bit more premium.

[Alex Karev 1030]

On 1/8/2022 at 5:16 PM, Lat22 said:

We lived almost two hours from Harlingen. We’d load up in the Suburban, do the air show all day , then go eat Chinese food in Pharr or at Garcias in Matamoros before driving back to Falfurrias. I guarantee you my dad was drinking Schlitz the whole time.  Amazing stamina. 😆

My Family also ate at Garcia's in Matamoros when we were in Harlingen and Brownsville.

We went Fishing at Boca Chica once and got the stuck during low tide.

Brings back lots of memories. 

 

 

[TexasEd 8066]

On 2/3/2021 at 11:09 PM, TexasEd said:

This is not a photoshop.  This is the story as I remember it being told by the guy in the middle. (Facts be damned)

The first meeting of Roosevelt and Churchill in Aug 1941 (Before Pearl Harbor) was supposed to be a secret meeting so Roosevelt did not have a photographer travel with him.  Either once they got there or just before Roosevelt arrived at the meeting off the coast of Newfoundland he learned that the Brits had a photographer to document the meeting so he asked his party to get a photographer too.  Apparently Roosevelt's son was an Army officer and spoke up that he knew a guy.  So he connected with his buddy to fly out in a sea plane to their location and bring his camera gear. Once he had taken pictures of all the senior officers and others at the meeting Roosevelt motioned to the cameraman to come and pose for a picture while the two leaders continued to talk so he gave the camera to the President's son.  I was told that in most of the photos they are looking at each other in conversation. In this one you will see that they both looked at the camera.

The guy that flew out to take the pictures is my step Grandfather.  Retired as a full Colonel in the USAF and served through WWII, Korea, and early Vietnam.  In my family we call this picture the Big Three.

In the spirit of an old Texas-OU joke here is a bonus.  My stepfather was also a Colonel in the USAF and he threw a staff party at our house for his command.  This picture was hanging in the hallway and a LT stopped and looked at it then said to my stepfather, "Colonel, I recognize you in the picture but who are the other two?"

Cool article on the meeting:  https://www.politico.com/story/2017/08/09/churchill-fdr-meet-off-newfoundland-aug-9-1941-241372

I’ve gotten some reactions on this that made me look at it again. I forgot to add these interesting facts. 
He lived into his late 90s

All 4 of his children served or were spouses of military. 2 AF, 1 Army and 1 USMC

He grew up in a small town in SE Kansas. When my mom and his son married he met my maternal grandma. They were from the same town and when teenagers he befriended my grandmother’s older brother who was deaf at a time when most people thought it was retardation. 

Edited August 25, 2022 by TexasEd

[High Plains Drifter 11024]

 

not nearly as impressive as mininghorn's collection or other stuff in this thread, but my mom has a calvary saber, with scabbard, that belonged to an ancestor of mine who was an officer in the confederate calvary. At some point, it will be mine. It's pretty beat up. I'll get it restored once it passes to me.

I haven't hefted it since I was a kid, when I could barely lift it, it was so heavy.

 

On the other side of the family, my grandfather had a lot of stuff from his time in the navy, where he was a Higgin's boat pilot at Iwo Jima and other Pacific island campaigns, including his silver star and purple heart he received at Iwo Jima. Some N. Texas meth head broke into his house and stole it all (I suspect my cousin) years ago, including a picture of his troop ship at Tokyo bay with the USS Missouri in the background.

 

[High Plains Drifter 11024]

On 8/24/2022 at 1:34 AM, Alex Karev said:

My Family also ate at Garcia's in Matamoros when we were in Harlingen and Brownsville.

We went Fishing at Boca Chica once and got the stuck during low tide.

Brings back lots of memories. 

 

 

 

I also used to eat at Garcias and fish at Boca Chica or charter a boat out of Port Isabel a couple of times a year with my dad and uncle and cousin when I was a kid.