Welcome to the WWII Forums! Log in or Sign up to interact with the community.

Grandpa's Ribbon Identification

Discussion in 'Information Requests' started by JD Heinz, Jun 20, 2018.

  1. JD Heinz

    JD Heinz New Member

    Joined:
    Jun 20, 2018
    Messages:
    7
    Likes Received:
    0
    Hey Everyone!

    I found my grandfathers box of WWII Medals/Ribbons. He was an Combat Engineer for 78th Infantry Division and served in Europe and was at the Remagen Bridgehead.

    I've been able to identify all of the ribbons with the exception of one. I've looked EVERYWHERE so this is my last hope!

    Behold:
    [​IMG]
     
  2. Takao

    Takao Ace

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2010
    Messages:
    10,103
    Likes Received:
    2,574
    Location:
    Reading, PA
    I've gone thru National Guard medals, and approved foreign medal and came up empty...Can't wait to see how this turns out.
     
  3. JD Heinz

    JD Heinz New Member

    Joined:
    Jun 20, 2018
    Messages:
    7
    Likes Received:
    0
    Thanks Takeo, I know! I’ve looked at over 400 medals/ribbons and haven’t seen anything kinda close.

    It wasn’t that he was in some unique theatre and I don’t think he won any important individual awards. There are some German paraphernalia in the box and I thought maybe it was German...but I don’t know if they do the same thing. I’ll look.
     
  4. LRusso216

    LRusso216 Graybeard Staff Member

    Joined:
    Jan 5, 2009
    Messages:
    14,288
    Likes Received:
    2,605
    Location:
    Pennsylvania
  5. Nicelyb

    Nicelyb Active Member

    Joined:
    May 25, 2018
    Messages:
    181
    Likes Received:
    92
    Could yourequest his service record from the National Archives? Wouldn’t it have a list of medals earned?
     
  6. JD Heinz

    JD Heinz New Member

    Joined:
    Jun 20, 2018
    Messages:
    7
    Likes Received:
    0
    Yeah it’s not the american campaign medal because he has that one too.

    I suppose I could look him up that would be a good idea. I didn’t expect it to be so difficult to figure out.
     
  7. Takao

    Takao Ace

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2010
    Messages:
    10,103
    Likes Received:
    2,574
    Location:
    Reading, PA
    No, you got it! The ribbon is upsidedown, so the center colors are reversed.

    I missed the faint blue stripe earlier, but gave it a closer second look after reading your post.

    Consider this one solved.
     
  8. LRusso216

    LRusso216 Graybeard Staff Member

    Joined:
    Jan 5, 2009
    Messages:
    14,288
    Likes Received:
    2,605
    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    I never thought about it being upside down. The American Campaign ribbon is often not identified correctly.
     
  9. Takao

    Takao Ace

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2010
    Messages:
    10,103
    Likes Received:
    2,574
    Location:
    Reading, PA
    Yeah, the colors were coming through as green, yellow, pink, and black on my cell.
     
  10. JD Heinz

    JD Heinz New Member

    Joined:
    Jun 20, 2018
    Messages:
    7
    Likes Received:
    0
    @takeo I don’t think so because he also has that one (below). If so that would be MAJORLY discolored. None of the other ones are discolored...just faded a bit.

    Not to mention if it’s an American campaign ribbon how would he have received it twice? It has two stars.

    71276DA2-70C3-482E-8204-412C81AD8289.jpeg
     
  11. formerjughead

    formerjughead The Cooler King

    Joined:
    Dec 29, 2008
    Messages:
    5,627
    Likes Received:
    1,006
    American Campaign Medal - Wikipedia

    That should be a link; so, if his unit was on a ship in one of the noted convoys he could have been awarded for that. Engineer units traveled by boats
     
  12. JD Heinz

    JD Heinz New Member

    Joined:
    Jun 20, 2018
    Messages:
    7
    Likes Received:
    0
    Right but as infantry could you be awarded it multiple times? I read that in a submarine it’s possible.
     
  13. Takao

    Takao Ace

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2010
    Messages:
    10,103
    Likes Received:
    2,574
    Location:
    Reading, PA
    The more colorful one could just be a replacement.

    I'd be more interested in how he got the two campaign stars on the discolored one.
     
  14. formerjughead

    formerjughead The Cooler King

    Joined:
    Dec 29, 2008
    Messages:
    5,627
    Likes Received:
    1,006
    You need to get a copy of his discharge, that would have dates of travel and those could correspond to convoy dates. Judging by the amount of campaign stars on his EAME he got around and it wouldn't a stretch to assume his unit was embarked on one of those convoys.

    The other option is that he just went nuts with a bunch campaign stars and embellished his ribbon.
     
    Last edited: Jun 21, 2018
  15. JD Heinz

    JD Heinz New Member

    Joined:
    Jun 20, 2018
    Messages:
    7
    Likes Received:
    0
    Yeah looking at it closer I'm thinking maybe it is a discolored American Campaign ribbon. The stars are the only thing weird about it. Looking online at that medal I didn't see a single one that had stars on it...and he really didn't seem like the type to go nuts with campaign starts hahaha. Who knows.
     
  16. chibobber

    chibobber Member

    Joined:
    Oct 6, 2010
    Messages:
    446
    Likes Received:
    173
    JD,
    The best way to find out about the stars is to find his discharge papers.They will show the areas he received them in.There are numerous topics on the forum discussing how to find it if you do not have it. The other way is to hire a researcher to dig into it.
    Good luck,
    Bob
     
  17. JD Heinz

    JD Heinz New Member

    Joined:
    Jun 20, 2018
    Messages:
    7
    Likes Received:
    0
    Thanks everyone! I'm already looking into getting the records. If I find out it's something other than an American Campaign ribbon I will let you know. Thanks for your time!
     
  18. TD-Tommy776

    TD-Tommy776 Man of Constant Sorrow

    Joined:
    Jun 3, 2011
    Messages:
    7,217
    Likes Received:
    1,270
    Location:
    The Land of 10,000 Loons
    It was common to replace ribbons that were worn or faded. I think it likely that the stars on the faded American Campaign ribbon are there by mistake. They probably belonged on an EAME ribbon. If you can get a copy of his discharge that will likely provide the answers. If you can't, then send a request to the NARA for replacement medals via form SF-180. At the very least, they should provide a list of his medals/awards.
     
  19. RichTO90

    RichTO90 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Aug 7, 2015
    Messages:
    2,562
    Likes Received:
    1,036
    Not sure how he with the 78th ID would garner five stars on his EAME? The 78th ID was authorized just Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace, and Central Europe. I suspect he accidentally put two authorized stars on his AC ribbon?
     
  20. KMZgirl

    KMZgirl Member

    Joined:
    Nov 2, 2007
    Messages:
    375
    Likes Received:
    93
    Location:
    The South
    Could have been in more than one unit.
     

Share This Page