Hi, I have a few questions from a picture I have attached, and was wondering if anyone on here would know: 1) Why did some soldiers have their rank patch sewn on their left arm side and some don't? 2) What was the pin for which you see on some of the front of the caps? 3) What did the darker cap signify that was on the head of the soldier in the back row, far left? 4) Though very little distinguishing marks, is there any way you can tell what outfit these men were from? Thnx in advance- I appreciate it.
Which soldier has the rank insignia on only one sleve? All those that I see where you can see both sleeves have the insignia on both.
It looks like his cap was either made of off-color fabric. there was often inconsistencies with fabric color. It would all but impossible to determine what unit they are from. Some appear to have DUIs on their garrison caps, but I could not begin to determine what they look like.
The back row, 3rd and 4th soldier has their rank insignia sewn on their left sleeve. All the others are missing their insignia patch on the left sleeve.
Given that none of these folk look young...i would say that they are from different units...the differing caps could be exaplained by them coming from different units...that is their Q release was a different time - or some have lost their old ones and gained new "improved" versions...just a guess.
What does Q release mean? I googled it but couldn't find anything. You are probably correct about them coming from different units as I cut the rest of the picture off. There are about 200 men in it altogether.
Any other information on or on the back of the photo? Pennants or anything like that? Dates, locations? Two of the men are wearing T-5 and T-4 stripes.
The two men in the back row both have their ranks on both sleeves. They both are Technical grades. None of the others show ranks on either sleeve. The pin on the cap might be a unit insignia, since I have a picture which shows one, but it is impossible to see,
Yeah sorry, i have a habit of making up my own words or phrases...what i mean by Q release - The uniform they are issued from the Q store...
No, thats what makes it frustrating. I'm trying to get info on my father's unit but this is the only physical evidence I have, plus the fact that he was stationed in Civitavecchia, Italy.
Are any of the other men wearing similar chevrons (with a T)? If so, a lot of them? That would make me wonder if they were some time of logistic, administrative or headquarters unit? Do any appear to have any type of shoulder patch on their left shoulder? Plus, their uniforms look too "good" for front line duty. Some have creases in the shirts and they do not appear to be wearing low quarters with leggings or boots. If they are, they have their trousers not bloused. Plus the ties. If they were stateside, I would think they would have more unit insignia, ribbons and qualification badges.
[sharedmedia=core:attachments:20000] [sharedmedia=core:attachments:20008] Here are 2 other parts of the picture- the entire picture shows about 100 men. Note the background and that some men are wearing darker trousers. My mother mentioned to me, after I was older and my father had died, that he was "in charge" of a cement factory while in Italy. I don't know what "in charge" means but, since you mentioned that this unit might be administrative or logistic, that would make sense to me as I don't seem to recall that the unit he was in saw much, if any, front-line fighting.
The piping on the garrison caps may be an aid. Not going to get much colour from it but at least you can say its lighter than olive/khaki. I might be inclined to guess at QM corps (edit: or finance). http://www.ebay.com/gds/US-WWII-Garrison-Cap-Piping-Service-Colors-/10000000010102999/g.html http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/1261-branch-colors-cap-piping-color-reference/ Edit: Slightly easier to see on this link: http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/1261-branch-colors-cap-piping-color-reference/page-2 posts 32,33,34
