Can Anyone Identify the Military Uniform?

Self | 1/22/08 | Enough_Deceit

[Maine Mariner]

Merchant marine unlikely. Mariners would not have worn Chervons. Officers, both deck and engine, may have had shoulder boards. Ordinary seaman, able bodied seaman, and bosuns don’t have formal rank-same with engine crews.
One is rated ordinary seaman, A.B. etc by seatime and passing
US Coast Guard exams.

[Enough_Deceit]

“Is he really the brother of THE Billy Mitchell?”

Sadly, no. Ggrandpa’s real name was Napoleon Bonaparte Ste. Michel. Born to French Canadian immigrants to Wisconsin. He hated his name and went by William or Billy. The last name got “Americanized” to Mitchell. Family joke has it that he was no saint, thus the loss of that part of the name. LOL!

[Harpcycle]

He is a Navy GMC (Chief Petty Officer - Gunner’s Mate) I believe he has a flaming bomb on his sleeve below his rank/rate insignia and perhaps wings below that. It would indicate that he was an early aviation ordnance specialist. The lower insignia may also be a Turret Captain qualification.

Take a look at this picture. You’ll see the flaming bomb insignia more clearly.
http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/i04000/i04053.jpg

Definitely not U. S. Coast Guard. You can identify all members of the Coast Guard by the Shield on the right forearm.

Hope this helps,
CWO4(Bosn) USCG, retired

[vaudine]

I have never seen a military uniform with vest and bowtie. Looks like a rr conductor to me, or streetcar or something similar.

vaudine

[ryan71]

Sailmakers Mate?

All these years, I thought it was Mickey Mouses Mate...

[cquiggy]

I can’t identify the uniform. But I do know Hillary would have no respect for it.

[cquiggy]

I can’t identify the uniform. But I do know Hillary would have no respect for it.

[Harpcycle]

I took a closer look at the lower sleeve device and believe it is the ex-apprentice device. This means that the GMC in the picture had actually served as an apprentice under the master of a specialty. In this case, I would think he served under a master ordnanceman (the flaming bomb) and earned his own journey or master level rating.

CWO4(Bos’n) USCG, retired

[LonePalm]

The "flaming bomb" denotes a "Seaman gunner." See my post #51.

Garde la Foi, mes amis! Nous nous sommes les sauveurs de la République! Maintenant et Toujours!
(Keep the Faith, my friends! We are the saviors of the Republic! Now and Forever!)
LonePalm, le Républicain du verre cassé (The Broken Glass Republican)

[amigatec]

I would guess somewhere between the Spanish American War and WWI when they started using white chevrons on the sleeves? It looks like the Eagle is facing forward, which changed somewhere between WWI and WWII (now facing backward as shown above in current).. Definitely after 1897 but before the end of WWI when the chevrons changed. the closest I can find is a 1917 (right at the start of WWI)- see plate #1 here:

I am not sure about the way the Eagle faces but in about 1946 the Army Col Eagle changed direction. During the war the head faced the arrows in the claws, and after the War the head faces the olive branches in the other claws.

[indcons]

Thanks for the ping, Metmom.

To all: please ping me to threads that are relevant to the MilHist list (and/or) please add the keyword "MilHist" to the appropriate thread. Thanks in advance.

Please FREEPMAIL indcons if you want on or off the "Military History (MilHist)" ping list.

[Belasarius]

I think the guy is a Fire Controlman. Thats the rate I was. It looks like the “barstool” rangefinder. The fact that he is standing by a gun might mean something.