# Service memorabilia



## Grampa Don (Apr 10, 2019)

Have you kept any memorabilia from your service time?  For many years after I got out of the Navy, I kept a set of dungarees, dress whites, dress and undress blues, my pee coat and my dungaree jacket.  Some of it stored in my old bunk bag.  A couple of years ago I went through it and asked myself why I was keeping all this stuff.  So, I thinned it out.

I put a few items in a shadow box







The background is material from my dungaree jacket.  Other than this, I have a lighter with the ships insignia, my bluejacket's manual, a small piece of the teak wood deck which I collected after some minor damage, a collection of photos, and my memories.  I guess that's enough.

Don


----------



## Tommy (Apr 10, 2019)

Not much of my own stuff ... maybe a set of dress blues and my pea coat.  I still have some of my dad's gear though.


----------



## cdestroyer (Apr 12, 2019)

nope never kept anything.. I had enough when I was in.


----------



## Falcon (Apr 12, 2019)

Just  my  6  medals.  No clothing (uniforms).

My   Air Medal  is the most  honorable.   Got it  as a bomber  pilot.


----------



## Grampa Don (Apr 12, 2019)

When I got out, I had to maintain my sea bag for a year of standby reserve.  After that, I just never got around to throwing most of it out.  I know a lot of people have bad memories of their time in uniform.  I was very very lucky.  I never saw any combat.  I served with good people, officers and chiefs included.  It was an interesting experience, and I had some good times.  My only regret is that I had to leave my wife and son behind, and I missed them very much. 

My little shadow box hangs in my hobby room.  Nobody notices it but me.  But, I look at it frequently.  And, I think about my shipmates and hope life went as well for them.

Don


----------



## Trade (Apr 12, 2019)

Just these:


----------



## Manatee (Apr 13, 2019)

I got out 60years ago. I still have a ship's name patch and a crow (Engineman 2/c).


----------



## Camper6 (Apr 13, 2019)

Dungarees?  You are dating yourself.  It's jeans now.

For myself I don't have much but for my father I have kept certificates and framed them.  He served in the First World War.

I have a medal and a certificate and a photo of my grandson in a color party holding a flag all framed on my wall.


----------



## ClassicRockr (Apr 13, 2019)

I got out in 1972. Four year hitch with Inactive Reserve Duty after. IOW, I was a regular, not a 2-Year "Weekend Warrior" Naval Reserve. 

Have a picture, with me in, from my Sept. 1968 NTC Great Lakes, ILL Graduation Class. Have all of my ribbons/metals in a display case. Vietnam Campaign, Vietnam Service (w/two bronze stars), a Ship Commendation Metal and a couple of others. Also have a picture of my first ship, the U.S.S. Robison DDG-12 going by Pt Loma in San Diego back to 32nd St Naval Station in San Diego. My first Westpac Cruise to Nam was on the Robison. Also have a nice collector's plate of the U.S.S. Yorktown that we bought when we visited it in the Bay by Charleston, SC.. Very interesting walk around this Carrier.


----------



## ClassicRockr (Apr 13, 2019)

Camper6 said:


> Dungarees?  You are dating yourself.  It's jeans now.
> 
> For myself I don't have much but for my father I have kept certificates and framed them.  He served in the First World War.
> 
> I have a medal and a certificate and a photo of my grandson in a color party holding a flag all framed on my wall.



The entire time I was in the Navy, my work uniform was dungarees.


----------



## Camper6 (Apr 13, 2019)

ClassicRockr said:


> The entire time I was in the Navy, my work uniform was dungarees.



So was mine when I worked construction. The point I am trying to make is the change in the language.  

If you said dungarees to a younger person they wouldn't know what you are talking about.


----------



## Grampa Don (Apr 13, 2019)

Didn't the US Navy do away with dungarees?  It seems the pictures I see now are some kind of camouflage outfit.  Bell bottom dungarees were comfortable and looked good.

Don


----------



## Manatee (Apr 14, 2019)

ClassicRockr said:


> The entire time I was in the Navy, my work uniform was dungarees.



With a light blue chambray shirt that had your name stenciled on the back.

The dungarees came in 2 sizes: too big and too small.

In Panama some of us made cutoff shorts out of them.


----------



## Pecos (Aug 18, 2019)

I was in the Navy for over 31 years (1960 to 1991) and have lots of memorabilia as you might expect from a guy who went in as a 17 year old kid right out of high school and retired 31 years later as a Commander (O-5). I really enjoyed it, especially my time as a CPO, and as a CWO, and finally as a Commanding Officer of a small overseas shore station.
I have been working on trimming my stuff down and am fortunate to have children and grandchildren to pass it on. Much of what I just trashed was rather meaningless stuff, but other odd things are a little tough to let go. I came across my old enlisted dog tags with my old service number and decided that they should hang around a little longer. I suppose that I am just a bit sentimental.
I always thought that dungarees were very practical and comfortable. Some of the other uniforms were not. I hated choker whites, white shoes, and those terrible raincoats that were issued in 1960. And what was the point of making us buy Flathats that could only be worn in Boston.


----------



## fuzzybuddy (Aug 30, 2019)

NOW, I wish I kept some things. But not when I go out. Don't have any idea what I did with my uniform-kind of just disappeared. I did have a seabag with the name "Munseons" on it. He was a buddy and somehow we got each other's bag. That kind of went the way of the uniform. yeah, Grampa Don, I wish I kept some stuff.


----------



## Pecos (Aug 31, 2019)

Oh, and of course I still have, and use, my peacoat. Those things are so warm and well made that my grandchildren have specifically mentioned that they were willing to draw straws to determine who I give it to.


----------



## Llynn (Aug 31, 2019)

Pecos said:


> Oh, and of course I still have, and use, my peacoat. Those things are so warm and well made that my grandchildren have specifically mentioned that they were willing to draw straws to determine who I give it to.


My daughter and a couple of grandcritters want my peacoat. I have an old foul weather jacket that seems to attracting the rascals too. I still have one complete dress uniform with "fruit salad". No one has expressed interest in that monkey suit so far.


----------



## Pecos (Aug 31, 2019)

Llynn said:


> My daughter and a couple of grandcritters want my peacoat. I have an old foul weather jacket that seems to attracting the rascals too. I still have one complete dress uniform with "fruit salad". No one has expressed interest in that monkey suit so far.



I think that I will probably get planted in my dress blues.


----------



## Nautilus (Nov 16, 2019)

I have the round Vietnam Service Medal on my key ring.  There's a box of photos somewhere...haven't seen them in years.  That about it.


----------



## Autumn72 (Dec 28, 2019)

Grampa Don said:


> When I got out, I had to maintain my sea bag for a year of standby reserve.  After that, I just never got around to throwing most of it out.  I know a lot of people have bad memories of their time in uniform.  I was very very lucky.  I never saw any combat.  I served with good people, officers and chiefs included.  It was an interesting experience, and I had some good times.  My only regret is that I had to leave my wife and son behind, and I missed them very much.
> 
> My little shadow box hangs in my hobby room.  Nobody notices it but me.  But, I look at it frequently.  And, I think about my shipmates and hope life went as well for them.
> 
> Don


Why not take a photo and clip it to a Christmas card to show your family members how you served your country....why not.


----------



## Pappy (Dec 29, 2019)

A few things I’ve kept over the years:


----------



## Nautilus (Feb 4, 2020)

I got out in 1972.  Bell bottoms were "in" at the time and I wore them until they were threadbare.  Everything else I gave to my wife's cousins (girls) who thought my old uniforms were "cool."  I have a bunch of photos somewhere but everything else is gone.  Doesn't matter...it's all on my DD214.


----------



## DaveA (Feb 6, 2020)

Our son has my dad's (1916-19) WW1 uniform (minus the hat and leggings). He served with the AEF in France. 

He also has my dress blues including the "flat hat" that was discontinued in (I think) 1954.  My service time in the Coast Guard was 1953-57 aboard a couple of Ocean Station cutters.


----------



## ClassicRockr (Feb 6, 2020)

I forgot, I also have a model of the U.S.S. Robinson, first ship I served on and only ship I went on a Westpac Cruise on. Part of it I've put together, but I'm not into "model making" that much.


----------



## Grampa Don (Feb 6, 2020)

DaveA said:


> He also has my dress blues including the "flat hat" that was discontinued in (I think) 1954.  My service time in the Coast Guard was 1953-57 aboard a couple of Ocean Station cutters.


I was issued a flat hat in '61 when I enlisted, but never wore it.  Maybe they just wanted to get rid of them.

Don


----------



## DaveA (Feb 6, 2020)

Grampa Don said:


> I was issued a flat hat in '61 when I enlisted, but never wore it.  Maybe they just wanted to get rid of them.
> 
> Don


It could have just been here in the First district.  They'd had a couple of Navy guys hit by cars while hitchhiking (if I remember correctly) and switched to the white hats for visibility.  Long time ago but I think that was the reason given.


----------



## Pecos (Feb 6, 2020)

Grampa Don said:


> I was issued a flat hat in '61 when I enlisted, but never wore it.  Maybe they just wanted to get rid of them.
> 
> Don


We should have been wearing them. That white Dixie cup hat was useless in foul weather, .... unless you were interested in collecting some rain water. The flat hat was a lot warmer and could shed a little water, … and it was better looking as well.

And that story they fed us in boot camp about using the white hat as a floatation device was nonsense. I never once went to General Quarters wearing a white hat. What were we supposed to do if we had to abandon ship, run back to our lockers before going topside.


----------



## Nautilus (Feb 6, 2020)

I have kept my father's army uniforms.  He was stationed at Los Alamos and his uniforms have the atomic bomb patch.  He watched the first test at the Trinity site.  He had a small box with pieces of sand that had been turned into pale green glass but it has disappeared over the years.


----------



## DaveA (Feb 6, 2020)

Don --You just made it.  I looked it up and the article stated that the "flat  hats" were officially retired in 1963.


----------



## squatting dog (Feb 6, 2020)

Still have some of the medals somewhere in a box, Vietnam war service medal, Army air medal, c.i.b, etc. They, however are not my prize possession. That would be the drawer full of my dad's WWII medals.  I suppose sometime in the future, my daughter or grand children will want mine.


----------



## drifter (Apr 16, 2020)

I kept a field jacket and skivvies. The rest discarded after three months or so. Wore the field jacket
until I I wore it out working for Halliburton. Out grew the skivvies.


----------



## oldmontana (Apr 17, 2020)

License plate "US FORCES IN GERMANY 1958"  on my VW bug I bought serving in Germany...US Army.


----------



## Pinky (Apr 17, 2020)

My brother made us both shadow-boxes with Dad's medals in them. One of them has his hat. Very precious to have.


----------



## oldman (Apr 19, 2020)

Pinky said:


> My brother made us both shadow-boxes with Dad's medals in them. One of them has his hat. Very precious to have.


My dad was a career Army man. He fought in three wars and was actually involved in four wars. I had a lot of his things from his career, along with so many other personal things or as I call them, memories. Our former house burned completely and we lost everything. It was a 100% loss. The day that house burned to the ground was the day that I lost more than just a house.


----------

