A New Uniform Regulation for the NCOs of the A.E.F.
(Stars and Stripes, 1918)
In an attempt to save money, the U.S. Army issued an order that N.C.O.s were to wear chevrons on one arm only.
The Stars and Stripes
Articles from The Stars and Stripes
The Tailoring System for U.S. Officers
(The Stars and Stripes, 1918)
This U.S. Army uniform regulation announced in the September 13th, 1918 issue of THE STARS and STRIPES helped to put British, French (and later German) tailors to work on the uniforms of U.S. officers:
According to this plan, each Quartermaster depot will have a tailoring system through which the officer can buy his cloth and then be fitted and outfitted on the spot. At each depot, civilian labor will be contracted and the officer need pay for only his share of the labor cost.
Two Khaki Shirt Advertisements
(The Stars and Stripes, 1918)
Black and white illustrations showing the types of private purchase shirting available to the members of the A.E.F. who were willing to pay for such foppery.
These particular items were British made and the ads depict two jocular Tommies.
The New Thing for 1919: Water-Proof Footwear and Long Trousers
(The Stars and Stripes, 1918)
Around the middle of 1918, the American Quartermasters began to think that their supply depots should actually be stocked with uniform items that were capable of providing some degree of warmth and comfort in the French winters, and so they dreamed-up the uniform elements described herein. For those who have some knowledge of American WW I uniforms it will be easy to recognize upon reading this article that most of these items were never made (except for the long pants).
A Puttee Advertisement
(Stars and Stripes, 1918)
The canvas leggings worn by the A.E.F. (as ordered in the American Army Uniform Regulations of 1912) were simply dandy for duties on the dry prairies of the United States, but soon proved impractical in the damp and rainy climate of France and Belgium. Shortly after their arrival in France the U.S. Army replaced their leggings with the wool puttees worn by their European Allies. In May of 1919 they were adopted for use by the entire Army.
Indian Moccasins Authorized
(The Stars and Stripes, 1919)
It is little remembered in our day that the Native Americans who served in the American Expeditionary Forces along the Western Front were permitted to wear moccasins in place of the regulation Pershing boot. Ethnic pandering is not a term that should come to mind; this was a high complement paid by their commanding officers for a well-respected prowess in battle. The following is a small portion from a larger article which is posted on The Native American page of this website; the entire article can be read following the link that reads A Talent for Sniping.
Advertisements for A.E.F. Officer’s Tailoring
(Stars and Stripes, 1918-19)
Attached, you will find three well illustrated advertisements for Paris military tailors that were lovingly scanned and posted after having been crudely ripped from the brittle pages of the U.S. Army newspaper STARS AND STRIPES.
An Advertisement for Officer’s Ankle Boots
(Stars and Stripes, 1918)
Some A.E.F. officers realized that industrial war would not provide them with an opportunity for horseback riding and they wisely chose alternative footwear more suited to the discomfort of living in the damp trenches of France.
An Underwear Advertisement
(Stars and Stripes, 1918)
The attached ad makes it quite clear that the American Army was not without its innovators: the Germans may have introduced poison gas, the British may have introduced the tank but it was the Americans who added Chamois Leather Underwear to the arsenal of industrial warfare.
The Doughboy Helmet: the Press Release
(Stars and Stripes, 1918)
Unlike those Poilu who rushed manfully to the recruiting stations in 1914 expecting some sartorial glory in the form of a shiny cavalry breast plate or stylish bright red pantaloons, only to find that the constraints of modern warfare would only provide him with a filthy rat-infested trench and a poor-man’s concept of a camouflage uniform (light-blue wool); the American Doughboy at least had some time to figure out that he would not be as nicely turned out as his uncle was during the Spanish-American War.
This odd notice was printed on the front page of The Stars and Stripes while most of the A.E.F. was still in training. The word was out by this time that the Campaign Hats they were issued back home were out -and so to counter the gripes, the army printed this balderdash to put a ‘nice spin’ on the tin pot
It’s not a helmet
To read more about the old campaign hats of the A.E.F. click here.
Heroism on the Western Front
(The Stars and Stripes, 1918)
It was the Prussian Guard against the American Indian on the morning of October 8 in the hills of Champagne.
Changing the Uniforms to Fit the Climate
(The Stars and Stripes, 1918)
A short notice printed in May of 1918 which intended to let the Doughboys know that the U.S. Army Quartermaster Corps was well aware that changes needed to be made in the American uniform in response to the damp French climate.
The additional uniform items never went into production in light of the fact that the war ended six months later.
Commander of the Lost Battalion
(The Stars and Stripes, 1919)
The following article presented a brief account of the deeds of Major Charles W. Whittlesey of the 308th Infantry Regiment ( Seventy Seventh Division
In December of 1918, Lt. Colonel Whittelesey was highly praised in VANITY FAIR …
Officer’s Dress Regulations & the Trench Coat
(The Stars and Stripes, 1918)
Instructions as to how American insignia was to be worn on the trench coat as well as the officer’s raincoat. An additional notice can be read concerning the Army’s wish that all Doughboys maintain a good, soldierly appearance while not serving in the zone of advance.
The Red Chevrons
(The Stars and Stripes, 1919)
Two paragraphs from THE STARS AND STRIPES explained the legal status extended to all those demobilized Doughboys who wore the highly coveted discharge chevron. The red wool chevron was worn (point down) on the left arm.
The War Record of the 93rd Division
(The Stars and Stripes, 1919)
A post-Armistice Day feature article that reported on the war-time activities of the four infantry regiments that made up the U.S. Ninety-Third Division (the 369th, 370th, 371st and the 372nd).
Two of these regiments were awarded the coveted Croix de Guerre. Accompanying this history is a black and white illustration of the Division’s insignia.
Signal Corps Movie Men of W.W. I
(The Stars and Stripes, 1918)
Appearing in The Stars and Stripes in mid-February of 1918 was this column about one of the newest disciplines to be introduced to the photographic section of the U.S. Army Signal Corps: the motion picture branch.
There is one movie-officer at present assigned to every division in the A.E.F.; one might call him the camera battery, if one wanted to get really military about it. Under him is a squad of expert photographers, some movie men, some ‘still’ snappers.
From the time when the sun finally decides that he might as well hobble up in the sky and do part of a day’s work, which isn’t often in this region, until the time that the aged, decrepit old solar luminary decides again, about the middle of the afternoon, that he’s done all he’s going to do while the calender is fixed the way it is, the camera battery is up and around taking pot-shots at everything in sight… They may be ‘covering’ a review, a series of field maneuvers ‘up front’ or merely Blank Company’s wash day at the village fountain. But always when the sun is shining, they are at it.
Click here to read a YANK MAGAZINE article about the Signal Corps films in the Second World War
The First Anniversary of Chateau-Thierry
(The Stars and Stripes, 1919)
Monday, June 2 [1919], was a holiday in the 2nd Division in the bridgehead on the Rhine. The anniversary of the battle of Chateau-Thierry was observed. It is just a year ago that infantry and Marines of the 2nd Division were thrown against the Boche on the Paris-Metz road near Chateau-Thierry, and from that moment on the Americans were in continual fighting until November 11.