U.S. Army Uniforms of World War One

A.E.F. Knit Uniform Accessories (Fleisher’s Catalog, 1918)

Photographs from the W.W. I era Fleisher’s Knitting & Crochet Manual that depicted the variety of Quartermaster approved scarves, wristlets, helmets, sweaters and watch caps that were available to the Doughboys for service Over There. In some cases the knitting instructions are intact.

Some might be amused to see that the photographer’s stylist had used the 1902 blouse rather than the more suitable 1912 issue.


From Amazon: Fleisher’s Knitting & Crochet Manualstyle=border:none

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Four photographs of World War One Trench Coats (A Current Book, 2005)

The following four images were first published in Stephen J. Chambers’ remarkable book, Uniforms & Equipment Of The British Army In World War Istyle=border:none, and they will give the viewer good understanding concerning the broad variety of different trench coats that were made available at the time.

The afore mentioned British tailor’s journal West End Gazette remarked:

A feature (so far as tailors are concerned) of the European War is the variety of garments worn by officers, the details of which are suggested by the actual requirements of the campaign, rather than by the usual official regulations from the War Office. Never in the history of military tailoring, has such latitude been allowed, and officers are quick to recognize and avail themselves of the advantages of every practical design that is submitted for their approval.

Click here to read an old Vanity Fair magazine article about the trench coat.

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One Tailor’s Encounter with the Trench Coat (West End Gazette, 1915)

An excerpt from a British tailoring journal which explains what the garment is and is not. The illustrations show a long forgotten pattern with billows pockets and excessively long cuffs, which were intended to be gathered by wrist straps. You will also note that the trench coat is bereft of D rings and gas flaps and other fantasy elements of military-tailoring.

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The World War One Trench Coat (Vanity Fair Magazine, 1918)

The fashion designers of the past ninety-four years all seem to be of one mind when it comes to the subject of the trench coat: it needs to be re-designed every four months. Years have passed, but still the garment has not reached a final state; meanwhile the rest of us only get one shot at a first impression. It is no matter whether the one who wears the trench coat is an actual trench-dweller or simply one who Tweets all day; the designers all have their opinions regarding the fluctuating number of straps and ‘D’ rings. There has been no end to the amount of cleverness applied to the re-treading of the garment and through the years we have been treated to doggy trench coats and lady’s evening gowns cut to resemble trench coats. Yet in the dark days of 1917, when the United States entered the fray, it was not lost on those who glanced at the attached column that too many of these raincoats were already buried in the damp grave yards of France and Belgium.


Click here to read about the fashion legacy of W.W. II: the t-shirt…

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Trench Coats on Madison Avenue (Magazine Advertisement. 1918)

The trench coat has become such a mainstay in the male wardrobe throughout the years it is difficult to imagine a time when the great shopping boulevards were without them. Perhaps the first men’s shops to offer them in the U.S. were on New York’s Madison Avenue: F.R. Tripler and Brooks Brothers, where the garments can still be purchased to this day. The attached vintage print ad was commissioned by F.R. Trippler for a gabardine trench coat as well as the sale of private-purchase flexible protective body armor. The body armor appears to have been modeled after a German design. The reader may be disappointed to learn that the Madison Avenue boutiques no longer offer body armor.

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Brooks Brothers & Christmas 1917

During America’s short and costly participation in the First World War, a prominent New York clothing establishment, Brooks Brothers, did swift business making custom uniforms for both the Army and Navy.


As the following attachment will show, they also offered forty other items that were of use to both the officers as well as the ranks.


Click here to see a Vanity Fair editorial about Christmas gifts for Doughboys.

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The Famous One: The Burberry Trench Coat (The Stars and Stripes, 1918)

The trench coat, the submarine and the machine-gun were just a few of the innovations bequeathed to the modern world following the bloody brawl of 1914-1918. All three are still with us today, and one could even argue that, given the bitter peace that followed, these three were the only victors that emerged from that war. If that is the case, three cheers for Field Marshal Burberry and his legion of trench coats that have marched on every capitol city since that first autumn on the Marne!

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The Famous One: The Burberry Trench Coat (The Stars and Stripes, 1918)

The trench coat, the submarine and the machine-gun were just a few of the innovations bequeathed to the modern world following the bloody brawl of 1914-1918. All three are still with us today, and one could even argue that, given the bitter peace that followed, these three were the only victors that emerged from that war. If that is the case, three cheers for Field Marshal Burberry and his legion of trench coats that have marched on every capitol city since that first autumn on the Marne!

The Famous One: The Burberry Trench Coat (The Stars and Stripes, 1918) Read More »

Sam Brown Belts: Two Short Notices (The Stars and Stripes, 1919)

Aside from barb wire, poison gas, machine guns and trenches, the untested American officer corps had one other alien item to contend with: the Sam Brown Belt. Worn by all the officers in the allied armies and widely recognized as the premiere emblem of authority along the front lines, many American officers were of mixed minds concerning this military fashion accessory.

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