Got a LOT of history and a Bit of Silver

Buellride

Forum Supporter
Joined
May 25, 2011
Messages
2,520
Location
Olympia, Washington
Today was a brief hunt before the rains come into the PNW. Glad I took the time to go curbstripping again! Total of 6 Wheaties (oldest was a 1925) and then about 3/4s through the hunt I got a really deep (8+ inch) signal that told me a quarter was down there. Has to be silver! Reaching down into the hole I fingernail grabbed the edge of a coin (or so I thought) and up came the Iowa State Traveling Mens Association fob! Too bad it isn't silver but the history behind this thing is super interesting. Circa 1920s or 30s, evidently it originally came with a backing (mine is missing it) but the colors from the enamel are bright and clear, just some funkiness on the sides and the back. Evidently it was also in several litigation efforts that even went to the Supreme Court (1900), supposedly they are some kind of insurance company. I love it.

The last find of the hunt (literally) was the World War II Sterling Combat Infantryman's Badge (CIB). Only given to those in direct combat and were Infantrymen. It is a "dress" uniform badge (only 1 1/2 inches wide) and weighs in at 4.1 grams of sterling. The blue enamel has worn/chipped off, but I LOVE the history associated with this bit of military memorabilia! GEMSCO STERLING is on the back.

Love finding 2 VERY historical pieces from business and the military! If anyone can assist in further nailing down the age of the CIB or the STM fob I would appreciate it

HH and GL All!!!
 

Attachments

  • 10_15 Total Finds.jpg
    10_15 Total Finds.jpg
    66.9 KB · Views: 632
  • 10_15 CIB Raw Front.jpg
    10_15 CIB Raw Front.jpg
    81.9 KB · Views: 617
  • 10_15 CIB Raw Back.jpg
    10_15 CIB Raw Back.jpg
    69.8 KB · Views: 616
  • 10_15 CIB Clean Front.jpg
    10_15 CIB Clean Front.jpg
    45.8 KB · Views: 603
  • 10_15 CIB Clean Back.jpg
    10_15 CIB Clean Back.jpg
    41.7 KB · Views: 634
Nice finds Buellride, esp like that Sterling C.I.B. pin! Must be due to Fort Lewis and a long time military presence in the area, very cool!
 
Love that military badge, have yet to find a nice silver one like that. Big congrats to you! Will look amazing displayed.
 
Very cool finds, Buellride! The CIB badge is awesome, but I really like that watch fob, too! Best I could find so far on the Iowa State Traveling Men’s Association is a document from 1916 that states that they commenced business in 1880:

1916 Accident Insurance Manual

And an ad from 1903:

1903 Advertisement

Also found references to a court case as late as 1948, but can’t find anything definitive on when the organization folded. Anyways, my untrained eye agrees with you...probably 1920s/30s or so. Neat stuff!
 
Big congrats on the awesome sterling! WW2 is just an intriguing time period, and the relics tell a story. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks Cellr, I love finding WWII artifacts. My time in Hawaii got me hooked on pulling "period" historical items. A very interesting time in history! Too bad I didn't know about this forum when I was stationed there, you all would have LOVED some of the "island" based finds I dug there!

Very cool finds, Buellride! The CIB badge is awesome, but I really like that watch fob, too! Best I could find so far on the Iowa State Traveling Men’s Association is a document from 1916 that states that they commenced business in 1880:

1916 Accident Insurance Manual

And an ad from 1903:

1903 Advertisement

Also found references to a court case as late as 1948, but can’t find anything definitive on when the organization folded. Anyways, my untrained eye agrees with you...probably 1920s/30s or so. Neat stuff!

I agree Tango, the fob is very cool and I wish I found the backing to the fob. There were a few references back to Supreme Court in the early 1900s and I too believe that it was an insurance company at one point in time. Thanks for the effort on identifying it for me!!
 
Good writeup on the sterling Silver WWII award medal. I would add that : After WWII (or possibly Korea ?) the USA stopped issuing military award medals in silver. Starting in the cold war era, and through Vietnam to the present : They are in cheap copper and enamel .

Oh well, at least our "greatest generation" got respect !
 
It's always cool to unearth something attributed to an association, institution, or business, etc., that is no more, or evolved into something else. I like those kind of finds, and usually learn something from them.
Digging a sterling military medal, though, I have not experienced yet. I call that an awesome bucketlister!
 
Back
Top Bottom