U.S. Navy V-7 program insignia at Columbia and Ft. Schuyler

U.S. Navy V-7 midshipman cap badge.Single piece construction.Fouled anchor; gold-filled.Late Second World War era. Almost twenty years ago I read Herman Wouk’s 1951 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, The Caine Mutiny.  Recalling Captain Queeg, ball bearings, and strawberries, I recently decided to re-read the novel.  The work fashions a re-creation of the culture of urgency that both […]

“Firmitas adversaria superat” and “Alt for Norge”

Second World War U.S. Merchant Marine ribbons and two medals. USMM Victory Medal. Norway War Medal. USMM Combat Bar. USMM Defense Bar. USMM Atlantic War Zone Bar. Late Second World War and Postwar era. Uniformed members of the U.S. Armed Services wear an array of ribbons on their chests. The small strips of cloth denote […]

“Firmitas adversaria superat” and “Alt for Norge”

Donald Schiesher Lost in Action With Crew of Henry Bacon In an unforgettable epic of the sea, seven officers and eight men of the American Liberty ship Henry Bacon, boldly met death in an icy Artic gale to save the lives of 19 Norwegian islanders. One of these eight men was Seaman Donald Schiesher, son […]