Silver Star - WW1 numbered - BBB Co

[MAP]

Another pick up today. A nice WW1 Silver Star numbered 22,424 made by BBB Co (Bailey, Banks & Biddle, Philadelphia) (first type with Maker Mark and broach pin). BBB is the original designer of the award, number 22,424 is within the WW1 timeframe from what I can tell even though these were not issued until 1932.

It is not engraved so not sure if it was issued. I would like to see if it is possible to look up this number but have not found anything yet.

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A little background on the Silver Star courtesy of Home of Heros website.

The Silver Star Medal is the United States' THIRD HIGHEST award exclusively for combat valor, and ranks fifth in the precedence of military awards behind the Medal of Honor, the Crosses (DSC/NC/AFC), the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, and the Distinguished Service Medals. It is the highest award for combat valor that is NOT unique to any specific branch; it has been bestowed by the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard, and Merchant Marines.

The Silver Star was established by President Woodrow Wilson as a "Citation Star" during World War I, and was solely a U.S. Army award, though it was presented by the War Department (U.S. Army) to members of the Navy and to U.S. Marines.

On February 22, 1932, the "Citation Star" was converted from a ribbon device" to a full-fledged MEDAL (i.e. the Silver Star).

The Silver Star Medal was designed by Rudolf Freund of Bailey, Banks and Biddle.

It is estimated that the number of Silver Stars awarded from WW1 to present is somewhere between 100,000 and 150,000. While that number seems quite large, when compared to the more than 30 million American men and women who have served in uniform during that time period, it is obvious that the Silver Star is a rare award, bestowed on fewer than 1 in every 250 veterans of military service.

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Double Click to enlarge

[paulscoot]

Nice pickup, love these Bailey, Banks & Biddle silver Stars ! the epitome of U.S. decoration manufacturers imo. The only difference between mine and yours , is that my number is stamped & yours appears to be engraved (correct me if i'm wrong ,maybe both methods were used ?) regards paul p.s.or maybe stamped is ww2 issue ?

[MAP]

Thanks Paul. To be honest...I'm just starting to dip my toe into US medals after the WW1 DSC I got last month. I've kind of gotten bitten so I will need to learn a lot before I start buying more. As such, I'm not sure why one is stamped or one is engraved.

And yes. I was told that BBB & Co is "the" maker to look for (or was that just the dealers "pitch" to me...LoL).

[Rakkasan187]

Very nice BBB Silver Star. I found one about 15 years ago, very nice...

Smitty

[MAP]

Thanks Smitty. It has been on my list for a while. I have a WW2 Cased Bronze star and DSC so this was needed. Still need many more to fill out the collection however.

[paulscoot]

I reckon your dealer was right ! kinda like the difference of S&L & Juncker regards Paul