There's a lot going on here...

[Bodey]

Hello everyone!

Today I picked up this beautiful vietnam era tunic. It seems this soldier has seen quite a lot! It seems he fought in Korea, Vietnam, served in special forces and was also a Drill Sergeant. A couple things I would like to address regarding this piece:

- 34 ribbons seem to be a bit much, even for a first sergeant, does this ribbon rack look correct? Also I cannot seem to identify the bottom two rows of ribbons if anyone knows what they are...

- the buttons are silver, I know this is not common, but should I be concerned? I have seen one other example with silver buttons on this site.

- I have the man's dogtags, his name is Charles J. Marley, I would love to do some research on him but I do not know where to begin if someone could point me in the right direction I would be very grateful.

I would also like to point out that all the patches in the frame were found in one of the pockets on the jacket. Overall it seems like a nice piece and I am very excited to begin some research. Thanks for looking!

Bodey

[greatwhite]

This site was helpful, i believe there is full tutorial on here somewhere.

NARA - AAD - Main Page

[Rakkasan187]

Bodey,

I don't want to burst your bubble, but in my opinion this uniform has been modified and added to. The ribbons as you have mentioned are way too much and even if this person was awarded all these decorations for valor, many of the other ribbons on the uniform were not retroactive, which means they would not have been authorized for wear during this service members periods of service.

The Special Forces patch in the frame is upside down by the way...

On another note, there are many data bases out there that will help you find out if the Soldier was awarded the Silver Star and possibly the Bronze Stars..

The suggestion to try to obtain his records is on the right track, so you may be able to find some information.

You have the name and his SSN, so there is a good start there..

Also, the Forces Command Patch that is on the uniform (the red white and blue patch) and the drill sergeant unit crests on the shoulder are not a match. If this Soldier was assigned to the Drill Sergeant School or other training organization then the patch would be the TRADOC (Training and Doctrine Command Insignia) which is similar to the FORSCOM patch but is red, blue and yellow..

I have to head to work right now, but I will add some other things that I notice as red flags a little later..

One last thing on the ribbons.. One of the ribbons is the Vietnamese equivalent for the Purple Heart awarded to civilians so that is very doubtful right there...

In my humble opinion the uniform was put together..

Smitty

[08SMLE48]

Yes WAY too many red flags. The ribbons on the bottom are from multiple states’ national guard. Highly unlikely that he served in in the national guard in multiple states and not have a reserve good conduct medal. National defense ribbon should have a star for a second award ( one for Korea era and one for Vietnam era). Just to name a couple more. So like you said that a lot is going on. Unfortunately it too much going on to be true.

[Rakkasan187]

Here is a link that may help you with some of the Valor awards..

Again I am very skeptical about many of the Valor awards on this uniform, and the multiple awards of them.

The silver buttons (Stay bright) are common on uniforms and Soldiers in many cases would replace the gold colored buttons for a more formal dress uniform appearance. The shirt is white which would indicate a more formal dining in type of occasion and the silver buttons would be appropriate if the Soldier did not have a set of Dress blues. Army Dress blue uniforms also have the gold colored buttons but many Soldiers who had a set of blues would often upgrade the buttons to Silver for again a more formal look and in order to look different from the Soldiers wearing greens with gold buttons..

The Special forces pin on the uniform is also not an authorized badge for wear on this uniform. It is supposed to be a beret flash for the 5th Special Forces Group (You have the cloth version with Distinctive Unit Insignia) in the frame.. So again most likely this was added to the uniform for the "bling factor" but any First Sergeant would be called out for wearing that and the abomination of the ribbon rack which after looking at it closer is a combination of multiple racks pinned on the uniform.

If you find information on this Soldier and can obtain his DD214 then I would strip the uniform of all the unauthorized ribbons and try to rebuild for there.. The South Vietnamese Ranger badge maybe authorized but again this will take some really deep research..

The Army Ranger School and Ranger Department at Fort Benning Georgia will have a list of all Soldiers who graduated from Army Ranger School and are authorized to wear the Ranger Tab, and if the Soldier had any affiliation with the 3rd Ranger Battalion his name will be on their rosters as well..

and Finally.. If the Soldier attended the Army Drill Sergeant School, the name will be on the list of graduates from there as well...

Lots of different avenues of research to look into..

Military Times Hall Of Valor

Smitty

[Bodey]

Thanks to everyone for the information! I thought it was too good to be true, I will do some research and bring this uniform to its proper state...

[Rakkasan187]

Bodey,

I don't think the uniform is a total loss,, as I mentioned previously, if it can be determined through NARA records or other approaches, the unauthorized items can be removed and you may have a decent combat veteran uniform..

I will look at ancestry and Fold3 which may have some information about the Soldier as well and that way there will be more information that can be used to obtain records ect..

May I ask where this was obtained, Geographic location and site, (ie gun show, thrift store, antique mall) etc.. In some cases these venues can also hold some hints of information.. This could have been embellished with the extra ribbons for a costume for example or the person who had it last added the other ribbons, ect..

If you want, send me a private message with the SSN and I can narrow down the possible Soldier if they are deceased, but it will give me a date of birth, city of birth and maybe some other information

Smitty

[Watchdog]

Excuse my ignorance but during my service I encountered a large number of US colleagues not least during two years in Berlin and I don't recall ever seeing a Drill Instructor badge on the epaulettes but only on the breast pocket.
Did I miss something? I was always fascinated by the DI badge having been a drill instructor myself. Not picking a hole but I don't know and would really like to

Regards

Mark

[Bodey]

Excuse my ignorance but during my service I encountered a large number of US colleagues not least during two years in Berlin and I don't recall ever seeing a Drill Instructor badge on the epaulettes but only on the breast pocket.
Did I miss something? I was always fascinated by the DI badge having been a drill instructor myself. Not picking a hole but I don't know and would really like to

Regards

Mark

I would assume that like a few other things on this uniform, those do not belong

[Rakkasan187]

Mark,

The smaller badges on the epaulettes are distinctive unit crests.. The US Army Drill Sergeant School at Fort Jackson, South Carolina is the home for training all the US Army's Drill Sergeants.. Cadre assigned to the school wear the smaller drill sergeant unit crest,, just like in Berlin when the US Infantry Brigade there wore the DUI (Distinctive Unit Insignia) for the 502nd Infantry Regiment..

Hope that helps my friend..

Smitty

Just like my avatar which is the unit crest for the 187th Infantry Regiment.. This unit was my regimental affiliation and I was authorized to wear this particular unit crest after leaving the unit over the right breast pocket of my Army Dress green and Dress blue uniform. The DUIs that I wore on the shoulder epaulettes while in Berlin was the 502nd Infantry regiment (STRIKE)...