Article about: Hi all, I've had this T-handle shovel in my collection for a number of years now, and it's a bit of a mystery. It came from the US via eBay and at the time I was thinking it was a standard M
I've had this T-handle shovel in my collection for a number of years now, and it's a bit of a mystery.
It came from the US via eBay and at the time I was thinking it was a standard M1910 shovel, but there are a few differences, mainly in how the blade is attached to the handle. See the photo's below, in a few I've included a standard M1910 T-handle shovel for comparison. The main difference is that the tang of the blade wraps around the handle (almost but not entirely round it), and it is a bit longer than the standard version. It is attached to the handle with one rivet. The shovel is obviously quite old and saw a lot of use. The only marking is 'US' on the tang in a rather long, thin font; any markings that may have been on the wood are worn off. I don't see any remains of paint either. The overall size is identical to the standard type, and it does fit in a standard M1910 web carrier.
This shovel has also been discussed on the US Militaria forum, and it came down it is either an M1905 prototype shovel, or a very early production M1910. Another mentioned option is that it is a Lend-Lease British Made item, based on the font of the 'US' on the tang which is indeed not unlike the marking used of many webbing BM items. This last option seems unlikely though. No one was able to find any determinative proof of any of these possibilities.
Maybe someone here can shed some light on it, I doubt there are many of these shovels around?
PS sorry for the small photos, if needed I'll make some new ones.
Mystery US T-handle shovel
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