ATC Uniform Grouping

[Luftwaffe 1941]

About two weeks ago I scored quite the gem of a uniform, and I'm really exited to finally share it with everyone here on the forum!

I found this uniform while surfing eBay for new additions for the collection. I have to say I'm surprised no one else scooped it up before I did. The seller's asking price was extremely fair, and the grouping itself consists of items that would easily get the attention of any uniform collector.

After I bought this grouping I quickly messaged the seller to see if he knew any history behind the pieces. He didn't know too much about the items, but what he did share with me I found pretty interesting. The seller claimed he found the uniform in his late grandmother's estate. She passed a few years back, and he's just now going through all of the belongings she left behind. How his grandmother ended up with the uniform is a bit of an interesting story. This uniform originally belonged to 'William H Younker' who was the vet that wore it during the war. William who commonly went by 'Bill' passed away in 1991. After he passed his uniform was then left under the care of his wife 'Ernestine Younker'. Ernestine passed away in 2002, and after her passing the uniform was inherited by a very close friend of the Younker couple. This close friend is the grandmother of the eBay seller I bought this grouping from. So ever since the vet passed in 91, this uniform has been through few hands.

After some minimal research on my end I was able to a find a photo of William and Ernestine's tombstone.

This grouping consists of an ATC patched dress tunic, the vet's dog-tags, a shirt, two garrison caps, and a pair of pants. The tunic is a beautiful example with some really cool insignia. The air force patch below the ATC rocker is a theater made bullion example. Above the left breast pocket there is a fairly common assortment of ribbons followed by a pair of aircrew wings. The right cuff has a communications/radio operator specialist patch sewn to it. The specialist patch was sewn in a unique fashion giving it a cool looking decorative border. The dress tunic, shirt, and one of the garrison caps all have matching laundry lumbers, which in turn match the information on the vet's dog-tags.

I'm beyond happy to be able to add this grouping to my collection! Examples like these don't come around often.

[Luftwaffe 1941]

I almost forgot to show these two little surprises I found inside the pockets of the uniform. The belt buckle was found inside the left breast pocket of the tunic, and the inspectors tag was inside one of the pockets of the pants.

I would show photos of the pants, but there’s really nothing too exiting to see. Just standard issue U.S. army dress pants.

[Rakkasan187]

Very nice uniform Jarret,

Your collection is growing quite nicely..

Best regards, stay safe

Smitty

[Luftwaffe 1941]

Thanks Smitty! Coming from you that really means a lot.

These uniforms are certainly addicting!

You stay safe out there too

[RustyRelics]

Believe it or not, I almost bought that exact uniform. I had the mouse over the button, but I backed away. I decided to save for that Stalingrad dog tag collection I told you about.


Awesome buy man, glad it went to ya! You have a knack for finding amazing American uniforms.

[Luftwaffe 1941]

Believe it or not, I almost bought that exact uniform. I had the mouse over the button, but I backed away. I decided to save for that Stalingrad dog tag collection I told you about.


Awesome buy man, glad it went to ya! You have a knack for finding amazing American uniforms.

Wow!! For real?!

Well... I can't say I'm surprised though. I've seen some items here on the forum before that slipped away from my grasp.

I really appreciate the kind words Rusty! You may have passed up on a pretty cool uniform grouping, but that Stalingrad EKM collection you're getting is pretty epic. So in my opinion I think it's a fair trade. Can't wait until you get them in hand!

[TWS]

Awesome find! Glad it is now in good hands.

[Luftwaffe 1941]

I got some exciting news yesterday!

The seller I got this grouping from sent me a message stating that he found several military documents that belonged to Mr. Younker. One of them is a double sided negative of his WWII era discharge papers. Needless to say I quickly bought the documents. As soon as the documents arrive I'll be sure to share them here. I'm sure they'll shed quite a bit of light on the specifics of Mr. Younker's service.

[MilitariaOne]

Greetings Jarret,

I could not source a photo of him, but still found a few tidbits for you. First up, his WWII Draft Card:

Double Click Images to Enlarge.



His Iowa's State Veteran's Compensation Form, which has all of his service location's data.



And his minimalist obituary. No mention of his service. Of course, if I only spent a cumulative of 32 days overseas.....I too might not make a big deal about it either. All joking aside, at least he served.

[Luftwaffe 1941]

greetings jarret,

i could not source a photo of him, but still found a few tidbits for you. First up, his wwii draft card:

Double click images to enlarge.



his iowa's state veteran's compensation form, which has all of his service location's data.



and his minimalist obituary. No mention of his service. Of course, if i only spent a cumulative of 32 days overseas.....i too might not make a big deal about it either. All joking aside, at least he served.

WOW!!

Thank you soooo much for finding this for me! I just now printed copies of all the documents. I'll be sure to keep them alongside his uniform. So it seems that his wartime service was spent here in the states at various airfields. I wonder where he spent the month overseas at? I guess I'll find out once the discharge papers arrive. They should be here by tomorrow afternoon.

I really need to look into getting an Ancestry/Fold3 subscription. At the rate I'm buying uniforms I'm sure it would come in handy.