Item Description
Original Items. One-of-a-Kind. This is the lovely painted helmet and painting of Navy Commander Ford Robert Cline, who served with the U.S. Navy’s Planning Division during the Korean War. The helmet comes with a gorgeous painting depicting several ships including the AOG-36 USNS Ontonagon, docked at Ulsan, South Korea in 1951. It was painted by a K. Sato, a likely South Korean painter, and was bought & owned by Ford R. Cline who signed it on the back.
The helmet is what’s often referred to as a Construction or Mining helmet, and is marked on the underside of the brim:
M.S.A. SKULLGARD
+ TYPE K +
MINE SAFETY APPLIANCES CO.
PITTSBURGH, PA. MADE IN U.S.A.
This model of helmet was produced by several companies for use by laborers during this period, with many ending up with the military in some capacity. The helmet is gorgeously painted with the Navy Officer’s cap insignia with PLANNING DIVISION / CMDR. F.R. CLINE around it. The lining is fully intact but there is no chinstrap if there ever was one.
The painting measures roughly 15 x 18” and depicts two ships stationed at Ulsan, South Korea in 1951, likely loading supplies as shown. The detailing is rather phenomenal and the painting has some wear overall as shown, with some loss of color in places. It is signed 1951 AT ULSAN K. SATO, and on the back with CAPT. FORD R. CLINE.
This is a lovely pair of items worthy of further research, ready for display.
The USS Ontonagon (AOG-36) was a Mettawee-class gasoline tanker laid down on May 10, 1944, and launched on June 30, the same year. It was commissioned on September 21, 1944, under Lt. Ralph S. Logan’s command with the hull number AOG-36 and it served in the U.S. Navy for 11 years until it was decommissioned in 1957. During its activities, the ship carried a complement of 62 people on board and had its main missions in Norfolk, Ulithi, Okinawa, Hagushi, Kerama Retto, Ryukyus, and Manila.
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