Item Description
Original Item: Only One Available: This stunning WWI 29th Division grouping has a uniform with a great 29th patch, a beautiful British made brodie helmet, and a painted 29th Division gas mask and bag.
This is the uniform, helmet, and painted gas mask grouping of Andrew W. Franko, Serial #: 1270800, Company A, 104th Engineers, 29th Division. The uniform is a summer-weight example in fine condition. The overseas and discharge chevrons are loose and torn in some spots. The 29th Division patch is also worn but beautiful. The jacket has rare brown vegetable ivory buttons. The pants are in similar shape as the jacket. The helmet is a British-made Brodie helmet with a full original British liner with the rubber ring and a broken but complete chinstrap. The gas mask bag is painted with a 29th Division “Blue & Grey” insignia on the flap, and named “A. W. Franko” on the strap. Also included is his M1910 Mills cartridge belt.
Andrew W. Franko was born in Trenton, New Jersey on January 3rd, 1896. Before entering the Army, Franko worked as a fireman in Trenton. Franko enlisted in the New Jersey National Guard in 1917. He was assigned to Company A, 104th Engineer Regiment, 29th Division. Franko traveled overseas with the 29th Division on June 19th, 1918. The 104th Engineers took part in combat operations in the Center Defensive sector from July 25th-September 23rd, 1918, and the Meuse-Argonne Offensive from September 28th-October 30th, 1918. Shortly before the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, the 104th Engineer Regiment was detached to V Corps and spent the Meuse-Argonne fighting with them, before being reattached shortly thereafter. Franko returned stateside on May 11th, 1919. He was discharged from the army on May 29th, 1919, shortly after returning from France.
Approximate Measurements:
Collar to shoulder: 9.5"
Shoulder to sleeve: 23”
Shoulder to shoulder: 15”
Chest width: 16"
Waist width: 15"
Hip width: 18"
Front length: 28"
Pants:
Waist: 14.5"
Inseam: 23.5"
The 29th Infantry Division (29th ID), also known as the "Blue and Gray Division", is an infantry division of the United States Army based in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. It is currently a formation of the U.S. Army National Guard and contains units from Virginia, Maryland, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina and West Virginia.
Formed in 1917, the division deployed to France as a part of the American Expeditionary Force during World War I. The division departed for the Western Front in June 1918 to join the American Expeditionary Force (AEF). The division's advance detachment reached Brest, France on 8 June. In late September, the 29th received orders to join the U.S. First Army's Meuse-Argonne Offensive as part of the French XVII Corps. During its 21 days in combat, the 29th Division advanced seven kilometers, captured 2,148 prisoners, and knocked out over 250 machine guns or artillery pieces. Thirty percent of the division became casualties—170 officers and 5,691 enlisted men were killed or wounded. Shortly thereafter the Armistice with Germany was signed on 11 November 1918, ending hostilities between the Central Powers and the Allied Powers. The division returned to the United States in May 1919. It demobilized on 30 May at Camp Dix, New Jersey, though it remained an active National Guard unit.
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