Preface 



This catalog is a descriptive and interpretive listing of the insignia of the Army 

 of the United States — other than buttons, epaulets, and horse furniture — in the 

 National Collections that were prescribed or worn during the period 1800-1851. 

 The subject of early American military buttons has been covered by L. F. Emilio in 

 The Emilio Collection oj Military Buttons (Salem, Massachusetts: Essex Institute, 1911), 

 \V. L. Calver and R. P. Bolton in History Written with Pick and Shovel (New York: New 

 York Historical Society, 1950), and David F. Johnson in Uniform Buttons, American 

 Armed Forces, 1784-1948. (VVatkins Glen, New York: Century House, 1948, 2 vols.). 

 For epaulets, see Mendel L. Peterson, "American Army Epaulets, 1814-1872," 

 Military Collector and Historian (March 1961, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 1-14). 



Most of the specimens described here are from the huge W. Stokes Kirk Collection 

 acquired in 1959, supplemented by the War Department Collection and the numerous 

 biographical collections of the United States National Museum; in addition, a few 

 insignia in the collections of J. Duncan Campbell and others are included. 



The unique W. Stokes Kirk Collection, unmatched in scope, volume, and rarity, 

 is worthy of special note. It was begun in 1878 by W. Stokes Kirk, Sr., of Philadel- 

 phia, a dealer in U.S. Government surplus. Struck by the beautiful design and 

 delicate art work in some of the early insignia, Mr. Kirk put aside all old and unusual 

 devices for his personal collection. As his business expanded, so did his interest in 

 military rarities and curios. After each bulk purchase from government sources, he 

 would have all the odd and unusual items sorted out for his examination. The best 

 of such items went into his personal collection, which included rare firearms, powder 

 flasks, insignia, epaulets, military caps, and the like. W. Stokes Kirk, Jr., who 

 succeeded his father and expanded the business nationally until it became almost as 

 well known as Bannerman's Military Store in New York City, maintained and en- 

 larged the collection. After his death, in 1946, the collection was continued by his 

 widow, Mrs. Linnie A. Kirk Mosler. Items in this catalog from the \V. Stokes Kirk 

 Collection are indicated by the letters "S-K" in parentheses following the United 

 States National Museum number. 



Although this catalog is, in more than one sense, a developmental history of 

 American military insignia, it is not, and is not intended to be, a definitive study. 

 The picture is far too incomplete. Whereas the record of Regular Army devices after 

 1821 is fairly clear — despite the fact that the uniform regulations continued sometimes 

 to use the tantalizing phrase " according to pattern" — there remain serious gaps in the 

 pre-1821 period when regulations were exceedingly vague and fragmentary at best; 



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