Insignia
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Cap Devices
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Left Side: Navy Officer's
Cap Device
Right Side: Miniature Officer's
Cap Device
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...... |
WAVES officers wore the commissioned officer's
Navy cap device on their service hat.
.
A miniature cap device was worn on the left
front of the garrison cap while a miniature pin-on rank was worn on the
right front of the garrison cap. |
.
Chief Petty Officers (CPOs) had a special cap device which consisted
of a fouled anchor in gold color metal with the letters USN in silver color
metal superimposed.
A miniature version of this cap device was worn on the left front
of the garrison cap. |
.....v |
Chief Petty Officer's
Cap Device
|
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Enlisted WAVES
Pin-on Cap Insignia
|
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All other enlisted WAVES wore a black band with "U.S. NAVY" in golden
letters on their service cap.
A felt jacket device (as shown below) could be worn as cap device
on the left front of the garrison cap.
In March 1945, a metal pin-on insignia was approved for wear on the
garrison cap (as shown in the picture on the left). It resembled the WAVES
jacket device, but with a gold color metal fouled anchor and a silver color
metal propeller. |
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Jacket Devices
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The jacket device of the Women's Reserve consisted
of a 3-bladed propeller with a fouled anchor superimposed. There where
two types of devices varying in their color. The device with a white anchor
and reserve blue propeller on a black background was worn with the navy
blue service jacket. The other type of device had a reserve blue anchor
and navy blue propeller on white background and was worn with the white
service jacket or gray working uniform. This type existed as round patchand
as cut-out version. While the cut-out patch was worn on the white service
jacket and the gray working uniform jacket, the round patch was usually
used with the white service jacket only.
Jacket device for
navy blue service jacket
|
.... |
Jacket device for white service
jacket
and gray working uniform jacket
|
.... |
Jacket device for
white service jacket
|
.
The jacket device was worn in the center of
each rounded end of the jacket collar, except that it was worn on the lapel
of the working uniform jacket.
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Buttons
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Enlisted personnel wore navy blue plastic
buttons on all service jackets. Since 28 December 1944, the wearing of
gilt buttons, instead of blue plastic buttons by Chief Petty Officers on
blue and white service jackets was approved.
WAVES officers wore the navy blue plastic buttons
on the gray working uniform only. Otherwise, they wore gilt buttons on
their service uniforms. |
.. |
 |
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Rank Insignia
Enlisted WAVES Rank Insignia
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The rating of enlisted WAVES was indicated
by rating badges worn on the upper left sleeve half-way between shoulder
and elbow and midway between front and back creases. The rating badges
of WAVES were slightly smaller than those for men.
.
1st Class
Seaman patch
|
.v |
WAVES with the rating of Apprentice
(or 3rd Class) Seaman wore a single diagonal
white stripe (on blue uniform) or navy blue stripe (on white and gray uniform).
WAVES with the rating of 2nd
Class Seaman wore two diagonal white stripes
(on blue uniform) or navy blue stripes (on white and gray uniform).
WAVES with the rating of 1st
Class Seaman wore three diagonal white
stripes (on blue uniform) or navy blue stripes (on white and gray uniform). |
..
The rating badges of Petty Officers consisted
of an eagle, specialty mark and chevrons.
The eagles and specialty marks were embroidered
in white on blue backgrounds for blue uniforms.
On all other uniforms, the eagles and specialty
marks were navy blue on a background corresponding to the uniform color.
The chevrons were scarlet for the blue uniforms
and black for all other uniforms. |
.. |
.
|
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Specialty and Distinguishing
Marks
Specialist ratings were worn as part of the
rating badge by women enlisted for special service. Specialty Marks were
an indication of skill attained in a particular field. While Distinguishing
Marks were also an indication of skill, they were never worn as part of
the rating badge. It was possible to earn a Distinguishing Mark without
having advanced beyond the non-rating badge. Several of the Specialty Marks
and Distinguishing Marks were identical in design.
The table below shows a couple of Specialty
Marks
(some of these were also used as Distinguishing
Marks).
.
.
WAVES Officer's Rank and
Corps Insignia
Sleeve stripes indicated the rank of officer's
on jackets. Instead of golden sleeve stripes, WAVES officers wore blue
stripes on their jackets (navy blue stripes on white and gray uniforms
and reserve blue on blue uniforms). This difference to male officer's uniforms
should point out their status as reserve.
.
Ranks from left to right:
Ensign - 1 1/2 inch stripe
Lt. (Junior Grade) - 1 1/2 and
1/4 inch stripe
Lieutenant - 2 1/2 stripe
Lt. Commander - 2 1/2 and 1/4
inch stripe |
.v |
|
.
Sleeve stripes of W-V(S) officer
in rank of Lt. Junior Grade
|
.v |
Sleeve Stripe of W-V(S) officer
in rank of Ensign
|
Above the sleeve stripes, WAVES officers of designated corps wore
special staff insignia. They indicated that the wearer has had particular
training in a certain field. The corps insignia of male Navy officers were
adopted, but embroidered in different colors. Instead of gold and silver,
WAVES corps devices could have the colors navy blue, reserve blue and white.
.
Male Navy Officer's Corps
Devices
|
v |
 |
.. |
Detail showing officer's sleeve
stripe
of an Ensign with medical corps
insigne |
. |
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A gold embroidered star above the sleeve braids indicated Line officers
in the Navy who didn't belong to a special corps. Line officers were qualified
for command of ships or aircraft in any fighting capacity.
Since 15 October 1944, WAVE officers who didn't belong to a special
corps (classified as W-V(S) ) were authorized to wear such a star above
the sleeve braid on their uniform jackets, but it was colored blue and
had the lower ray pointed downwards. The wear of this star was required
for all W-V(S) officers after 15 November 1944.
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The following classifications for WAVE officers
were in used until September 1944:
.
W-V(S) |
Commissioned officers of the Women's Reserve
appointed for emergency duties. |
W-V(S) (CEC) |
Commissioned officers of the Women's Reserve
appointed for duties in connection with the Civil Engineering Corps of
the Navy. |
W-V(S) (DC) |
Commissioned officers of the Women's Reserve
appointed for duties in connection with the Dental Corps of the Navy. |
W-V(S) (H) |
Commissioned officers of the Women's Reserve
appointed for duties in connection with the Hospital Corps of the Navy. |
W-V(S) (MC) |
Commissioned officers of the Women's Reserve
appointed for duties in connection with the Medical Corps of the Navy. |
W-V(S) (SC) |
Commissioned officers of the Women's reserve
appointed for duties in connection with the Supply Corps of the Navy. |
The "W " signified "Women", "V"
"Volunteer"
.
These classifications were abolished in September
1944 and officers were assigned the new
classification for which best qualified.
After September 1944, the new classifications were simply W(A) etc. These
are some examples:
.
W(A) |
US Naval Reserve officer designation for Women's
Reserve, Aviation Nonflying Duties |
W(C) |
US Naval Reserve officer designation for Women's
Reserve, Communications Duties |
W(E) |
US Naval Reserve officer designation for Women's
Reserve, Engineering Duties |
W(I) |
US Naval Reserve officer designation for Women's
Reserve, Intelligence Duties |
W(L) |
US Naval Reserve officer designation for Women's
Reserve, Legal Duties |
W(O) |
US Naval Reserve officer designation for Women's
Reserve, Ordnance Duties |
.
 |
... |
Staff officers wore the pin-on ranks on the
right side of the collar and the corps device on the left side.
Left: Pin-on rank of Ensign
Right: Medical Corps Device |
..
All other officers wore pin-on ranks on both
sides of the collar on the working dress and on shirts if the jacket was
removed.
A pin-on rank was also worn on the right side
of the garrison cap by all officers. |
.v |
 |
.
.
Service Stripes
.
 |
.v |
One service stripe sewn to the lower left sleeve indicated 4 years
of active service. The lower edge of the stripe should not be less than
two inches from the bottom edge of sleeve.
The stripes were scarlet on blue uniforms and navy blue on white
and gray uniforms.
Since the WAVES started their service in 1942, there were no service
stripes worn by WAVES during wartime. |
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[
I. Development ]..[
II. Facts about the WAVES ]..[
III. Uniforms ]..[
IV. Sources ]
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