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Miscellaneous
Headgear
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Visored Service Caps
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The ARC outdoor uniforms were worn with a visored
cap made of the same material as the suits or coats. The caps had a self
bow in the front with a Red Cross pin placed in the center of the bow.
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On the left side: back view
of the visored summer service cap
On the right side: front view
of the visored winter service cap
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Visored Seersucker Service
Cap
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Overseas Caps
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Matching overseas caps were worn with the
special ARC Military Welfare and Motor Corps outdoor uniforms. They were
similar in design.
Left picture from top to bottom:
Military Welfare summer overseas
cap
Military Welfare seersucker
overseas cap
Motor Corps winter overseas
cap with green piping
Motor Corps summer overseas
cap (which had no piping)
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| The only cap that had a unique style was the
overseas cap for the Oxford gray Military Welfare winter uniform.
A pinstripe material was used for the sides, while a plain fabric
of the same color was used for the crown in the middle.
A Red Cross pin was worn on the left forward portion of the cap curtain. |
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Military Welfare winter
overseas cap
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Coifs and Veils
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The coifs matched the material and color of the
indoor uniform with which they were worn. All coifs had a white coronet.
A white square patch (one inch in size) with a red cross in the middle
was sewn on the center of the white coronet. Nurse's Aides had a Red-Cross-Civilian-Defense
patch (also one inch in size) sewn on the white front of the coif instead
of a square red cross patch.
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Left side: coif of the Hospital
and Recreation Corps (Gray Ladies)
Right Side: coif of the Nurse's
Aides Corps
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Veils made of sheer fabric in a color matching the uniform (or epaulets)
were worn with several work dresses. The veils had a white coronet with
a red cross in the middle.
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Veil used by Members of
the Staff Corps
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Veil used by Production
Corps members
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Another veil variant used
by Production Corps members
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Red Cross Handbags
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A matching cloth handbag with strap could be worn with the outdoor
uniform.
The decision for using cloth handbags considered the needs and shortages
of wartime conditions. Cloth was much cheaper and not rationed like genuine
leather.
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In many wartime pictures, Red Cross members who served overseas
wear plain black handbags with shoulder straps. They varied slightly in
style and size. Probably, the leather handbags were preferred in overseas
locations because they were more durable and
easier to keep clean.
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This named black leather handbag
belonged to Red Cross member Elizabeth Aspinell who was stationed in Honolulu
during World War II. (Note design similar to the official Army Nurse utility
handbag.)
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Service Shoes
Female Red Cross workers wore privately purchased black or white
shoes. Plain oxford- style shoes as shown below were most common. Note:
Red Cross Shoes were a commerical product which had no connection to the
American Red Cross Service. More information about Red Cross Shoes here
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Example of 1940s black oxford
shoes
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Example of 1940s white Oxfords
made of buckskin
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Identification Tags
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| Red Cross Workers serving overseas wore special identification tags.
The Army issued M-1940 plates were used. The imprinted information varied.
However, all tags bore the individual's name, the service (written
as ARC or Am Red Cross) and the blood type (O,
A, B, AB). Additionally, it could bear the next-of-kin name, the
address, the 5-digit ARC serial number, the religion (P for Protestant,
C for Catholic, H for Hebrew, CS for Christian Science) and the
date of the tetanus vaccination. |
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The Dog Tag of Clubmobile Worker
Betty Grosser inlcudes her name in the first line, her service (ARC), her
ARC serial number(44196), the date of her tetanus vaccination (T44) and
her blood type (0) in the second line and her religion (CS) in the 5th
line. |
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Dog Tag of Elisabeth I. Beck, ARC
61209, O (blood type). The information imprinted on this dog tag is according
to the way the Army imprinted their dog tags between March 1944 and April
1946.. |
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[ I. Development ]..[
II. Facts about the ARC ]..[
III. Uniforms ]..[
IV. Sources ]
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