Mid-1950s contract rear seam McCord shell (heat stamp reads "M-304")
60s chinstrap with black anodised hardware
1965-dated brown fibre liner with original paint
Matching 1965-dated sweatband
1966-dated nape strap
Wartime scrim band named to "Kennedy"
Wartime DPSC produced Mitchell pattern cover
The helmet was found in exactly this configuration. The liner has an originally applied leather chinstrap, which has been modified with two staples to keep its length, likely for aesthetic reasons. An interesting feature that I have not seen before.
A very attractive M1 helmet set that will display well - All parts are in excellent condition with light signs of wear.
Unit History:
The Battalion began its long and illustrious history on August 2, 1942 with the formation of the "16th U. S. NAVAL CONSTRUCTION BATTALION" at a ceremony
ceremony presided over by then Undersecretary of the Navy, the Honorable Ralph Bard at Seabee Camp Allen, Norfolk, Virginia.
Similar to its modern-day counterpart, the men of the original "16th" came
from almost every state in the union, possessed a background strongly rooted in the construction trades and represented a diverse cross-section of Twentieth Century culture.
Initially headquartered at Waiawa Gulch in Hawaii, the "fighting-building 16th" figured prominently in the island-hopping campaign in the PacificTheater, landing with and assisting the Marine Corps as they foughtvigorously to recapture Japanese-held territory.
While in Hawaii, the 16th provided a significant wartime construction force
to support the Pacific Fleet. Their largest major project was the building of a Naval Supply Depot; typical jobs consisted of Quonset hut erection, gas pipeline installation, base camouflaging and even deep sea salvage diving.For their fine record of building, fighting and repairing facilities in the Pacific area (Hawaii & the Gilberts, Marshalls & Ellice Island Groups), the 16th received letters of appreciation from VADM W. Calhoun, Commander Service
Force and Admiral Chester Nimitz, Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet.
The 16th was decommissioned on May 2, 1945 and remained inactive until March
18, 1962, when it was recommissioned as RESERVE NAVAL MOBILE CONSTRUCTION
BATTALION (RNMCB) SIXTEEN, headquartered at the Armed Forces Reserve Center, Los Alamitos, California, its Readiness Support Site (RSS).
The Battalion has distinguished itself as an "operational" battalion and has
participated in numerous joint service military exercises with the First
Marine Expeditionary Force (IMEF) located at Camp Pendleton, California. In
the Spring of 1990, the Battalion supported "Operation Ahaus Terra"
(Honduras), a joint military construction project for the IMEF involving active and reserve naval construction forces.
At a ceremony on January 14, 1991 at Construction Battalion Center, Gulfport Mississippi attended by RADM James C. Doebler, Commander Naval Facilities Engineering Command (Atlantic Division) and RADM Paul C. Rosser, Commander Reserve Naval Construction Force the Battalion was recommissioned as NMCB SIXTEEN and activated in support of "Operation Desert Shield/Storm." It was subsequently deployed throughout the Caribbean under the direction of Commander, Construction Battalions Atlantic to provide various construction projects in support of the U. S. Atlantic Fleet.
