The bottom of guide lists 7 Insignias for Navy, Marine, and Coast Guard Decorations and 7 Insignias for Army Decorations. The middle of the guide says, “Keep ‘Em Flying-Fighting-Sailing Buy War Bonds & Stamps”. The top of the reverse side lists cap devices of the Army, Navy, Coast Guard, and Marine with 15 insignias and titles. Along the sides are other insignias such as parachutist, chaplain, dental, etc.

There are 18 different titles and insignias for the Army and Navy on the rotating wheel. The Army title changes at the top and the Navy at the bottom.

The center piece rotates to change the insignia on the Sailors arm and wrist and the Soldiers arm and shoulder. This small cardboard guide pictures a Soldier and a Sailor on the front. In 1943, an advertisement for War Bonds created an Army Navy Insignia Guide. Seeing the different ranks on the men’s caps, sleeves, or patches on the arm may have been perplexing to people who hadn’t previously known anyone in the military.Ī nifty little guide was created to visually differentiate between Army and Navy Insignias and their corresponding ranks. This may sound confusing and it was just as confusing during WWII when numerous men walked around town in their uniforms while on liberty or leave. Where as a Captain in the Navy or Coast Guard is higher in rank than a Captain in the Army, and is actually equivalent to an Army Colonel in rank. A Captain in the Army is equivalent to a Captain in the Marine Corps a Colonel in the Air Force is equivalent to a Colonel in the Army and so on. Officers in the Army, Air force, and the Marine Corps all share the same ranks as you move up the chain of command.

Most of those organizational structures still exist today. As the colonies fought for independence from the British, it made sense that the Continental Navy and the other military branches formed at the time mirrored British forces with regard to rank, customs, and traditions with minor changes. The United States Navy was born as the Continental Navy during the Revolutionary War. It may even be more confusing when the ranks of some branches differ from others with regards to titles, for example, Navy to Army. Have you ever seen someone in their military uniform and wondered what they did for a job or what rank they were? Those not affiliated with the military either by personal service or that of a family member may find it difficult to determine military rank by simply looking at one’s uniform.

Civil war navy insignia