1885-1903, US ARMY MARKSMAN'S BUTTONS, 2nd PATTERN, 2 BUTTONS + ORIGINAL BOX

Description: 1885-1903, US ARMY MARKSMAN'S BUTTONS, 2nd PATTERN, 2 BUTTONS IN ORIGINAL BOX These oval buttons were designed for wear on the uniform collar in the regular army from 1885 to around 1897, although state militias (national guards) continued to use these until 1903. These Marksman’s buttons were issued in these small rectangular pasteboard boxes 1-13/16 x 1” and 11/16”in depth, filled with pink cotton, which held the two buttons. Made at Rock Island Arsenal, these small paste board boxes filled with pink cotton padding were made beginning in the late 1890’s for issue to states. The buttons were replaced in 1897 by the U.S. Army with the silver “Marksman” bar. Rock Island Arsenal continued to make these marksman buttons until 1903. One side of the box top is detached. One side of the box itself is loose. The condition of these buttons is fine and better. The button shanks for attaching to uniform collar are intact. These marksman buttons were fastened to the soldiers coats in several ways. A common method was to cut a small slit like a button hole through the collar, insert the shank, and then either sew the button in place or hold it in the hole with a split ring or other mechanical device to allow for its easy removal. In the 1880s the Regular Army and many militias authorized many different styles of marksman buttons for wear on coat collars. The US Army introduced marksman buttons in 1881. Before 1881 the army had no standard weapons qualification program. When the army created the term “marksman,” with its standard criteria and standard insignia, this was the army’s first step that leads directly to today’s badges. Exact qualification to become a marksman varied during 1881-1897, the period when the Regular Army issued marksman buttons, but generally soldiers shot at 200, 300, and 500 or 600 yards, with the closest targets fired standing, the intermediate range fired sitting and or kneeling, and the longest range “lying down,” which was not the current prone position. Shooters fired lying on their backs. Sharpshooter qualification was at longer ranges, out to 1,000 yards, for soldiers who had already qualified as a marksman. A soldier who qualified as a marksman could wear a button on each collar tip during the year he qualified. If the soldier failed to qualify in a given year, he had to remove the buttons. Starting in 1883 men who qualified for two consecutive years wore two pairs of buttons in their second year. Initially the Regular Army buttons were square with black trim and with a button shank on the reverse. Rules for the buttons, and for the marksman bar, changed every few years and these points are covered in Marksmanship in the U.S. Army (University of Oklahoma Press, 2004). In general, most state militias had marksman buttons that were different from those of the Regular Army. Some state militia buttons were similar to the Federal award, but militia awards were colored differently from the US Army awards. Most militia buttons have two tines (prongs) that soldiers inserted through the collar and then bent over, as shown below. The Regular Army buttons never had tines on the reverse. In addition Rock Island Arsenal made these rectangular buttons with button shanks, after 1897 for militias who wanted to buy them. The National Guard of New York allowed each regiment or separate battalion or company to design their shooting awards. As a result a great many New York marksman buttons exist. New York was the first state to recognize rifle and carbine qualification.Even before the US Army, New York’s militia introduced a marksman qualification in 1875, although the New York’s 7th Regiment gave shooting prizes in the form of pistols and muskets as early as 1826. Many states did not use marksman buttons. Pennsylvania is an example, but National Guard men from the Keystone State did have a very few select awards that went on soldiers’ collars in the same manner as marksman buttons. Examples with rubies and diamonds are shown in Marksmanship Awards of the National Guard of Pennsylvania, 1878-1921, by Peter Eisert and Charles Oellig (Orders and Medals Society of America, 2008). State marksman buttons have not been well studied and many exist that cannot be firmly identified. The image of the soldier wearing these Marksmanship buttons is not included and has been added as a reference.

Price: 145 USD

Location: Hodgenville, Kentucky

End Time: 2024-12-01T14:23:33.000Z

Shipping Cost: 7.85 USD