Actually I believe this piece is a ID badge of sorts. The number on the back identified the worker to whom it had been issued. The badge was worn to gain access to wartime shipyards, where security needed to be tight. Pot metal was used because of cost and the scarcity of other metals during WWII. Since wartime workers were fairly transient, the badge could be collected when a worker left the shipyard’s employ and reissued to the next worker.
At http://www.citicom.com/~lbagnato/pjmemorabilia.htm you can see a similar badge and a red, white & blue visitor’s badge just above it.
Becky Fitzgerald
From: Museum
discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Full Name
Sent: Wednesday, April 27, 2005
8:13 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Question about a pin
Ms. Roberts:
I think the advice about this pin being a recognition piece is probably correct. I would also add that this piece is probably not bronze but perhaps pot-metal with a bronze finish, since it sounds like it was "stamped" rather than cast, since the detail of," the imprint of everything else on the back of the pin from the front," would indicate that it was stamped. If it was cast, then bronze might be possible but the back would probably have been different than the front, much like a coin.
In a message dated 4/26/2005 12:13:13 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, [log in to unmask] writes:
Hi Ms. Roberts:
This is a wild guess but, I would say that it was a recognition piece given to shipyard workers. It was probably given for the number of hours worked or for completion of a certain number of ships, possibly Liberty ships. While this is only a guess and I have no documentation of such items being given, that is the best explanation I have. This might lead your or your patron to do further research into war time ship production.
Rachel Roberts wrote:
Good morning, listserv-ers! We recently received the following inquiry:
"I have a pin, I think it is bronze, it is the size of a silver dollar, a flag shield with thirteen stars are at the top of this pin, and around the pin it says War Service, Ship Building, in the center there is a ship, with smoke coming out its stack, and poles and lines, like maybe it could be sailed, the imprint of the water is underneath the ship. This is imprinted into the center of the pin. On the back is a # 59941. and of course you can see the imprint of everything else on the back of the pin from the front. And of course the clasp."
Does anyone out there have any suggestions for this patron? The pin belonged to her father, who has passed away, and he didn't know anything about the item.