MY NEW JAPANESE ARMY AIR FORCE COMPASS I FOUND!!!!!
Sun Apr 28, 2013 4:06 pm
HEY fellas!
just wanted to share with you guys my new Japanese army air force compass I found at a antique shop in santa Barbara ca.
the owner had no idea what it was and mentioned that he had it sitting at his store for 20 years without anyone buying it..... until now! I saw it inside one of his cases and although it's missing the data plate, I knew immediately what it was when I saw the construction, paint, and the outline of where the data plate would have sit on top of the compass. I also verified its authenticity by using my smart phone on gunsight before I purchased it! ..... I paid just $25 for this! I was so excited because I paid $150 for Japanese model 2 gou compass on ebay and getting this item for such a low price really made my day!
just wanted to share my new find with all you fellas! I also had one question though... Is the tag attached to the compass a capture tag from the US military? it looked very similar to another tag I saw on a pic somewhere.
thanks in advance guys!
just wanted to share with you guys my new Japanese army air force compass I found at a antique shop in santa Barbara ca.
the owner had no idea what it was and mentioned that he had it sitting at his store for 20 years without anyone buying it..... until now! I saw it inside one of his cases and although it's missing the data plate, I knew immediately what it was when I saw the construction, paint, and the outline of where the data plate would have sit on top of the compass. I also verified its authenticity by using my smart phone on gunsight before I purchased it! ..... I paid just $25 for this! I was so excited because I paid $150 for Japanese model 2 gou compass on ebay and getting this item for such a low price really made my day!
just wanted to share my new find with all you fellas! I also had one question though... Is the tag attached to the compass a capture tag from the US military? it looked very similar to another tag I saw on a pic somewhere.
thanks in advance guys!
Re: MY NEW JAPANESE ARMY AIR FORCE COMPASS I FOUND!!!!!
Sun Apr 28, 2013 5:44 pm
congrats on a great find for the price of a song!! it is a navy type "o" compass, model 2, kai 1. it was made in several varieties, & was used in a variety of navy aircraft as well. most like manufactured by tokyo koku keiki. is the liquid still in it?? enjoy!!
Re: MY NEW JAPANESE ARMY AIR FORCE COMPASS I FOUND!!!!!
Sun Apr 28, 2013 8:11 pm
The attached tag looks to be a "war spoils" tag that would permit the soldier to bring the souvenir home. The owner was a member of Company A (1st Battalion) of the 386th Infantry Regiment which was part of the 97th Infantry Division which fought thru the latter stages of the war in Europe and then was redeployed to the Pacific in time to pull occupation duty in Japan.
"General Kramer and some elements of the Division arrived at Yokohama on September 24, 1945. The Division command post opened the following day at Miizugahara Airfield, located about 60 miles northwest of Tokyo. The 97th was assigned to XI Corps of the Eighth Army. Disposition of the Division's units for occupation duty began gradually, and by December the 97th had reached its maximum deployment. Units of the Division occupied six prefectures or provinces: Saitama, Gumma, Niigata, Nagano, Fukushima, and Tochigi. The terrain in the prefectures varied from rugged mountains to flat plains. The Trident Division was responsible for an area of more than 21,000 square miles having a population of approximately 12,000,000. This area is roughly equivalent to the land area of West Virginia. The size of the population is about equal to that of Pennsylvania.
During the occupation period, the Division's primary task was the confiscation and disposal of Japanese military weapons and equipment. Substantial quantities of small arms were collected and dumped in the ocean. Military aircraft, ammunition, and equipment were destroyed. Special teams collected and inventoried equipment, documents, and other items thought to have military intelligence value. Troops guarded Japanese military installations, airfields, railroad facilities, radio stations, and factories that had not been destroyed during the war. Food, gasoline, and clothing belonging to the Japanese military were turned over to Japanese officials for distribution to civilians. The engineers helped repair roads, bridges, school buildings, and some other public facilities. Division personnel were actively involved in humanitarian projects such as helping to provide medical treatment and food for orphans and other needy people. The 97th also located tons of silver bars and coins. These valuable assets were shipped to the Bank of Japan in Tokyo."
The number 17114200 is an enlisted service number apparently for G. M. Rowley. Unfortunately his record does not show up in NARA but the number 17 indicates that 1 (he voluntarily enlisted) and 7 was from Corps Area 7 which included the states of MO, KS, NB, CO, IA, MN, ND, SD, WY. The numbers that do come up around his number indicate RESIDENCE in Minnesota. But very important to note that PLACE OF ENLISTMENT for these numbers is literally all over the country. So it is a good "guess" that he was from Minnesota. But WHERE he walked thru the gate is undetermined. Most men in these number groups were born in 1920 to 1923. I did not find a likely match in SSDI or mention on the National WW2 Memorial, or in the veteran burial registry. Without an exact first name is is a little tough to determine his fate.
Found a George M. Rowley listed in the 1930 Census born in 1923 living in Beadle County, South Dakota (Corps Area 7)....hmmmmm
Hope this a little bit of a start in tracking the lineage of your new acquisition.
Edit: Sent you a PM...check your box....G.M Rowley may still be with us!!! Good luck.
"General Kramer and some elements of the Division arrived at Yokohama on September 24, 1945. The Division command post opened the following day at Miizugahara Airfield, located about 60 miles northwest of Tokyo. The 97th was assigned to XI Corps of the Eighth Army. Disposition of the Division's units for occupation duty began gradually, and by December the 97th had reached its maximum deployment. Units of the Division occupied six prefectures or provinces: Saitama, Gumma, Niigata, Nagano, Fukushima, and Tochigi. The terrain in the prefectures varied from rugged mountains to flat plains. The Trident Division was responsible for an area of more than 21,000 square miles having a population of approximately 12,000,000. This area is roughly equivalent to the land area of West Virginia. The size of the population is about equal to that of Pennsylvania.
During the occupation period, the Division's primary task was the confiscation and disposal of Japanese military weapons and equipment. Substantial quantities of small arms were collected and dumped in the ocean. Military aircraft, ammunition, and equipment were destroyed. Special teams collected and inventoried equipment, documents, and other items thought to have military intelligence value. Troops guarded Japanese military installations, airfields, railroad facilities, radio stations, and factories that had not been destroyed during the war. Food, gasoline, and clothing belonging to the Japanese military were turned over to Japanese officials for distribution to civilians. The engineers helped repair roads, bridges, school buildings, and some other public facilities. Division personnel were actively involved in humanitarian projects such as helping to provide medical treatment and food for orphans and other needy people. The 97th also located tons of silver bars and coins. These valuable assets were shipped to the Bank of Japan in Tokyo."
The number 17114200 is an enlisted service number apparently for G. M. Rowley. Unfortunately his record does not show up in NARA but the number 17 indicates that 1 (he voluntarily enlisted) and 7 was from Corps Area 7 which included the states of MO, KS, NB, CO, IA, MN, ND, SD, WY. The numbers that do come up around his number indicate RESIDENCE in Minnesota. But very important to note that PLACE OF ENLISTMENT for these numbers is literally all over the country. So it is a good "guess" that he was from Minnesota. But WHERE he walked thru the gate is undetermined. Most men in these number groups were born in 1920 to 1923. I did not find a likely match in SSDI or mention on the National WW2 Memorial, or in the veteran burial registry. Without an exact first name is is a little tough to determine his fate.
Found a George M. Rowley listed in the 1930 Census born in 1923 living in Beadle County, South Dakota (Corps Area 7)....hmmmmm
Hope this a little bit of a start in tracking the lineage of your new acquisition.
Edit: Sent you a PM...check your box....G.M Rowley may still be with us!!! Good luck.
Re: MY NEW JAPANESE ARMY AIR FORCE COMPASS I FOUND!!!!!
Tue Apr 30, 2013 12:34 am
Thank you for the replies fellas.
Re: MY NEW JAPANESE ARMY AIR FORCE COMPASS I FOUND!!!!!
Tue Apr 30, 2013 7:30 pm
From the NARA website:
ARMY SERIAL NUMBER 17114200 17114200
NAME ROWLEY#GEORGE#M######### ROWLEY#GEORGE#M#########
RESIDENCE: STATE 78 SOUTH DAKOTA
RESIDENCE: COUNTY 035 DAVISON
PLACE OF ENLISTMENT 7449 MINNEAPOLIS MINNESOTA
DATE OF ENLISTMENT DAY 29 29
DATE OF ENLISTMENT MONTH 08 08
DATE OF ENLISTMENT YEAR 42 42
GRADE: ALPHA DESIGNATION #### Undefined Code
GRADE: CODE # Undefined Code
BRANCH: ALPHA DESIGNATION ### Undefined Code
BRANCH: CODE 03 Philippine Scouts
EDUC. SPEC. ## ##
DEFER. DATE MONTH 03 03
DEFER. DATE YEAR 44 44
SOURCE OF ARMY PERSONNEL 0 Civil Life
NATIVITY 78 SOUTH DAKOTA
YEAR OF BIRTH 22 22
RACE AND CITIZENSHIP 1 White, citizen
EDUCATION 6 2 years of college
CIVILIAN OCCUPATION 992 Undefined Code
MARITAL STATUS 6 Single, without dependents
COMPONENT OF THE ARMY 3 Reserves - exclusive of Regular Army Reserve and Officers of the Officers Reserve Corps on active duty under the Thomason Act (Officers and Enlisted Men -- O.R.C. and E.R.C., and Nurses-Reserve Status)
BOX NUMBER 0252 0252
FILM REEL NUMBER 2.109 2.109
ARMY SERIAL NUMBER 17114200 17114200
NAME ROWLEY#GEORGE#M######### ROWLEY#GEORGE#M#########
RESIDENCE: STATE 78 SOUTH DAKOTA
RESIDENCE: COUNTY 035 DAVISON
PLACE OF ENLISTMENT 7449 MINNEAPOLIS MINNESOTA
DATE OF ENLISTMENT DAY 29 29
DATE OF ENLISTMENT MONTH 08 08
DATE OF ENLISTMENT YEAR 42 42
GRADE: ALPHA DESIGNATION #### Undefined Code
GRADE: CODE # Undefined Code
BRANCH: ALPHA DESIGNATION ### Undefined Code
BRANCH: CODE 03 Philippine Scouts
EDUC. SPEC. ## ##
DEFER. DATE MONTH 03 03
DEFER. DATE YEAR 44 44
SOURCE OF ARMY PERSONNEL 0 Civil Life
NATIVITY 78 SOUTH DAKOTA
YEAR OF BIRTH 22 22
RACE AND CITIZENSHIP 1 White, citizen
EDUCATION 6 2 years of college
CIVILIAN OCCUPATION 992 Undefined Code
MARITAL STATUS 6 Single, without dependents
COMPONENT OF THE ARMY 3 Reserves - exclusive of Regular Army Reserve and Officers of the Officers Reserve Corps on active duty under the Thomason Act (Officers and Enlisted Men -- O.R.C. and E.R.C., and Nurses-Reserve Status)
BOX NUMBER 0252 0252
FILM REEL NUMBER 2.109 2.109
Re: MY NEW JAPANESE ARMY AIR FORCE COMPASS I FOUND!!!!!
Tue Apr 30, 2013 8:20 pm
'Thanks lowpass! I didn't find him in the standard "merged file" but going back tonight I found him in the "Reserves" database. Should have picked up on that clue when I mentioned that most numbers in that sequence were from the Enlisted Reserve. I had always thought that the merged file included the Reserves....learn something new every day.