Help with identifying pickelhaube helmet

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davidbholcomb

New member
Our grandfather brought home a german pickelhaube helmet after his service in the U.S. Army during WWI. I was wondering if anyone could help us, we are truly novices at this, identify anything about the helmet. Our grandfather has passed away so we are unable to ask him about it. Below are pictures of the helmet and the best image I could make of the markings. The markings are Stamped in "B.J.A. VIII 1918F" and inked in "J.R. 69." Any and all help would be appreciated. Thanks for your time and effort, Dave Holcomb [email protected]
pickelhaubehelmetsmall.jpg


Markings
markingspickelhaubesmall.jpg
 
Hi Dave and welcome!

Looks like your helmet has a lot of great marks. Try this article...

http://www.pickelhauben.net/articles/DepotMarks_5_09.html

It will probably -- I hope -- tell you what you need to interpret those marks. If it doesn't just let us know. What I think is most interesting is to then get involved in the history of infantry Regiment 69. :D :D :D
 
Hi David:
Your helmet is from a Prussian regiment and thus the grey eagle on the front. The grey fittings on the piece also indicate that this is what we call a model 1915 helmet. Prior to this the fittings were brass. The spike top of the m15 also twists off in order to lower the profile of the person wearing it. Your helmet also has its original leather chin strap which is great as many have been lost over the years. Two things do appear to missing...the cockades. These are serrated edged painted discs which fit over the side posts. In the case of your helmet there would have been a black andwhite one (Prussian colours) over the left post and a black, red white one over the right ear (Imperial colours). Reproductions of these are available on line and on ebay and sell for approx $20 each. You can see what I am talking about by going to some of the articles on this where members are showing us their new helmets or pieces from their collections. Feel free to ask any further questions. Regards, Brian Loree
 
Thanks so much for the responses so far!
As I go throught things, questions come up and I would like to post here.
Is there a way to tell a "Liberty Loan" helmet?
We have always thought that our grandfather brought this back from the war but after reading several things about the Liberty Loan drives the question comes up.
As far as the missing pieces are concerned the helmet does not appear (the absence of scratches) to ever have them. Would the avg. infantryman have them on his helmet?
What I have been able to learn so far is that it is from the "7. Rheinisches Infanterie - Regiment NR. 69" I have no idea why the 7 is there but it showes up in most referances. The Regiment was from the Rhineland area and was Garrisoned at Trier. Early in the war it was a regiment of the 16th Division, 31st Infintry Brigade and towards the end of the war was in the 15th Division, 80th Infintry Brigade. The regiment would have had 650 - 1000 members at any given time.
The markings "B.J.A. VIII 1918F" Shows that the Repair Organization (Bekleidungs Instandsetzung) for the 8th Army Corps (which both the 15th and 16th Divisions belonged to) in 1918 certified it field service useful (Felddienstbrauchbar).
Any corrections, thoughts, or ideas welcomed. To all of those who have posted to forums, webpages, and especially here, your efforts are truly appreciated and our efforts to have a story to go along with the helmet would be for naught if it were not for you, we say a BIG THANK YOU.
 
Hi Dave:
Personally doubt that this was a war bond helmet as it is so well marked both to the Korps and Regiment. Bond helmets are generally pristine in the interior and have an unworn look about them not to say that there will not be crazing on the exterior shellac finish due to how they have been stored over the years. Do you know what Regiment your grandfather served in? If so then it should be easy to track down whether he went overseas and if so where he fought. Perhaps you have his pay book?? This would show dates and where he was. You could also get his war service records from the Feds if you have his service number. Unfortunately, in the case of my Scottish GF who served in the Highland Light Infantry I can not access his records as most were destryed during the Blitz in WW2.
 
Thanks for all the help, I have been doing a lot of reading, so much so that I can not remember where I read something but I remember reading something along the lines that Liberty Loan helmets were not marked, so I tend to agree with you. Where did he serve? He was in the Armys 27th Corp. of Engineers, the only mining regiment of the war. He was a 2nd Lieutenant in Co. F and spent time in Co. A. He was able to “whack the Kaiser” by mine and quarry work, along with bridge building, where the mining engineer’s experience with heavy timber construction was put to use. I know that he did not get into the theater of war until after May of 1918 and he returned state side in March of 1919. His Victory medal has the following Army Battle Clasps: YPRES-LYS, MEUSE-ARGONNE, DEFENSIVE SECTOR and a Bronze Star. It would appear that he was in the same area as the German Regiment No. 69.
I thought I would reinspect the helmet after reading the wonderful article on Maker's marks. It looks like I found one but what could it be. Comparing it to the ones in the article it appears it could be one of six. It measures 17mm across, a little bigger than a nickle. Below is the best image that I could get of it. Anyone have any thoughts?
makersmark.jpg
 
Dave,

Just remember that when the Americans came here were almost never if any spiked helmets in the front lines. This was probably picked up after hostilities. Read this citation found by Keith Gill.

Friday Feb 7, 1919 THE STARS AND STRIPES newspaper, Page 1, Column 1:

"85,750 Shiny Ones on Way to American
Prussian Guards' Helmets will help sale of Liberty Bonds

The doughboy guards at Coblenz who kept the keys to the German warehouses where 85,750 Shiny Prussian Guards helmets were stacked are restored to good nature. They eat normally, and no longer dream of great helmet robbery mysteries. For the helmets are out of their custody at last and on their way back to the States. The warehouse keys arent't needed any longer. The helmets are to be handed out back home to buyers of bonds of the Fight Liberty Loan.
Meanwhile, traders on the AEF souvenir bourse are eagerly watching the tape for the first transatlantic quotation on Helmets.
Word of the 85,750 helmets in one buiding leaped back through the AEF almost before the advance guard of the Third Army settled in Coblenz. Mails from the rear areas of the AEF to the Army of Occupation grew unaccountably large. Every man in the A of O had from six to 60 friends whose latest letters always said after speaking pointedly of lugers and mausers and iron crosses: "And of course I am relying on you to get one of those 85,000 helmets for me."
The pressure of visitors to the warehouse grew so strong that the chief salvage officer at Third Army Headquarters posted a big sign: No More Helmets Given Out." (The citation was found by Keith Gill.)
 
davidbholcomb said:
// What I have been able to learn so far is that it is from the "7. Rheinisches Infanterie - Regiment NR. 69" I have no idea why the 7 is there but it showes up in most referances.
Click to expand...

Dave, that was the 7th Infanterie Regiment from the Rhein, but in the order of battle, it was the 69th Infanterie Regiment .

If you look at a list of of the 192 Infantry Regiments (excluding Bavaria), you will see that that some of the larger contingents (or areas) had several regiments. For example, the 1st Rheinisches Infanterie Regiment was Infanterie Regiment Nr.25.

Click HERE for a list and you will see what I mean.
 
Wow, super, so the unit would be called the 7th Rhineland Infantry - Regiment NR. 69.

As I sort out my material I have a few more questions. Is Model 1915 and M15 synonymous?

Would a run of the mill infantryman have cockades on his helmet? If so I wonder why they would be missing?

Thanks for all the help everyone!
 
Joe,

Doesn't that sound typical!?? The government stealing all of the goodies! Well, a WWI vet I talked to years ago (and a helmet collector at that time) said that a few cigarettes or a half loaf of bread could be traded for a Pickelhaube. So I don't think soldiers had any trouble finding surplus helmets around.

I have a good and true Liberty Loan helmet at home, I'll post a pic if I can remember!

:D Ron
 
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