Black crackle Zippo with U.S. Army Ordnance Corps insignia and a Palestine 5 Mils 1927 on the front and an Egyptian coin along with an Italian 20 Cents 1941 coin on the back.
U.S. Army Ordnance Corps – Cartridge
The United States take over the North Atlantic air route – the shortest path between America and the European front. As way stations on this route both Greenland and Newfoundland acquired a new importance, as one of the terminal points.
Black crackle Zippo with a U.S. Army officers collar insignia and a U.S. Army Ordnance Corps insignia on the front, a Newfoundland One Cent 1942 coin and a Greenland 50 Øre 1926 coin on the back, and an applique of a half .30 M1 carbine cartridge and bullet on the side.
- Model:
three barrel hinge, round bottom
- Year:
1943 - 45
- Status:
in collection
U.S. Army Ordnance Corps – General Campbell
Multiple awarded Levin H. Campbell Jr. was the 16th chief of ordnance during WWII from 1942 until 1946 in the rank of a major general and temporary as a lieutenant general. His optimizations and major changes to the ordnance corps were war deciding. A letter from General Patton sums up his accomplishments. Patton said that his «admiration for Ordnance products does not stop with the M-1 Rifle.» He goes on to say that the «machine guns, mortars, artillery, and tanks of the United States are without equal».
Chrome plated Zippo with the unit insignia of the U.S. Fifth Army on one side and the U.S. Army Ordnance Corp insignia flaming bomb with two sterling rank stars applied and the owner's name «Levin H. Campbell Jr.» engraved on the other side. Double stamp on the top and the bottom.
- Model:
four barrel hinge, flat bottom
- Year:
1942 - 43
- Status:
in collection
Gulf Oil
Without oil WWII could never have been won. Gulf Oil was a major global oil company and the eighth-largest American manufacturing company in 1941.
Worn Zippo with diagonal lines and original manufacturing Gulf metal emblem on the front.
- Model:
four barrel hinge, flat bottom
- Year:
1937 - 41
- Status:
in collection
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Coins
Army engineers built airfields, roads, bridges, ports, military camps, hospitals, and dozens of other facilities, including the Pentagon completed in 1942. Among the most acclaimed of the combat engineers' achievements were the Alcan Highway, the Ledo and Burma Roads and the clearing of mines and underwater obstacles. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers supervised the Manhattan Project, the construction of the atomic bomb.
Black crackle Zippo with a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers insignia, a Royal Air Force insignia and a small British coin on both the front and back as well as a small U.S. Army Great Seal insignia on the side.
- Model:
four barrel hinge, flat bottom
- Year:
1942 - 43
- Status:
in collection
U.S. 105th Engineer Combat Battalion
The 30th Infantry Division landed at Omaha Beach, France on 10 June 1944. With them came their Divisional Engineers, the 105th Engineer Combat Battalion. One notable campaign in which the 105th Engineer Combat Battalion participated was Operation Market Garden. Among others the batallion took part in September in the liberation of the Valkenburg in the Netherlands.
Well worn black crackle Zippo with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers insignia and a coat of arms of the Valkenburg on the front and two Netherland coins with the image of Queen Wilhelmina. In 1941 the Germans seized all the silver and copper coins. This was on the one hand because the old coins bore the image of Queen Wilhelmina, on the other hand the metal was used for the German arms industry. The people had to hand in their old coins in exchange for new zinc coins or paper money. However, many people kept their old coins and as a symbol of resistance and as a reminder of the royal family.
- Model:
four barrel hinge, flat bottom
- Year:
1942 - 43
- Status:
in collection
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Y. T. Kelly
ALCAN Highway also known as the Alaska Highway was constructed during WWII to connect the contiguous United States to Alaska across Canada. It begins at the junction with several Canadian highways in Dawson Creek, British Columbia, and runs to Delta Junction, Alaska, via Whitehorse, Yukon. When it was completed in 1942, it was about 2,700 kilometers long. Y. T. Kelly served 1943 as a safety engineer in the corps.
Worn black crackle Zippo with different engravings: «Whitehorse», the owner's name «Y. T. Kelly», «Yukon» and «1943» on the front, «Fairbanks Alaska» and «Alcan Highway» on the back and «Safety Engr.» on the side.
- Model:
four barrel hinge, flat bottom
- Year:
1942 - 43
- Status:
in collection
U.S. Army Signal Corps – Eddie M. Cain
Well worn black crackle Zippo with U.S. Signal Corps insignia and womens name «Tamara» on one side and «Eddie M. Cain» together with «Italia 44-45» engraved on the other side with a U.S. Army officers collar insignia.
- Model:
three barrel hinge, round bottom
- Year:
1943 - 45
- Status:
in collection
U.S. Naval Construction Force – W. W. Welker
The need for a militarized construction force became evident after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. On D-Day Seabees were the first ashore as naval combat demolition units. Their task was to remove German defensive beach obstructions built to impede amphibious landings.
Well worn black crackle Zippo with Seabees logo engraved on the front and ownership details «W. W. Welker, 602 28 89, U.S. Navy» on the other side.
- Model:
four barrel hinge, flat bottom
- Year:
1942 - 43
- Status:
in collection
U.S. Naval Construction Force
U.S. Naval Construction Battalions, better known as the Navy Seabees, form the U.S. Naval Construction Force. The Seabees nickname is a heterograph of the first letters «C B» from the words Construction Battalion.
Worn chrome plated Zippo with U.S. Naval Construction Force insignia on the front. The Seabees had a second Logo. It was of a shirtless constructionman holding a sledge hammer with a rifle strapped across his back standing upon the words «Construimus Batuimus USN» («We build, We fight» USN).
- Model:
three barrel hinge, round bottom
- Year:
1943 - 45
- Status:
in collection
U.S. 1st Cavalry Division – Bob Smetkal
The U.S. 1st Cavalry Division started activities in New Guinea 1944 and after different battles the division took part in the invasion of Leyte. Later, the division invaded Luzon and fought its way as a «flying column» to Manila by 3 February 1945. After the surrender of the Japanese, the 1st Division was given responsibility for occupying the entire city of Tokyo and the U.S. 8th Cavalry Regiment occupied the 3rd Imperial Guard Regiment Barracks in Tokyo, which provided greater proximity to security missions at the American and Russian Embassies and the Imperial Palace grounds.
Well worn black crackle Zippo with different engravings: The insignia of the U.S. 1st Cavalry Division with 8 stars and the owner's name «Bob Smetkal» in original and Japanese characters on the front and the insignia of the U.S. 8th Cavalry Regiment with «1945» and Tokyo in Japanese characters on the other side.
- Model:
three barrel hinge, round bottom
- Year:
1943 - 45
- Status:
in collection
U.S. Mechanized Cavalry
During the war, many of the Army's Cavalry units were mechanized with tanks, which were an important weapons system in WWII.
Chrome plated Zippo with a U.S. Cavalry insignia on one side and a U.S. Armored Force Branch insignia on the other side.
- Model:
four barrel hinge, round bottom
- Year:
1942 - 43
- Status:
in collection
U.S. Army Tank – M2A4 Light Tank
The M2A4 light tank was a variant of the M2 series developed by the United States before World War II. It featured a 37mm gun and several machine guns but had light armor, designed for mobility. During the Guadalcanal Campaign in 1942, the U.S. Marines used M2A4 tanks to support infantry in the dense jungle and played a key role in early U.S. operations in the Pacific before being replaced by the M3 Stuart.
Chrome plated Zippo with a miniature metal M2A4 light tank applied on the front.
- Model:
four barrel hinge, flat bottom
- Year:
1937 - 41
- Status:
in collection
U.S. 1st Armored Division – 68th AFA
The 68th Armored Field Artillery Battalion (AFA) was part of the 1st Armored Division, famously known as "Old Ironsides," a key U.S. Army division during World War II. The 1st Armored Division played a critical role in major campaigns, starting in North Africa and Italy and continuing through France, Belgium, Holland, and Germany during the Allied advance in 1944–1945. After intense fighting in Italy, the division moved into Western Europe, contributing to the liberation of Nazi-occupied territories, including Belgium and Holland, and advancing into Germany. The inclusion of Austria and Hungary reflects the division's involvement in the final stages of the war and post-war occupation in Central Europe. Units like the 68th AFA provided vital artillery support, enabling mechanized operations and the steady progression of Allied forces into Axis-held regions.
Chrome plated Zippo that belonged to Private First Class Benjamin Lowder Humm from Rosiclare, IL, who served in the 68th Armored Field Artillery of the 1st Armored Division. Engraved with his initials “B L H” on the front and the places where he served during the war «France», «Belgium», «Holland», «Germany», «Austria» and «Hungeria» on the back side.
- Model:
three barrel hinge, round bottom
- Year:
1943 - 45
- Status:
in collection