Original Item. Only One Available. This is a beautiful 78th Division uniform jacket with a lovely felt patch. The uniform itself is a rare M1918 “Pershing” jacket, with the four front pockets being interior, giving the front a much cleaner look.

The jacket has a lovely 78th Division “Lightning” patch and red honorable discharge chevron on the left sleeve. There are no overseas chevrons. The collar bears US & Field Artillery Headquarters discs, indicating that the soldier was a Private in the Headquarters Company of the 307th, 308th, or 309th Field Artillery Regiments, which saw heavy combat in the St. Mihiel & Meuse-Argonne Offensives as well as the Saizerais and Puvenelle Defensive Sectors. There’s also a VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars) ribbon above the left breast pocket. 

The jacket retains its original depot tag with the size information on the interior collar, and is a Size 4½ Long. The 1918 Pershing jacket is a rare variant of uniform to find, with the outer pocket lining removed in place of internal pockets with only flaps visible. This gives the tunic a very distinguishing look.

This is a gorgeous uniform to one of the most popular divisions of the AEF, ready for further research and display.

The 78th Division in WWI

The 78th Division of the United States Army was constituted on 5 August 1917 and activated on 23 August 1917, over four months after the American entry into World War I, at Camp Dix, New Jersey. It consisted of four infantry regiments: the 309th, 310th, 311th and 312th; and three artillery Regiments: the 307th, 308th and 309th.

The division was originally allocated to New York and northern Pennsylvania in the National Army recruiting plan. While the headquarters of the 78th Division was activated in August, with the first draftees arriving in September, it was not fully active until early 1918. After several more months of training, the 78th was transported to France in May and June 1918.

American and French soldiers at the front. The Americans (who during the war were given the nickname of doughboys) are Private John J. Burke, Corporal Victor E. Cowley and Private J. R. Keith, and are all from the 1st Battalion, 312th Infantry Regiment, 78th Division, while the French are from the 320th Regiment. The picture was taken in Boult-aux-Bois, Ardennes, France, sometime in 1918.

In France, during the summer and fall of 1918, it was the "point of the wedge" of the final offensive which knocked out Germany. The 78th was in three major campaigns during World War I – Meuse-Argonne, St. Mihiel, and Lorraine. The division was demobilized on 9 July 1919 at Camp Dix, New Jersey.