Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice original U.S. WWI Model 1917 wooden ammunition packing box for .30 caliber Model 1906 Ball cartridges, as used with the principal .30 caliber rifles and machine guns fielded by American forces during the First World War. The crate retains its lid and steel liner and displays extensive original stenciled ammunition information across the front.

The front of the crate still bears the original stenciled packing information:

CAL..30 BALL CARTRIDGES
MODEL 1906
PYRO.D.G..30 LOT
MUZZLE VELOCITY 2700 FT. PER SECOND
UNITED STATES CARTRIDGE CO.
LOWELL, MASS. U.S.A.

Interestingly, the lid has stenciled address information, noting it was sent from an Ordnance Reserve Depot at Metuchen, New Jersey, but the receiver address is not very legible. A good research project. 

The crate measures approximately 18"W × 14 ½"H × 9 ½"D, and is constructed using rabbet joint corners. It is a great wartime example, and is natural wood with the correct black painted lettering and red stripe across the middle. 

Overall condition is very good, with the main discrepancy being some heavy cracking and material loss to the construction. Five of the six wing nuts to fasten the lid to the crate are intact, with one missing. Also, as shown clearly in the pictures, the crate is empty, with no lining.

Pre-war and early-war ammo packing boxes were made of stained wood with black-painted lettering. Mid- to late-war packing boxes were painted Olive Drab brown with white or yellow lettering that used the item's AIC code and a system of symbols to indicate the contents at a glance. The caliber, ammunition type and model (e.g., Caliber .30 Ball M1) were in the upper center field in bold lettering. The number of units (i.e., how many bullets or shells there were per box) and packing information (i.e., whether it was in cartons, bandoleers or belts) were on the two lines below it. The caliber (CAL .45, CAL .30, or CAL .50) was painted in bold lettering in the upper left corner. The gross weight of the box in pounds and its volume in cubic feet was painted in the lower left corner and the Ammunition Lot information (manufacturer code and lot number) was painted in the lower right corner.

The combination of the Model 1906 Ball cartridge designation, United States Cartridge Co. Lowell marking, 2700 feet-per-second velocity stencil, Metuchen Ordnance Reserve Depot shipping information, red identification stripe, retained steel liner, and original lid hardware makes this an excellent surviving example of WWI American ammunition packaging. The cracking, material loss, missing wing nut, and absence of the original contents are the principal condition issues, while the extensive surviving wartime stenciling remains the defining feature of the crate.