Original Items. One-of-a-Kind Group. This is an interesting group containing a roughly 15 x 51” strip of camouflage parachute fabric, a 101st Airborne patch, and Airborne Command patch, along with some rare 101st Airborne Division ephemera. The grouping is identified to T/5 Joseph George Pinelli, Service Company, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR), 101st Airborne Division. The group is identified to Pinelli by a small strip of paper likely torn from an envelope, which is inscribed:

Mr. Irwin Pinelli
145 Hamilton Ave
Trenton, NJ

Irwin Pinelli is the paternal uncle of Joseph George Pinelli, who purportedly sent the parachute piece home to his uncle in an envelope which is now only this small strip of paper.

The items include:

- Strangely cut 15 x 51” strip of camouflage parachute fabric, with the longest section being the folded over edge of the parachute. It has somewhat of a trapezoidal shape.
- Original 101st Airborne Divisional history booklet, very rare to find on its own. 4 x 5¼” and in great condition with some tape repairs.
- 101st Airborne Patch, no rocker. Uniform-removed.
- Airborne Command patch with integral rocker.
- June 27th, 1945 issue of “The Screamer” 502nd Parachute Infantry newspaper, Austrian edition. Normal folding marks.
- “The Talon Crosses the Rhine” 17th Airborne Division publication magazine, folded horizontally through the middle.

Joseph George Pinelli was born in Trenton, New Jersey, on June 15, 1919, and served with the 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment during WWII. A specialist 501st PIR roster identifies Joseph G. Pinelli, Army Serial Number 12211653, as a Technician Fifth Grade in Service Company. Pinelli saw action following a parachute landing during D-Day in Normandy at various locations including seizing key canal locks at La Barquette and securing the bridges over the Douve River and action at the towns of St. Come du Mont, Montmartin en Grainges and Carentan. The 501st PIR received its first Distinguished Unit Citation for its action during the Normandy invasion. The 501st made its second combat jump into Holland on 17 September, 1944 to protect the advance of British forces on the way to Arnheim during operation Market Garden. The 501st was awarded the Belgian Fourragere and its second Presidential Unit Citation for its part in the Battle of the Bulge at Bastogne, Luxembourg Province, Belgium. According to his obituary, Pinelli received the silver star, the bronze star, two purple hearts and the two WW II era Distinguished Unit Citations for his meritorious service.

This grouping is particularly noteworthy for the combination of its large 15 x 51-inch camouflage parachute fragment, family-associated Irwin Pinelli address label, 101st Airborne and Airborne Command insignia, scarce 101st divisional history, 502nd PIR Screamer newspaper, and 17th Airborne publication, together with its association with Joseph G. Pinelli of the 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment. The surviving provenance is unusual rather than conclusive, but the documented Pinelli family relationship and independently confirmed 501st service make the group a worthwhile subject for continued research.