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Remembered Today:

RACD Acceptance Stamp--Might have answer on Letter codes


Joe Sweeney

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All,

I'm hoping to get some help from collectors that have articles of clothing with the wartime RACD stamp and a known maker.

I am trying to correlate makers to Clothing Depots. I have never known what the letters tamps meant except it doesn't relate to date--like post war. I had thought they may refere to type of commmodity or inspection branch or Depot. I now think that L=depot.

I'm trying to get supporting documentation or documentation that blows this theory out of the water.

What started me thinking about this again was threads on this forum and one on Wolseley Helmets and also the Badges forum.

Most of my information is very circumstantial and might not apply for the duration of war.

Most is gleaned from the History of Army Ordnance Services, Debenhams Report on RACD and appendices (Barron Levy reports) and DEOS (Steevens reply) and of course observation.

The number on the Stamp is to the Inspector/viewer--Steevens states this in his reply to the recommendations of the three reports cited. Also, this system was instituted due to lost control and corruption by some viewers at pimlico in the brush, cutlery and braces area after June 30 1915.

The above cited reports that ther number of Inspectors and assistant inspectors went from 5 to 39 and for viewers 55 to 317 from 1914 to Sept 15.

The letters I now believe are to the Depots tasked with Reciept and storage. In Sept 1915 these were:

Pimlico (London)

Olympia (London)

White City (london)

Marlyborne (London)

Leeds

Manchester (Trafford Park) Only set-up for reciept of US and Canadian Made Uniforms and in process of shutting down)

Possible other: Glasgow, and Dublin.

Stamps I've encountered are E, L, M, N, O, P

I believe that

L=Leeds

M=Marlyborne

O=Olympia

P=Pimlico

I believe that commodities that needed special skills for inpsectors went to specific Depots and that more generalized SD clothing to regional Depots.

I have 3 SD jackets with Three different Leeds Manufacturers all with an L stamp.

I have two London Makers of SD jackets all with an M stamp.

All Caps have either an O for caps made 1915-early 1917 or a P for deliveries after early 1917. Interestingly, several caps have come to the surface that have stamps from 1918-1922 using the pre-war RACD system that Pimico used of W/I\D over number over date. See http://www.britishba...ead.php?t=29216 Thanks Taff. This leads me to believe caps were coming into PIMLICO and the system reverted back to pre-war ways of doing business circa 18/19. I also have three kilts with the P code--the only ones with still legible stamps.

All waterproof clothing I have or seen have the O stamp. I suspect that caps went to Olympia first then to Pimlico after Waterproof clothing swamped Olympia.

This doesn't answer what E or N stood for or what code White City had. Nor what depots closed and potentially others opened.

I have one pair of SD trousers with what I believe is an E code but no intact manufacutring label and I think I have some SD with an N code, but can't find at moment.

For those collectors that have clothing with labels could you please check to see manfacture lines up with the closest code for a Depot (particulaly SD).

Of course if we have a lot of london manufactures with an L code this theory is blown out of the water.

Thanks in advance

Joe Sweeney

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TM,

Much appreciated. The above referenced reports mentioned an Edinburgh depot once but weren't precise on its function but E does line up with Edingburgh.

Hopefully some others will chime in with examples.

Joe Sweeney

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I would chime in, but I don't have anything with a surviving paper label as this was never a priority for me. Sorry Joe but can't help this time.

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Hi Joe,

I have got both a Camerons kilt marked "1 WD E" and a jacket marked "9 WD E", the latter is labelled "Moore, Taggart & co, Glasgow 1917. So E for Edinburgh sounds promising so far. good work mate!

Rgs Steve

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Other stamps I have encountered are:

"WD A" on a 1915 casualty Black Watch jacket

"WD B" on RAF 1918 Pattern jacket and trousers

"WD D" on a simplified jacket

Any ideas?

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Steve,

Thanks, the B and A I have no idea at the moment.

D maybe Dublin?

I'll have to comb through those reports to see the list of Depots. Only one place gives a nice documented List per Sept 1915 and then in the verbage talks about other depots.

Take care,

Joe

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  • 5 years later...

Did anyone ever get to the bottom of the meaning of B?

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  • 5 months later...

Does anyone know what W is for?  is this for white city perhaps?

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On 17/10/2018 at 17:36, Jerry B said:

Did anyone ever get to the bottom of the meaning of B?

 

Perhaps ‘Belfast’, which had many factories, one or more of which might have been used as a storage depot.  In general if Dublin had a depot it would be unusual for Belfast, which held a similar status in the North of Ireland, to not have one too.  Another possibility might be ‘Birmingham’, which produced small arms and metal insignia.  However, all this is speculation.  That is just conjecture, but there is some logic in Glasgow covering Lowland matters and Aberdeen those for the Highlands.

Edited by FROGSMILE
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  • 1 year later...

this is the thread I was hunting, but it does not shed any light on the source of A, but does seem to imply that the change in format took place in 1917

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18 minutes ago, Jerry B said:

this is the thread I was hunting, but it does not shed any light on the source of A, but does seem to imply that the change in format took place in 1917


My guess would be Aberdeen.  Scotland would have needed one, or two depots too, given its geographical size.  That is just my conjecture, but there is some logic that Glasgow might have covered Lowland matters and Aberdeen those for the Highlands.  Grovetown might be able to shine light in this dark corner. 

Edited by FROGSMILE
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13 minutes ago, FROGSMILE said:


My guess would be Aberdeen.  Scotland would have needed one, or two depots too, given its geographical size.  That is just my conjecture, but there is some logic that Glasgow might have covered Lowland matters and Aberdeen those for the Highlands.  Grovetown might be able to shine light in this dark corner. 

 

thank you froggy, that seems a perfectly good and logical answer to the question.  I wonder if Pte Dacon would have been a scot, as it is named to such a man

6.JPG

7.JPG

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6 minutes ago, Jerry B said:

 

thank you froggy, that seems a perfectly good and logical answer to the question.  I wonder if Pte Dacon would have been a scot, as it is named to such a man.

 


If his regimental number was stamped on we could check, but otherwise it can only remain speculation really.

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4 minutes ago, FROGSMILE said:


If his regimental number was stamped on we could check, but otherwise it can only remain speculation really.

there is only one DACON on ancestry listed on the MIC's and he was east surrey...

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  • 2 years later...

recent addition 1912 dated red tunic with W/|\D over B, would love to know what this signifies, Belfast perhaps

14.jpg

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