1918 Vintage US Model 1910 Canteen & Mess Tin

In 1910 the U.S. Army adopted a whole new set of field equipment. With it, the round flattened canteen shape was replaced by this bottle shape. It’s constructed of aluminum, and originally they were made using a one-piece construction method patented by the Aluminum Goods Manufacturing Company (AGM). In 1912, Rock Island Arsenal developed a method for welding two aluminum halves together to avoid paying royalties to AGM. These canteens have a very clear weld line along the sides where the back and front pieces meet. The canteen caps and chains also went through a few changes, and the cap shown here was first produced about 1914. The aluminum cap would be replaced by Bakelite about 1942.

During WWI, with increased demand for canteens the U.S. Military contracted with a number of manufacturers to make these, including the aforementioned AGM. As seen by the stamp on the bottom of the back of this canteen (second photo), this canteen was manufactured by AGM Co. in 1918.

What I think most people would recognize as a mess tin, was actually designated as a “meat can” when it was first adopted by the Army. The first version of this two piece plate/meat ration can came out in 1875, and underwent several revisions before the 1910 overhaul. This Model 1910 version is larger than its predecessor, at 8 ¼ inches long by 6 ¾ inches wide and 1 ½ inches deep. The little ring was a pull tab to help separate the two pieces that often stuck together. Reports back from the field during WWI resulted in the Model 1918 with a deeper lid. The mess tins with two compartment bottom familiar to U.S. Troops since WWII was first produced in 1932.

As with the canteen, the army contracted with several manufacturers to produce the meat can. This particular example was manufactured by Landers Frary & Clark Co. (LF&C) in 1918 as seen in photo 4. The lid is unit marked "184.F.9", and my best guess is this was the 184th Infantry Regiment, F Company, Meat Can #9. If that's right, the marking dates no earlier that 1924. The 184th was and is part of the California National Guard. During the time of this tin's use, the 184th responded to the Folsom Prison Riots in 1927 and the Waterfront Strike of 1934. Upgrading being slower in Guard units, it could conceivably still in use at the start of WWII when the 184th stood guard on the West Coast. It was almost certainly replaced by the 1932 model by the time the unit was mobilized to fight in the Pacific. I personally had the privilege of serving beside the 184th during the Los Angeles Riots of 1992.