Two US Victory Medals w/France clasps and boxes

Petey, you mentioned he hadn’t seen the original box before, well here’s a couple different types from a different manufacturer (I’ll also be posting a British medal pair with their original wrapper before Armistice Day).

The first and second picture is of a Victory medal with France clasp and its original box manufactured by Jos. Mayer Inc. of Seattle, one of the three government contracted manufacturers for the medal. The box is white paper covered cardboard, and the label wrapped around to secure the top and bottom prior to opening. The medal has some oxidation, but no wear. In some ways the medal is less interesting to me because of its lack of handling. Perhaps it remained in a warehouse for years without being issued. It was, however, manufactured under the original 1920 government contract.

The third and fourth photo is another minty Victory medal. The top of the box has gone missing, but it contains the approving officer’s slip, indicating this medal was processed for issue to someone. This time the box is brown paper covered cardboard, and I’m not sure of the manufacturer. Someone added what looks like a museum accession number to the brooch.

The France clasp was awarded for service in France to those not eligible for a battle clasp. Over 621,000 were entitled to the clasp, including 223 French speaking American Women who volunteered to travel to France as telephone operators for the American Forces. At least 25 of those women served in the combat zone. They were finally granted veterans’ status in 1979.