Identified WWII US Navy UDT 17 Grouping GM3rd Class Joseph L. Steinberger
Item #: WR1057
Click on an image to enlarge
This is a grouping of an identified US Navy Underwater Demolition Team 17 member from World War II. The items are identified to Gunners Mate 3rd Class Joseph L. Steinberger. It is believed that Steinberger joined the Navy in early 1943 as a Seaman and transferred to the Naval Combat Demolition Units in May of 1943. I have not been able to find much information on Steinberger himself, but there is plenty of information on Underwater Demolition Team 17. UDT 17 was formed in October, 1944 on the island of Maui in the Hawaiian Islands. The team trained in Maui until early February, 1945, when it was given orders for their first mission, the invasion of Okinawa. UDT 17 was responsible for the beaches northwest of the Hagushi beaches, the area known as the Green Beaches. These beaches were to be where the main landing of Okinawa would be made. Gunners Mate 3rd Class Joe Steinberger, along with the rest of UDT 17 arrived off the coast of Okinawa on 26 March, 1945 onboard the USS Crosley. The team would conduct their operations using the Crosley as their base until 20 April, 1945, when the Crosley was ordered to Ulithi atoll and the team was to disembark. GM3C Joseph L. Steinberger survived his underwater excursions with UDT 17 and went on to serve after WWII with UDT 17 & 32. This grouping is made up of his dress blue jumper and two pairs of blue trousers, his dress blue Alpha hat, USN ROBESON SHUREDGE marked knife with original leather scabbard, foul weather deck cap, khaki swim trunks, a ditty bag, a gunners mate 2nd class patch, a M1926 USN flotation belt and two pairs of US M1938 leggings. The dress blue jumper is made of 16 ounce dark blue Melton wool material. There is no makers label to be found. An honorable discharge patch is sewn over the right breast and a Gunners Mate 3rd Class patch is sewn on the right sleeve. The name Joe Steinberger is hand embroidered in the back of the neck in gold lettering. Unfortunately his ribbons were not on the jumper. The jumper has no moth damage. The two sets of trousers are also made of 16 ounce dark blue Melton wool material. One set has the standard ink stamped initial of JLS on the inside of the pockets. The other set has his first and middle initial, along with his last name hand embroidered on the back side of the flap. Done in multi colored yarn, I suspect this was done in the Pacific to make a set of "Liberty" trousers. Strangely, the middle initial is incorrect, as well as the last name being spelled wrong! He must have picked them up at the end of liberty when he wasn't thinking to clearly! Both sets of trousers have all the buttons present and have no moth damage. The dress blue Alpha hat is in very good condition. It is not marked with Steinberger's name. The US NAVY tape is present, but is not sewn onto the beret style cap. The Mark I USN Robeson Shuredge knife is in well used condition. The very6 tip of the blade is broken and the tang is bent at a slight angle. Looks like Joe probably used it as a pry bar on some beach obstacle at some point. The stamps on both ricasso's are very legible. The leather scabbard looks to be original to the knife. The The small stud side of the snap is missing. Scratched into the front of the scabbard is the letter J. The foul weather deck hat is in very good condition. It still retains the Navy Department contract label, and the USN stencil on the back is very legible. The cap is not named to Steinberger. The khaki swim shorts are something rarely seen. This set is complete with all buttons, adjustment belt and both rings. They are a little soiled and stained, but have no rips , holes or tears in them. Steinberger inked his name and UDT 17 in two different places on the, Seems he didn't want anybody making off with them, especially since he went to all the trouble of stealing them from the Marine Corps! Ink stamped on the back side of one of the pockets is the makers name, date, contract number, nomenclature and U.S.M.C. The small ditty bag looks like a shrunken sea bag. STEINBERGER J L can still be made out on one side of the bag. The Gunners mate 2nd Class patch is for the summer uniform. The stitching remains strong, but the material is a little dirty. The M1926 flotation belt is in good condition. There is some staining from the rusted metal components, but it still displays well. The ink stamp dates this one to September 1, 1943. One set of the leggings is stenciled SEINBERGER J L and looks to have been worn on very few occasions. The other set looks well worn and has no recognizable stencils or markings on them. All this comes in a small suitcase that is clearly marked on the front JOE STEINBERGER GM 3/C/758-90-13/UDT-32. and US Naval/Combat/Demolition. A shoe tag was also found in the suitcase that indicates there may be more to this grouping, as it reads it has a trunk & suitcase. If the rest of this grouping surfaces later it will either be added to this listing or will be passed along to the new owner, price depending on what else is included! Here's an opportunity that doesn't come along everyday, a chance to own an id'd group of a UDT frogman, the forerunners of today's SEAL teams!
Your Price $2,500.00 USD
Sorry we are not accepting on line orders at this time. If you are interested in an item please contact me at 615 717 7792 or email me at mwkiser07@gmail.com.
If you have ordered or are considering ordering an antique weapon or artifact from our website please be advised that these artifacts and antique weapons are sold strictly as collectible antiques.
We strongly recommends that these artifacts be enjoyed and appreciated for their historical significance and not ever fired. By ordering you are acknowledging these facts, warnings and assume full responsibility for your personal actions with regard to them.
We DO NOT sell modern firearms , all our inventory is pre 1898 and are classified by the ATF as antiques and require no government paperwork to own.