The Dog Tag By KennethRiege USAFVeteran: 1985 –1993 As I was thinking of a story to write for this month’s Journey, I happened to look upon the display I have in my office which honors my grandfather. I noticed the replica WWI dog tags that I had made and thought, “Hey, that might be an interesting story.”
One of the questions some may wonder is: Why are we issued two? This regulation came about on July 6, 1916 when the US Army changed the regulations. The reason for this was that in case of death, one of the dog tags would stay with the service member’s body, while the other would go to the person in charge of burial for record’s keeping. In 1918, when the US Army adopted the service number system, the name and service number were stamped on the tags. During WWII and up until the Vietnam War, the dog tags had a “notch” in them. I have heard different stories as to why this notch was there. My grandmother told me a story that my grandfather had told her. When they would come across an American who had been killed in action (KIA), they would take one of the tags to the commanding officer while placing the other tag between the teeth of fallen comrade for identification. However, the “notch” in these dog tags was because of the machine that was used to create these tags. It had a locator tab inside of it which prevented the tags from being printed upside down.
I believe everyone has heard of dog tags. Many of us who were issued them still have them or even still wear them (I am wearing my issued dog tags as I write this story). However, many may not know the history of the dog tag, so I did a little research and want to share some of thathistory. I know in modern times it’s common for a service member to wear one around his neck and another tied within his boot laces. One key piece of safety equipment that was implemented during the Vietnam War was an item called “The Silencer.” These were placed around the dog tags to “silence” the noise of the two metal dog tags clanking together as you walk. Other soldiers simply taped the two together.
Picture of a “notched” dog tag Now backing up a bit, we need to talk about the history of the dog tag and its firstuse. The earliest mention of an identification tag for soldiers comes from where the Spartans’ names were placed onsticks and tied to their left wrist. During the American Civil War it was common for most soldiers to pin paper notes with
40
August 2020
