Army Dog Tags WWII 1939-41

• Veterans order replacement sets of Dog Tags because they have lost their originals, they have been 'borrowed' by family members, or they want to give sets to their family as a memento.
• Family members and friends who want to create a little bit of history to celebrate and remember their loved ones who served.
• Veterans who never received Dog Tags (i.e. reservists).
• Historical re-enactors who are looking for period authentic uniforms.

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The notch on the Dog Tag was there to align it on a handheld transcription machine (Model 70 Addressograph Patented) which was used by field medics to quickly transfer the soldier’s information onto paper medical forms or burial records. This is also the reason why Dog Tags in this era were debossed so that they became in effect the printing press to record information on paperwork using an ink ribbon. Notched Dog Tags were standard issue until December 1964 until the Department of Defense officially switched to Dog Tags without notches in early 1965. However, military bases with older notched-style tags in inventory still issued them for a while from 1965 up until 1966. Some soldiers colloquially refered to it as a "tooth notch".

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1. In 1940 the US Army issued Dog Tags with the top two lines for the soldier’s name and serial number respectively. Lines three to five were used to record the emergency contact information, usually their next of kin’s name, address, city and state.
2. Beginning in November of 1941 regulations greatly improved the value of the identification tags by including critical medical information. The second line, in addition to the serial number, now included the years of the wearer’s tetanus shots and their blood type. This new information greatly assisted with medical treatments in the field. A letter code was also added to the fifth or fourth line to indicate their religious preference.
3. The next major change to the information on US Army Dog Tags came in July of 1943 when the emergency contact information was removed from issued tags for a good reason... Soldiers heading overseas to fight in Europe with existing tags were issued new tags minus their next of kin information. This change was done to prevent the enemy from intimidating captured soldiers by threatening their family with the information carried on their Dog Tag.
4. The last change to US Army identification tags during WW2 in 1944 was essentially an administrative one. New tags issued would follow a standard layout of Last Name, First Name Initial.. Prior to this the regulations called for the 'Name of Wearer' and would be embossed by the machine operator as they saw fit. Soldiers with tags issued before this would not get new ones as there was not a functional change to the use of the tags.

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Originally Dog Tags were issued with a variety of fabric materials for use as necklaces such as Cotton Herringbone Twill tape. A specialized linked curb chain for tags was produced which had two sets of J-clasps aka Sister-Hooks that would clamp around the hole in each Dog Tag and suspend one below the other. It require 2 hands to open and close the clasp. Beaded ball chains became available for optional purchase in the quartermaster supply shops and soldiers began to prefer them over the J-clasps. A fatter ball chain was eventually replaced by a smaller ball chain that quickly became the standard that is still used today.

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This method deforms the metal so that the letters are sunken below the surface (indented) into the Dog Tag. It is the opposite of embossing where the letters are raised above the metal, which is the modern method. They allowed for making carbon copies of the soldier's information with the M70 Addressograph discussed above. Sometimes the letters would darken over time as the result of an accumulation of dirt and grime. This effect can be replicated on newly made tags by rubbing in black shoe polish, letting it dry for 30 seconds, and then wiping the surface of the tag with a cloth.

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1. Fold3.com
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2. National Archives Military Records
3. National Archives Enlisted Records (1938-1946)
4. National Archives Reserve Corps Records (1938-1946)
5. eVetrRecs for Veterans and Next of Kin
6. National Archives Veteran's Service Records Request
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