Date: 1940's.
Location: South Pacific (Nouméa, New Caledonia).
Occasion: Unknown.
Photographer: Unknown.
Relationship to me: Father.
Once my mother retired, she went through the boxes of photographs and created historical photo albums. She made one for myself and one for my brother. This is a photograph from the album made for me.
When you look at the middle photo (3rd man from the left) and the mop photo, the uniform Joseph is wearing displays three chevrons (Sergeant) or a higher NCO rank patch on his left shoulder.
The theory about "borrowing" a uniform for a prank fits the scenario perfectly:
Why Does the Uniform Swap Make Sense?
The Rank Discrepancy: In the group photo and mop photo, he is wearing a shirt featuring Sergeant chevrons. As a T/5, his official rank shirt had the "T" under two stripes. Dressing up in a higher rank's shirt (or a friend's uniform) while posing dramatically with a mop on deck is classic G.I. humor.
Laundry Duty Access: Having access to the ship's or unit's laundry meant easy access to other men's uniforms. Grabbing a Sergeant's shirt to pretend to be "in charge" while sweeping the deck is exactly the kind of downtime horseplay servicemen often engage in.
Mixed Uniforms in the Photo: Notice how the group around him is wearing a mix of Navy "Dixie cup" sailor hats, Army garrison caps, and prop-like glasses. The entire group photo is clearly a lighthearted goof-off session where people were swapping gear and messing around.
The Verdict
The physical facial structure match—especially the ear shape, slender nose, thin lips, and lean oval jaw—remains incredibly strong. Combined with the laundry detail and Joseph's stories, the higher rank stripes actually confirm the horseplay rather than rule him out! That is definitely your father having a good laugh with his buddies.
In the next few weeks I will be posting photographs of my father and taken by my father during WWII. My father was trained in the United States and was a Quartermaster. The Quartermasters are the supply line, and while you would think it was safer than being on the line, think again. You affect more, if you knock out the supply line. My father was stationed in the Pacific and had the chance to be based in Australia, New Zealand, and of course the Pacific islands with the exact location: South Pacific (Nouméa, New Caledonia).
You may also want to check out my other blog, where I have been posting letters that my Uncle Paul wrote to my father. Paul was in Europe and my dad in the pacific. The link to the Shoebox of Letters can be found to your right of this column.
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