Collection: The Rodger Jameson US Navy Badge Collection

In our thirty year pursuit of the finest and rarest Royal Navy badges and collectibles, from time to time, my Father would come across their US Navy counterparts. As they didn’t carry the same value & popularity as the Royal Navy badges, especially on this side of the pond, and because, with their illustrative designs and bold American slogans he considered them charming and lovely nautical decor and therefore easy to take home, plus they were fully endorsed by my Mum, a WW2 Willys Jeep owner!

After my Fathers death in 2014 the collection went to my office where some of them went on display. Recently I decided that they deserve new custodians and so we are launching this collection with the advent of the eighty year anniversary of VJ Day.

Badges such as these acted as a keepsake for officers who served in the ship’s wardroom and symbolised camaraderie and pride among the officers in their dining and recreation spaces. The badges were often exchanged between ships or given as a gift to visiting dignitaries or officers. Most of this collection were acquired by my Father from a vast collection we bought from the Royal Navy that were held in Devonport Dockyard so I’ve no doubt that this collection is largely formed of exchanged wardroom badges from the US Navy to the Royal Navy.