I love a good deck jacket, and whilst the blue jungle cloth jacket get most of the attention, it's the humble peacoat that really started it all. The word peacoat stems from the Dutch word 'pije', which means a coat made of thick wool, and and likely comes from the early 18th century. But it was the British and the heyday of the Royal Navy which really made the peacoat synonymous with the sea. The US Navy, in the very late 1800s would take inspiration from the British reefer jacket and create their own peacoat which, though updated through various iterations, only ceased to be issued in 2020.
This particular example is from the late 1930s- very early 40s. It has a lovely woven Name/Rating label which was replaced with a printed label by 1941. It was made in the Brooklyn Navy Yard and still includes the paper tag in the neck which is always gone!
It was issued to Albert G Nyberg who joined the Navy in before the war in 1940, and spent the war serving on the USS Trippe.
Condition
Issued but mint condition, the only issue I can see is a few slight scuffs to the wool.
Size
- Tagged a 40
- Fits a medium/large
- Pit to pit 21.5" - This fits my 40" chest with a little room
- Shoulder to shoulder 19"
- Shoulder to cuff 25"
- Collar to hem 32"