World War 1/2 - WWI US Army Aluminum Canteen 1918 US AGM CO w/ CUP & CARRIER

Description: Pretty good condition for its age. This is a World War I era US Canteen marked AGM Co., US, 1918. AGM Co., which stood for Aluminum Goods Manufacturing Company was founded in 1909 when three smaller firms merged to become AGM Co., the company produced a variety of household and kitchen items in peacetime and switched to aluminum items for military use during both World Wars. In 1957 the company changed its name to Mirro Aluminum Company. This item is in largely unrestored original condition. It has a newer cork mounted in the cap. I have cleaned the interior with salt and hot water to remove the hard water scale built up over the decades. The cap chain is present and intact. The canteen shows relatively minor dents and scratches consistent with use and age but the welds are solid and the canteen does not leak. It could be a candidate for a full restoration but I think its more valuable in its present condition. The canteen cup is in good shape and is also made by AGM Co. and dated 1943, It is the early WWII style cup with the fully rolled edge. Later in the war the rolled top edge was eliminated to speed up manufacturing time. The cup is punch etched with a soldiers name. The carrier is early war khaki in color with the US marking on the front, The carrier shows no rips or tears and the closures are both present and intact and function as they are meant to. It was not unusual to find a mix of WWI and WWII dated equipment in the field especially early in WWII. The US made a lot of WWI filed equipment that was never issued as the country was only involved in the war for a little over a year. The unique thing about this find is that the canteen and cup are both made by AGM Co. It is pretty uncommon to find both items in the field made by the same manufacturer. The company received its first government contract in 1911, winning an $80,000 contract to make aluminum canteens for the US Army designed and patented by Joseph Koenig, one of the founders of AGM Co. Koenig filed for the patent in April of 1911 and was granted patent number 1062716 in May of 1913. The design he came up with was a molded aluminum shell in two pieces that could be welded together. It was far superior in strength to the previous design that has been in use since the Civil War and through the Indian Wars. Its aluminum structure was also of lighter weight that the wood model from the civil war and the steel version from the interwar period. Overall this is a great piece of history and would make a wonderful addition to your collection.

Price: 139.96 USD

Location: Portland, Oregon

End Time: 2024-01-12T16:35:39.000Z

Shipping Cost: 9.96 USD