Does anyone have historical material they would share or point me towards?

SSgt John Hosch — Sun, 18 Mar 2018 19:19:21 -0400

I served over a decade in the Corps and have a significant amount of research material about USMC history already. However, I am always needing more for my writing research - the saga covers more than a century and touches on more than a millennia of world events via backstory.

I've been working on an historical novel series for more than 35 years and am specifically seeking a few things currently regarding the Corps's history:
- The history of rank structures from Colonial through Modern era
- The particular details about uniforms throughout this period as well
- Obscure conflict/combat stories that aren't part of the "well-known" history
- Any covert ops history is welcome as well, especially since the Civil War, including early days of the OSS

As a side note, I am always seeking permission from families of real-life characters to add portions of their relative's tale as Supporting Protagonist/Antagonist to my Protagonists' adventures. If your relative/friend had/has an interesting story you think is worthy of addition into my work, I'm always willing to listen.

Response by SGT Carl Blas made Mar 18 at 2018 11:22 PM

SGT Carl Blas — Sun, 18 Mar 2018 23:22:01 -0400

Marines landed on Guam on June, 21, 1944, on Guam we celebrate every year of that landing, as well as the main highway on Guam is named, Marine Corps Drive."

Response by LCDR Private RallyPoint Member made Mar 19 at 2018 8:58 AM

LCDR Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 19 Mar 2018 08:58:27 -0400

When I start my research, and the period covers time well beyond and "first-person" accounts, I begin with original documents. I've found that uniform information can be best gleaned by journals and manifests that survive from the Colonial-Civil War periods. Believe it or not, one of the best sources of data are "arrest records" for deserters...as articles of clothing are typically mentioned. Many commanding officers of the period purchased uniforms for their regiments, and these details are available via their surviving writings and financial records. The Naval Institute library in Annapolis has some amazing resources...I was actually able to review the log-book of vessels from the early 18th century there. With later periods such as WWII and Vietnam, you can still speak to people directly involved...I was even fortunate enough to interview an original source for my novel on the Russian Civil War. Re-enactors are also a good resource; I largely got "into" historical re-enactment via my writing research.

Good luck and happy writing!