US Army 87th Infantry division patches

About

Four divisional patches (Shoulder Sleeve Insignia) for members of the US Army 87th Infantry, featuring a 'golden acorn.' SSI were first created by soldiers in South Carolina who were preparing to ship off to Europe during WWI. They were hand-sewn and made of felted wool with applique to form the design. In the image, the top left patch is the oldest (circa 1918). It is entirely hand-made and the cap of the acorn is brown. The top right patch is also made of wool, but has machine-applied embroidery in a single color. it is significantly smaller than the older patch. The botton left patch is the style used in WWII. The entire patch is machine-embroidered on a neutral backgound and the edge is reinforced with a buttonhole stitch. The bottom right patch is from the early 21st century. It has an adhesive backing so it could be ironed on to the uniform and then reinforced with stiches. (All of the older patches had to be applied to the uniform by hand stitching). The colors are 'subdued' for camouflage fatigues. The entire patch is machine-embroidered with an olive green background and a black acorn. In 2004, the US Army adopted a new camouflage system known as the Univeral Camouflage Pattern (UCP). The new uniforms had (and still have) velcro patches on the sleeves and chest for insignia so the divisional patches no longer need to be sewn on.