World War I Kit of Joseph Gelt: A Soldier's Personal Effects from Camp Meade

This archival object comprises a World War I kit belonging to Joseph Gelt, a soldier trained at Camp Meade, Maryland, in Company 9 of the 79th Division. The kit, a 27-inch-long khaki pack with six pouches, contains a prayer book with scriptures in English and Yiddish, army pamphlets, a shaving kit, notebook, scissors, needles, thread, an army button, and pins. The kit was supplied by the Soldiers' Sailors' Welfare League, 24th Ward, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and designed to be worn around the waist. This kit was exhibited at a Library of Congress exhibit in Cincinnati (sponsored by the American Jewish Archives) in 2005 and in the 2010-2011 core opening exhibit of the National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Its completeness is considered unique among surviving examples.

Associated People/Businesses

• GELT, JOSEPH

Geography

No geographic information available.

Subjects

• Military life

Physical Location

MuseumL2010.10.51