Today on Gus’ Gear, I start a short series on communications. Some of the information from earlier posts will be repeated in the coming weeks, however, I will cover more variations of communication. Today I start with an impression of a U.S. Army Signal Corps soldier.
This is a U.S. Army Signalman equipped with an EE-6 Electric Signal Lamp, which was an American made copy of the French M1916 Signal Lamp. Batteries are carried in the soldier’s right and rear pouches and the signal switch is on the front of the left pouch. The signalman would sight through the small tube on the top of the lamp to direct flashes to the intended recipient. The “6” in the nomenclature refers to the size of the lamp head, which is 6 inches in diameter, there was also a 12 inch version.
This is a close up photo of the signal lamp head, showing the hinged cover door in the open position. The sighting tube at the top of the lamp is more visible in this photo. There is a tubular socket at the bottom of the lamp that a ½ inch rod can be inserted for stability while signaling. As the candlepower of the lamp was limited it was important to have it pointed as directly as possible at the recipient.
This photo shows clearly that the belt and pouches are copied very closely from French equipment. The large pouch on the signalman’s right is to hold batteries, the pouch on his left is a control box. The lamp plugs into a socket at the back of the left hand pouch and the small brass button on the front is to control flashes of the lamp. Signals would be sent in Morse code or a pre-determined code to avoid interception by the enemy.
This photo shows the second battery pouch, carried on the back. It took a lot of batteries to produce enough energy for signaling. The similarities between this equipment and the standard French belt, Y-strap and ammunition pouches can be seen here.
This shows the socket with the wire for the lamp head plugged in.
This photo shows a better view of the small brass button that was used to control the signal lamp.
The 1917 copy of the “Manual for Commanders of Infantry Battalions” shows the use of the signal lamp. This illustration was taken directly from the French section leader’s manual and shows the French M1916 signal lamp which is very similar to the EE-6 lamp. Note the soldier sighting through the tube at the top of the lantern.