This is a typical 1942-45 World War II black crackle Zippo. It is made of steel (distinguishable with a magnet) and the paint along the edges has been worn down or chipped from regular use.
A 1942-45 trench art Zippo with English coins. The reverse barely visible reads "L.R. Harper USNR '43" The rough surface is typical of the steel Zippos of that period.
This 1938 Zippo is engraved with "Capt. 1st Lt. H W Edwards and serial number; Rome, Arno, N. Appenines, and Po Valley". "Oran, Algiers, Capri, Napoli, Pompei, Casserta, Roma, Firenze, Livorno, Pisa, Montecatini, Mongodoro-Loiano, Bologna, Verona, Milano, Genoa, Udine, Lago Gardo, Lago Maggiore" was engraved on the reverse. This lighter also has a one-of-a kind test model insert. Harry William (Bill) Edwards was the superintendent at the Congress Street Zippo Manufacturing Plant. Mr. Edwards was employed by the Zippo Manufacturing Company since 1938 until he left In 1942 to enter the Army. He was discharged with the rank of captain in 1946, at which time he returned to Zippo.
This Zippo has been leather covered and stitched by hand. The front has an English penny and a hand-carved Star of David and the reverse has an English half-penny and four-point nautical star
1940-41 Zippo with the "prop and wings" insignia of the Army Air Service, a forerunner of the United States Air Force
1942 Zippo with Navy Emblem
Black crackle Zippo with Army Wings
1942-45 black crackle Zippo with an attached Seal of the United States Army.
This is a rare "red crackle" Zippo. Presumably these were preferred by soldiers in tanks because they were easier to find in the darkness of the tank's interior
This 1941 Zippo has a "military welfare" emblem and a Red Cross. During WWII, over 7.5 million Americans got involved with the Red Cross. The reverse reads "Henry Hopkins Rome 1944"
This "trench art" Zippo has three french coins attached on one side and is engraved with the name of Frank W Prelate, his serial number, Paris France 1945 along with a map of the English Channel and France on the other. The map traces the route of the river Seine from Le Havre to Paris.
This Zippo, engraved with the letters "GPL" has a sterling silver Navy emblem attached on one side and an oak leaf cluster & fraternal logo on the other.
This interesting Zippo has a Naval officer's cap badge attached on one side Boswain's mate emblem and "North Africa November 11, 1942 1943-1944-1945" on the other
1940-41 black crackle Zippo
This 1942 Zippo is decorated with the crest of the 7th Infantry Regiment Militia & New York Army National Guard, the Seal of the United States and with an elk in relief. The reverse is decorated with three coins of Newfoundland.
1934-36 Zippo with repaired outside hinge. The front has an attached English 3 pence coin as does the reverse lid with the 3p coin dated 1920. The reverse case has a German Nazi pin attached. Both the lighter and the attached coins and badge show signs of heavy use and one can only speculate as to whether the lighter was once owned by an English Nazi sympathizer. or....?
Here is the ultimate trench art Zippo lighter. It belonged to Capt. J.R. Ralph as seen on the top of the lid. A swastika as well coins from England, France, Holland, Germany and Tunisia have been attached to the case. As for aesthetics, it is in the eye of the beholder
1943-45 Zippo with a British West Africa Half Penny coin dated 1944 and the logo of the Army Air Corps on the top, an Irish Penny attached on the reverse
1942-45 trench art Zippo with brass finish, a US Penny coin dated 1944 on the front, a Belgian 5 centimes coin on the reverse
High-polish 1943 Zippo with the US Marine Corps' emblem attached.
1942-45 Zippo with inlaid Swastika
This WWII Zippo shows a World War I era tank, as seen from the side.
Sterling silver lighter with a Zippo insert. It has the initials HS on the lid and the case has the emblem of the US Army's Persian Gulf Command, established in 1943 to assure the supply of U.S. war material to the Soviet Union. The reverse reads "Iraq 1944" and "Many Happy Returns of the Day - Crabby, Paul, John"
Sterling silver lighter with a Zippo insert. It has an artistic emblem of the US Army's Persian Gulf Command and love birds on the front, Byzantine style buildings, palm trees and a camel on the reverse
This trench art 1945 Zippo for was presumably for a member of the Army Postal Service based in Cairo Egypt. The U.S. Army Forces in the Middle East was established in 1942 when the US Army Air Force began bombing missions against the Axis forces. Besides the years "1943/44/45" the lighter is engraved with images of pyramids, star and crescent and Arabic writing
1942-45 black crackle Zippo with the initials BW.
Trench Art Zippo with English Half-Penny painted gold
1942-45 Zippo with an emblem with the image of the Godess of Victory attached
1972 Zippo for AMVETS, American Veterans of World War II
During World War II, Ernie Pyle, a famous war correspondent covered America's involvement in the war. His readership was worldwide, with his column appearing in 400 daily and 300 weekly newspapers. He journeyed to England in 1940 to report on the Battle of Britain. In 1942 he began covering America's involvement in the war, reporting on Allied operations in North Africa, Sicily, Italy and France. Ernie Pyle was also a Zippo fan. In 1944 he wrote: "The Zippo lighter is in great demand on the battlefield … truly believe that the Zippo lighter is the most coveted thing in the army."
The American campaign against the Japanese on Okinawa still raged in early 1945 when Ernie Pyle was reassigned to the Pacific theatre. While making preparations for a major mission, a young officer asked Pyle if he knew what was up. Pyle knew but wasn't talking, so he asked the young man for his Zippo lighter. He scratched on the bottom of the lighter, gave it back to the officer and said, "Stick this in your pocket, and promise not to look at it until the orders are opened." Later, when it was announced that theoperation orders were opened, the young officer took the Zippo from his pocket. Scratched on the bottom was one word: "Tokyo", the objective of the mission.
Ernie Pyle left the USS Cabot at the end of February 1945. In April, he went ashore with the Marines on Okinawa. and was killed by a sniper's machine-gun bullets on April 18, 1945." A few months after his death, George Blaisdell sent a couple of hundred black crackle Zippos engraved with the words "In Memory Ernie Pyle 1945" as gifts to the crew of the USS Cabot
See also MILITARY, VIETNAM WAR, MISSOURI SURRENDER and NAVY Zippo Pages