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Sep 28, 2018 · JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. –. Many military members can remember a time when they got coined, whether it was the first coin they ever received or a coin they were awarded from a special moment. Yet, few know how commander’s coins – once known as challenge coins – came from.
- The Most Common Assumption
- Not Everyone Believes That Depiction
- One More Possibility
The most well-known story that the internet produced linked the challenge coin tradition back to World War I. As the U.S. started building up its Army Air Service, many men volunteered to serve. One of those men was a wealthy lieutenant who wanted to give each member of his unit a memento, so he ordered several coin-sized bronze medallions to be ma...
While that story sounds cool, Air Force Historical Research Agency archivist Barry Spink isn’t buying it. He said he’d been told in the 1990s that the tradition started in Vietnam, when an Army infantry-run bar tried to keep non-infantrymen away by forcing “outsiders” to buy drinks for the whole bar if they couldn’t prove they had been in combat. T...
Spink also sent me an article called “Coining a Tradition” that was printed in a 1994 edition of Soldiers Magazine. It offered a similar version of the Vietnam story, the World War I tale and one other option, which dates back to the early 1960s: “A member of the 11th Special Forces Group took old coins, had them overstamped with a different emblem...
Jul 9, 2018 · Learn about the origins, evolution and significance of challenge coins, a tradition that dates back to ancient Rome and World War I. Discover how challenge coins symbolize honor, service and unity among military personnel and other organizations.
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Historically, challenge coins were presented by unit commanders in recognition of special achievement by a member of the unit. They could also be exchanged in recognition of visits to an organization. [1] Modern day challenge coins may feature popular culture attributes [2] or organizational values. [3]
In the U.S. military, the challenge coin – also known as a unit coin or commander’s coin – identifies its bearer as the member of a particular unit, and is a symbol of pride and fellowship. According to a few competing legends, the first challenge coins were used to establish identity.
Jan 28, 2019 · Learn how military challenge coins evolved from ancient Roman currency to a symbol of unit affiliation and recognition. Discover the stories behind the coins and the coin check tradition in the military culture.
Sep 26, 2012 · Learn about the origins, meanings, and stories behind challenge coins, small medallions or tokens that signify a person is a member of an organization. Find out how challenge coins evolved from ancient Rome to modern times, and how they are used in the military and beyond.
