U.S. Army Clothing Database Query Page

U.S. Army Clothing Contract Database

How To Use this Database

1. Type valid characters in the white text area provided then click on the search button or press your enter key to initiate a search.
2. Only one query can run at a time.
3. Search criteria are NOT case sensitive.
4. Enter any part of a name or number in the Contractor Name, Item Name, or Stock Number fields to initiate a search.
5. The Specification Number and Contract/P.O. Number lookups require exact matches.
6. Ampersands, hyphens, and apostrophes were sometimes used in official descriptions of stock numbers, specification numbers, item names, and manufacturer names. If a query including one of these special characters doesn't return a result, try the query again omitting the special character.

Contract Number
Returns the contract date, contractor name, item name, specification number, and depot name for a given contract or purchase order number. An exact match is required for the search to be successful. Only the numeric portion of the contract number or purchase order need be entered. Example: Entering 30028 for War Department contract W-669-qm-30028 will return information for the 1943 contract issued to the Phillips-Jones Corp. Contract and purchase order numbers began anew at the beginning of each fiscal year. Additionally, each contracting depot had its own specific set of numbers. Therefore, a Contractor Query may contain several results.

Specification Number
Returns a list of contracts issued for an item identified by its specification number. A known specification number must be entered for the search to be successful. If a specification number is not known, it can likely be found using the Item Name or Contractor Name searches. Example: Entering 8-31D will return the specification date, item name, contract dates, contract numbers, contractors and depot names for the 18 Ounce Olive Drab Serge Wool Coat. The results will be sorted by item name, depot name, contract date, and then contract number.

Stock Number
Returns the item name and its size. A whole or partial stock number can be entered to return results. Example: Entering 55-T-10320, or 10320, will return the item name, specification number, and sizing for Khaki Cotton Trousers. In this case more than one item utilized this stock number, so more than one record will be returned. The results will be sorted by specification number.

Item Name
Returns a list of contracts issued for an item specified by the item's name. Enter any part of an item's name and the query will return the item name, specification number, specification date, contract date, contract number, contractor name, and depot name. Example: Entering M-1943 will return several items with "M-1943" included in the name. When several different items are returned by the query, search results can be refined by re-running the query using all or part of a name returned, or by running a specification number search using the number returned for the item of interest. The results will be sorted by item name, contract date, and then contract number.

Contractor Name
Returns a list of items made by a contractor. Enter any part of a contractor's name and the query will return the item, specification, contract date, contract number, and depot name. Example: Entering andala will return contract information for The Andala Company sorted by contract date first, and then by contract number. If the query finds more than one manufacturer for a search criteria provided, then the results will be sorted by contractor name first.

Stock Numbers by Specification Number
Returns a range of stock numbers and sizes for an item. Here you must enter a known specification number. If a specification number is not known, it can be found by using one of the lookup queries such as Item Name, Contractor Name, or stock number. Example: Entering 8-31D will return the item name, specification number, stock numbers, and sizes recorded for the 18 Ounce Olive Drab Serge Wool Coat. Results will be sorted by item name, then the stock number.

More Info On Item Names and Refining Searches
The US Army followed a taxonomic structure when naming and describing clothing. Designations can appear slightly different depending on the source, and even from label to label. For example, a specification 98B Officer's Khaki Cotton Shirt could be shown in the following ways:
1. Shirts, Cotton, Khaki, Officer's, 6 oz.
2. Shirts, Cotton, Khaki, Officer's, 6 oz. Stand-up Collar.
Because in normal conversation we'd likely refer to this shirt simply as an "Officer's Khaki Cotton shirt", or something very similar, items were entered in the US Army Clothing Database in this same way, rather than in the taxonomic form separated by commas. Due to the variances in names, item name searches are best carried out using some key element of the name. In the example above, one could enter 'Khaki Cotton Shirt', and then refine the search result by copying and pasting the desired specification number into the specification search field. If the result returns more than one item within the specification number, as would be the case in the above example, one could copy and paste a larger, or more specific, portion of the item name, such as '6 oz Officer's Khaki', into a new item search to single out the desired result. Some exploring and experimenting should provide the desired results.

FAQ
Q: Is this a complete database of all the contracts issued in WWII?
A: No. However, new contract info is being added all the time. The database only stores info on clothing contracts between approx. 1933 and 1947. The current number of contracts can be found here....

Q: Where can I find contractor names, item names, specification numbers, and stock numbers?
A: These designations can be found on contract labels attached to clothing items, originals and reprints of the Army Service Forces Clothing And Equipment Catalogs, in the index section of this website, and many other publications covering the topic of WWII U.S. Army clothing.

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