#161: Americana by way of England

London had some of the best vintage I had ever seen, truly dangerous but exciting hunting grounds.  Two of the best stops along the way included run-ins with dear David of Ragtop Vintage,  first at his pop-up shop in Clerkenwell and again the next day in his stall at Old Spitalfields Market.

From David I picked up this amazing WWII duffle, originally carried by one H. Rehn of Spokane, Washington of the Fifth Air Force.  From Rehn’s markings we can see that he left Spokane on August 8th (year unknown), traveled through Japan and Korea, and made it back stateside  just in time for Christmas on December 23rd.  Between August 17th and 30th he traveled aboard the SS Marine Devil, and on December 13th he boarded the USS General William Weigel which brought him to San Francisco.

Yet another instance of my taking a hero’s wartime carryall– once filled with the dirt, blood, sweat and tears of war (pardon the drama, but I’ve just recently revisited The Thin Red Line)– and turning it into one of many purses, manly as it may be.  But this is a remarkable piece that deserves a utilitarian repurposing.