Original U.S. Model 1881 5th Artillery Officer’s Dress Spiked Pith Helmet by J.H. McKenney & Co. British Machine Guns and quite sharp

and quite sharp

IL came home as part of Company K

with clear lands and grooves and a partly bright finish

for the reason that at night we could see the big guns of the Russians flashing and knew they were close and would soon surround us

The muzzle has also been counter-bored in about 3/8 of an inch

Original U.S. Model 1881 5th Artillery Officer’s Dress Spiked Pith Helmet by J.H. McKenney & Co. British Machine Guns and quite sharpOriginal Item: One Only. Much like our European cousins in the 1880s, the U. S. Army started to adopt spiked pith helmets, often in white, with all brass mounts and occasionally plumes. These saw active service in the Spanish American War of 1898 especially in the tropical climate in Cuba. While often referred to as "pith helmets" in the broad sense, it was made from cork, like many European variants, such as the Wolseley pattern used by the British.