Tin miner's field jacket

[MikeyB-17]

Today we visited the fascinating Geevor Tin Mine on the North coast of the extreme West of Cornwall, about an hour from me. Geevor was a working mine until 1990, with workings extending several miles out under the Atlantic. It's now a museum and the mine buildings are preserved, including the miners' Dry where they changed and kept their stuff. This place has been left pretty much as it was when the last shift clocked out. In there are all the miners' lockers, and hanging on the door of one locker I saw what was obviously a field jacket:-

I examined it more closely, and got more interested when I found the zipper box had Crown on it. No puller but it had the big teeth similar to those on 40's/50's nylon flight jackets-I had one on my Buzz B-15D.

I took it off the door and took a snap of it:-

Then I had a quck try-on-it fitted me too.

Question is what is it? Pretty beat up, no label, a small tag, very faded but I could make out something about 'Field Jacket' and 'Cotton Sateen'. It had internal buttons for a liner, and no zip-up hood. It looks to my inexpert eye like an M-43, but did they have zips, or would the zip be retro-fitted? I'm not big on field jackets, I know an M-65 when I see one, but anything earlier is beyond me.

 

[deeb7]

Hmm, abandoned mines ... now there's a source I hadn't considered. Any Levi's down there?

Looks Like a M-51.

 

[RCSignals]

Yes I'd say it is an M-51

 

[arclight]

Definitely an M1951. It's the only one with external eyelets for the waist adjustment cord.

Great salty jacket that fits you very well...........any chance you could make it yours?

 

[MikeyB-17]

Great salty jacket that fits you very well...........any chance you could make it yours?

Actually I reckon if I went in wearing a similar jacket I could do a swap and nobody would be any the wiser-but I don't think my conscience would allow me to do that! Thanks for the ID, boys.
It's widely rumoured that every mine shaft in Cornwall is full of Harley-Davidsons, Jeeps and small arms left behind by US Forces prior to D-Day, but none to my knowledge have ever been found. If they were there at all they would all be under water now, as all the mines around here flooded when the pumps were turned off. I do have it on good authority that at Heligan Gardens, where I work part-time when not driving ambulances, the US Forces billeted there (38th Engineer Service Regiment, U.S. Army, and US Navy Advanced Amphibious Training Sub-Base) left a few Shermans buried-probably unservicable and not worth shipping back to the US. One of the local scrappies apparently got wind of it and came and dug them up, sadly.

 

[johnwayne]

Crikey that takes me back - been in printing all my life and in the 80's worked here in London for a company that printed Geevor's annual report and other financial related info - the finance director, a lovely Cornish guy, used to come up to town every so often and aIways gave me an open invite to go down there but I never went unfortunately. The name Geevor always rings in my head when I hear tin mining! Lovely place Cornwall, a long over due trip is on the cards so in addition to some scrumy clotted cream, Geevor will get a visit!!
Its a small world - thanks for the memories!!!
cheers
Wayne