From Wednesday, February 17th through Sunday, February 21st from 1:00 - 3:00 pm, museum store visitors can get a military dog tag set for just $10.00. All sets are custom made to order and produced on a vintage WWII dog tag machine, while you watch in person!

According to the U.S. Department of Defense, dog tags are “those little oval disks on a chain that service members wear to identify themselves in combat” but also “a reminder of America's efforts to honor all those who have served — especially those who made the ultimate sacrifice."

All sets are custom made to order and produced on a vintage WWII dog tag machine, while you watch in person! They make a memorable gift or a wonderful treat for yourself.

Custom Military Dog Tag sets are available in our store year-round at the regular price of $13.95 per set and you can always order by phone by calling the store at 516-572-0560.

Did you know?

• Unofficially, identification tags came about during the Civil War because soldiers were afraid no one would be able to identify them if they died. They were terrified of being buried in unmarked graves, so they marked their clothing with stencils or pinned-on paper tags. Others used old coins or bits of round lead or copper. According to the Marine Corps, some men carved their names into chunks of wood strung around their necks.

• By World War II, military ID tags were considered an official part of the uniform and had evolved into the uniform size and shape they are today — a rounded rectangle made of nickel-copper alloy.

• By 1969, the Army began to transition from serial numbers to Social Security numbers. That lasted about 45 years until 2015 when the Army began removing Social Security numbers from the tags and replacing them with each soldier's Defense Department identification number. The move safeguarded soldiers' personally identifiable information and helped protect against identity theft.

* Source: Dog Tag History U.S. Dept of Defense