Manufacturer Penguin (active 1950s - 1970s)

Lighter

Place madeJapan

Metal

Overall: 2 3/16 × 1 7/16 × 1/2 in. (5.5 × 3.6 × 1.2 cm)

Gift of John R. Monsky

2015.45.182

Lightweight, durable cigarette lighters were readily available to the 2.5 million Americans who went to war in Vietnam. Easy to engrave, the lighters provided a canvas for individual expression. Enterprising South Vietnamese, equipped with basic tools, could do a good business by supplying U.S. troops with cigarette lighters engraved with stock slogans and imagery: military vehicles, weapons, unit insignia, and maps of Vietnam were all popular. Servicemen also had lighters embellished with designs and wording of their choice. The assortment of ready-made and custom engravings found on the lighters offer a glimpse into the thoughts, humor, and bravado of Americans who served during the Vietnam War in the 1960s and early 1970s.

DescriptionOn recto is the insignia of the U.S.S. Washoe County, in the center of the insignia: "TARDA SED FRIMA"; on verso is an image of a ship, underneath: "U.S.S. WASHOE COUNTY/ LST/1165".

MarkingsOn bottom, "HIGH QUALITY LIGHTER/ "Penguin"/ NO. 19531 JAPAN".

ClassificationsSMOKING TOOLS & EQUIPMENT