For sale is a WWII era GENERAL ELECTRIC WELDING HELMET made by General Electric Co. of Schenectady, New York. This vintage helmet is constructed of black vulcanized fiber and features wire mesh-covered ventilation holes and a lens shutter, marked “PAT. 2,260,849”, which was granted by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office on October 28, 1941. The helmet is marked on top “EQUIPPED WITH SHADE NO. 10 LENS – GENERAL ELECTRIC CO., U.S.A. – WELDERS HELMET CAT. 87X578”. The interior retains its original chin rest and headband, adjustable by a knob located at the rear. The adjustment knob is marked “PATENTS 2,205,741, 2,205,742”, both of which were granted on June 25, 1940. The interior of the helmet also has its original G.E. paper sticker label.
This same model of welder’s helmet was worn by thousands of female war workers who were known as “Winnie the Welder”, when they filled critical roles at naval shipyards to replace men who were enlisted in the Armed Services. The same model helmet is worn by “Vera” in Air Reduction Sales Company’s “Seamstresses of Steel” advertisement, published in the National Geographic’s February 1945 issue.
This is an original WWII U.S. welder’s helmet, as worn by “Winnie the Welder”, representing thousands of female war workers who stepped into critical roles at naval shipyards previously held by men who had since enlisted in the Armed Services. This same model of helmet is worn by “Vera” in Air Reduction Sales Company’s “Seamstresses of Steel” advertisement, published in National Geographic’s February 1945 issue (shown in the final image).
