Guadalcanal Pennant, Australian or New Zealand Souvenir Pennant - WWII.
This navy blue wool felt pennant was made in either New Zealand or Australia. It was intended to sell as a souvenir item for American veterans of the Guadalcanal Campaign. It was made for sale to US servicemen during World War II. The navy blue wool triangular pennant was screen printed with a stylized U.S. shield and the word "Guadalcanal."

Souvenir pennants originated in the United States in the 1890s and increased in popularity during WWI and WWII. Their numbers declined in the 1960s and 1970s with the increasing popularity of bumper stickers and t-shirts as alternatives.

Australia and New Zealand were two of the primary locations for rest and recreation (R&R) for American forces in the Pacific theater of World War II. Both produced a wide variety of souvenirs like this pennant for American troops. Memorabilia made at the time emphasized the mutual union between the countries and the good will of the Oceania toward its American ally.

The first American troops arrived in Australia in 1941 and in New Zealand in June of 1942, and from then the war's end, a large flow of American troops docked for rest and recreation in both Australia and New Zealand, which also provided America with a strategic base with which to re-take the Philippines from the Japanese that they then invaded and occupied in 1941. The largest number of troops in Australia was situated in and around Queensland following the establishment of General Macarthur's headquarters in Brisbane, while those in New Zealand were concentrated around Auckland and Wellington on the North Island.

The influx of visiting American troops throughout WWII had an important economic and social impact on Australia and New Zealand. One such economic impact was the production of wool textile items like uniform parts, military equipment, insignias and souvenirs and the expansion of the dried food and canning industries.

Provenance: Acquired by purchase at the 22 July 2012, Bay Area Militaria Show, Naperdak Hall, San Jose, CA.

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