Note 124 — Insignia of the Uniformed Militia

Undoubtedly one of the most interesting of all the Militia plates of the War of 1812 period is this rectangular one worn by John S. Stiles of (as indicated by the engraving) the "First Marine Artillery of the Union." Engraved in brass, it bears an unusual combination of military and naval devices—the familiar eagle-on-cannon of the Regular artillery and the eagle with oval shield that appears on naval officers' buttons of the period.[124] Actually, the devices befit the character of the organization. The following quotation from Niles Weekly Register of Baltimore, June 26, 1813, tells something of the unit: