SMGL-3029 1914 American made Iron cross merit Award for German American Festival in St. Louis

Screen shots from the Mississippi Blätter (St. Louis, Mo.) 1857-1932 This was a newspaper for German Americans. These screen shots prove the existence of the medal, when it was issued and explains why the back of the ribbon says, “Steiner Engraving & badge Co”. This was in fact, an American made award!  This also sheds light on why the badge has the Abbreviations “ST.L” , which is for St. Louis! The festival was in the beginning of October 1914 and WW1 started July 28th 1914. The festival seems like it was a way to boost German support and nationalism at the beginning of the war. Of course, this didn’t last long. 

A VERY scarce badge that would fit into a unique area of collecting and would appeal to a variety of different collectors. A must for the collector who is German American, the iron cross collector, the WW1 collector or even the American award collector. The ribbon is badly frayed unfortunately. “Zum an Denken an den 3′ und 4′ Oktober ST.L 1914”