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Learn more about the how these custom cuffs were inlaid into uniforms.
After the disestablishment of the U.S. Navy’s Master-at-Arms (MAA) rating specialty in 1921, Masters-at-Arms were only distinguishable from other enlisted crew members by their wearing of a brassard, or armband, with the letters “MAA” on the sleeve of their working uniforms.
Between 1925 and 1941, U.S. Navy commands, both ship and shore, locally purchased and issued metal badges to Masters-at-Arms and Police Petty Officers. These badges were similar to civilian law enforcement agencies. That ordering process, however, caused badge inconsistencies throughout the Navy in terms of the size, color, materials, and inscriptions when compared to the uniformity of the other service branches’ military police forces.
