This oval, convex, brass plate, with two studs and a hook soldered to the reverse for attachment, very probably was originally a shoulder-belt plate. The letters "W L G" incised on the obverse are very patently the added work of an engraver of no great talent. The letters doubtless stand for Washington Light Guard, and, since there were several Militia units of that designation, it seems possible that one of the less affluent units bought the plates and had them engraved locally. WAIST-BELT PLATE, CITY GUARDS, C. 1840 _USNM 604386-M (S-K 533). Figure 215._ [Illustration: FIGURE 215] There were City Guards in Charleston, South Carolina, New York City, Philadelphia, and possibly in other places. Thus it is impossible to determine just which of these units wore this cast-brass plate. The ornamented outer oval is typical of the 1840's. WAIST-BELT PLATE, NATIONAL GUARD, C. 1850 _USNM 60206-M. Figure 216._ [Illustration: FIGURE 216] A number of Militia units carried the designation "National Guard." The unit that used this particular plate was from New Jersey, for scratched on the reverse is "Sergeant O. Clinton, October 9th, 1851, 1st Reg Hudson Brigade, NJSM"; However, the adjutant general, State of New Jersey, was unable to give any information on such an organization. The specimen is cut from rolled brass with sunken letters filled with black enamel. ¶ Shoulder-belt plates underwent the same transition as cap plates did beginning about 1837-1838, with the single die strike plate yielding to the composite plate, and applied devices being attached to oval, rectangular, or rectangular "clipped corner" plates. While some single die plates were made and worn after 1840, no composite types that predate 1835 are known. The following group of shoulder-belt plates are typical of those that first appeared about 1840. Of these, several continued unchanged through the Civil War and into the 1870's and 1880's. SHOULDER-BELT PLATE, C. 1840 _USNM 604341-M (S-K 497). Figure 217._ [Illustration: FIGURE 217] This unusually large, oval, brass plate with the letters "C G" in silver applied with wire fasteners is another of that sizable group of lettered insignia that cannot be attributed definitely to a particular organization. The "C G" may stand variously for City Guard, Cleveland Greys, Charleston Guard, or some other organization. With a stock of oval and rectangular blanks and a set of lettering and number-cutting dies, an almost limitless combination of plates could be turned out by a single manufacturer. SHOULDER-BELT PLATE, NEW YORK, C. 1840 _USNM 604470-M (S-K 617). Figure 218._ [Illustration: FIGURE 218] The basic form of this brass plate--with one of the many variations of the seal of the State of New York[133] applied with wire fasteners--is a copy, with minor changes, of the bevelled plate prescribed for the Regular Establishment in 1839. Distinctly an officer's plate, it would have been appropriate for artillery or staff.