Les Hughes Insignia.org
The patches illustrated above are often touted as "color variations" of the swastika patch of the 45th Division". Because they are well-made and obviously old, this explanation is often accepted. The truth is that they are Junior R.O.T.C. patches from high schools in San Antonio, Texas. They have been identified correctly a number of times in The Trading Post, but their association with the 45th is still to be found. They were worn in the 1920s and 1930s until replaced with a design featuring a Lone Star and the Alamo. Each of the four variations illustrated was unique to a different San Antonio high school: Thomas Jefferson H.S., a blue diamond with red swastika; Brackenridge H.S., a purple diamond with white swastika; Main Avenue H.S. (now Fox Tech), a red diamond with white swastika; and Sidney Lanier H.S., a blue diamond with gold swastika. In the early years of their use, these patches were worn on the lower sleeve; later, they were worn on the shoulder. A reversed variation apparently also exists. All of these patches are beautifully embroidered on a heavy brown (OD) wool disc. Sometimes they are found with the wool trimmed down to the square, so that they more closely resemble the 45th Division patch. I lived for 10 years in Oklahoma, and during that time collected the insignia of the 45th Infantry Division. Naturally, the swastika patches were much sought after, and in time I acquired several, including one featuring a swastika in bullion. I also acquired a yearbook of the Oklahoma National Guard, published in the ‘30s, in which were numerous photographs of personnel wearing the swastika patch
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