There are many Coast Guard Uniforms described in the Auxiliary manual.

Flotilla 12-10 typically uses two types of uniform.

The 'Working Blue' Uniform is worn on patrol. There is a 'long' version and a 'short' version.

Either the 'Tropical Blue' or the 'Undress Blue-Summer, Alpha' Uniform is worn to meetings, classes and other public outings. Don't be fooled by the word 'Summer' for the 'Undress' uniform; in South Carolina, we wear it summer and winter.

(You can see details about a uniform by clicking on its image or the link above it.)

A summary of the uniform situation for Flotilla 12-10 is available as a Microsoft Word document. It contains no pictures.

There are several ways to purchase these uniforms. You may decide to split your order between sources.

Charleston Exchange . The Charleston Exchange is inside the base at Coast Guard Sector Charleston. The entrance is at 196 Tradd Street, Charleston which is at the end of the Battery. Even if you are not familiar with Charleston, this will probably be easy to find. You must show your USCG ID card to enter the base and show it again when you purchase items inside the exchange. You can order by phone at 1-843-722-8817. You need your USCG Aux member number and a credit card when ordering.

You need a special sticker on your car to drive onto the base. You can always park on the street and walk in (show your ID). You can get a sticker this way (in the Administration Building) but only Tuesday through Friday.

196 Tradd Street
Charleston, SC 29401-1817
Phone: (843) 722-8817/4210
Fax: (843) 724-7696

District 7 On-Line Store web site. This is a new site but it looks very promising. There are no shipping charges but there is a minimum order of $10. Visa and Master cards are accepted. At least one member reported that this was the only place to purchase collar insignia.

Coast Guard Distribution Center web site. This has a huge number of items but you have to know what you want. Their catalog ('Stock Book') can be viewed with Acrobat Reader. You have to phone, fax or mail your order; NO orders on line.

You can order by phone at: 1-800-874-6841. You must give them your USCG member number and use a credit card. You can order by fax at: (609) 861-7930 or 609) 861-5632. You may order by mail at: U.S. Coast Guard, Uniform Distribution Center, ATTN: Customer Service, 414 Madison Ave., Woodbine, N.J. 08270

There are two UDC locations, Woodbine and Cape May, both in New Jersey. There is a Training Center at Cape May which is more familiar to veteran auxiliarists. The web site is actually at Woodbine.

Lighthouse Uniforms web site. You can order on line or by phone at: 1-800-426-5225. This site is an excellent reference for uniforms. However, it may be hard to sort through all the information to find the uniform you want. Hopefully, the page you are now reading has all the information you need to order uniforms for the foreseeable future.

Uniform NameTape web site. This is an on-line source for the plastic nametags for the 'Tropical Blue Uniform' and the cloth nametapes for the 'Working Blue Uniform'. Click on 'Coast Guard' at the top of this page and follow the desired 'CGA' link. (Everytime I put in a direct link, they change something.) There are other sources.

The cloth coxswain device worn on the Working Blue uniform is for coxswains only. It was authorized for the first time in 1997. At that time, three sources were identified as having submitted samples that met Auxiliary samples. One was Uniform NameTape mentioned above. You can view an Auxiliary document on the subject and see the other two vendors, which do not have web sites.