The chart below shows the current enlisted rank insignia of the United States Army, with seniority, and pay grade, increasing from right to left.
The rank of specialist is also in pay grade E-4, but does not hold non-commissioned officer status; it is common that a soldier may never hold the rank of corporal, and instead be promoted from specialist to sergeant, attaining junior NCO status at that time.
In August 1784, the 700 men strong First American Regiment (including two companies of artillery) was organized as kind of an army substitute.
In October 1786 by approval of Congress, this force should expand to a Legionary Corps of additional infantry, rifle troops, artillery, and dragoons.
In the same year, the epaulets' color of cavalry NCOs officially changed from blue to white.
[4] At that time the federal mounted force of two troops of dragoons existed only on paper and never got beyond the planning stage (see above).
[5] Shortly after, in the year 1800, the color of the epaulets was changed to yellow, for chief musicians in to blue.
[6] In reality, the artillery NCOs ignored the order of 1799 and maintained their yellow epaulets, as did a company of bombardiers, sappers, and miners recruited during the War of 1812.
Senior NCOs would have worn a crimson colored sash and a yellow or white aiguillette.
[11] By 1834 the epaulets for senior NCOs were the same as those for lieutenants (gold for artillery or silver for infantry with 1/8” wide fringe).
[12] When a regiment of dragoons was added in 1833, the prescribed uniforms had a simple pointed cuff and metal shoulder scales.
[15] The use of the sergeant's and corporals's chevrons by dragoons beginning in 1833 is described in regulations as part of the description of the dress coat.
It is also possible, if not probable, that sergeants and corporals of other branches were wearing chevrons on their jackets prior to 1847.
At this time engineers switched from yellow that they had shared with cavalry since 1858 to red with the stitching done in white.
The chevrons were in the branch colors on a blue, white, khaki or olive drab background.
Attempts were made to eliminate branch specific distinctions and the wear of chevrons was restricted to the right sleeve only in order to simplify the supply situation.
Unofficially many specialists, at least in Grade Six wore one chevron with branch insignia in the angle and one to six arcs.
In their place was a new system of smaller (2 inches wide) and narrower chevrons and arcs that were instead differenced by color called the "Goldenlite" system - with subdued dark blue stripes on bright yellow backing for combat arms and yellow stripes on dark blue for support arms.
Support-arm NCOs found their stripes too small to be easily seen at a distance, making it hard to tell their seniority at a glance.
When the US Army entered the Korean War, it was found that troops in combat abandoned the new insignia.
In 1951, WACs were assigned surplus men's Goldenlite-yellow-on-dark-blue stripes for wear with olive drab or fatigue uniforms.
Also in 1951, the optional white WAC dress uniform was now authorized for wear by enlisted and NCO ranks[a] and 2-inch Goldenlite yellow-on-white stripes were created to be worn with it.
In 1956, the Army began wearing polished black leather boots instead of the traditional unpolished russet leather (as late as the early 1980s, older soldiers who had served before 1956 said they were in the "brown boot" army.
In 1957, a 2-inch-wide set of Goldenlite-yellow-on-blue stripes were worn with the new optional army blue WAC dress uniform.
The enlisted insignia on this uniform is pale tan stripes on an olive green background.
In field artillery units a platoon sergeant (usually an E-7) is informally referred to as "Smoke" (from "chief of smoke", a reference to when units fired as whole batteries of between four and six guns, and the senior NCO position was "Chief of Firing Battery").
The junior E-7 position is designated as "Gunnery Sergeant" and similar to the USMC usage, is typically referred to as "Gunny".
In some training units (BCT and AIT or OSUT), trainees are called "Private", regardless of the rank worn.
[40] Privates (PV2) rank insignia are sometimes called "Mosquito Wings" (from the appearance of the single chevron).
E-1 Privates were also called a "Fuzzy" or "E-Fuzzy" during the War on Terror era due to the bare velcro patch-holders on the Army Combat Uniform (ACU).