The original Army Wound Ribbon was created on September 6, 1917, to recognize those soldiers who had received combat wounds during World War I. The Wound Ribbon was established by Secretary of War Newton D. Baker on September 6, 1917, and implemented by Paragraph XI-1 of War Department General Orders Number 134 of October 12, 1917. However, it was rescinded by Paragraph 1(d) of War Department General Orders Number 6 of January 12, 1918, which replaced it with wound chevrons.
