Kilroy Stencil

thingiverse

The mysterious Kilroy stencil has become an iconic symbol of World War II, found scrawled on walls and buildings across Europe and beyond. Its origin remains a topic of debate among historians and enthusiasts alike. In reality, the stencil was created by James J. Kilroy, a welder from Massachusetts who worked at the Bethlehem Steel plant in Quincy. During his lunch breaks, Kilroy would doodle on the ships being built, leaving behind his signature stencil as a calling card. The stencil features a crude drawing of a bald-headed man peeking over a wall, accompanied by the phrase "Kilroy was here." Its ubiquity during World War II led to its adoption as a symbol of American troops and their presence in occupied territories.