During the Korean War, the need for Ranger units evolved early in that war. After a provisional unit was formed in Korea in late 1950, the U.S. Army activated 15 separate Ranger Infantry Companies (Airborne). Some of these companies saw service in combat in Korea, some were attached to divisions on occupation duty in Germany, and some were attached to NG divisions in CONUS.

While the black and gold RANGER Q-tab was the only authorized insignia for these Ranger units, many of the units adopted scrolls that resembled the WW II era battalion scrolls. These KW-era units were also black, red, and white, for the most part.

Somewhere along the line, some manufactures got the jump on others, and, using US-made Ranger lozenge SSI worn by the 2nd Ranger Infantry Battalion in WW II, added numbers 1-15 underneath the word Rangers. They have subsequently been reproduced for collectors over the past 50 years, with different levels of quality. See images.

The numbered lozenge patches were never issued to or worn by any KW Ranger Infantry Company (Airborne).