1.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
2.
United States Army
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The United States Armed Forces are the federal armed forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, from the time of its inception, the military played a decisive role in the history of the United States. A sense of unity and identity was forged as a result of victory in the First Barbary War. Even so, the Founders were suspicious of a permanent military force and it played an important role in the American Civil War, where leading generals on both sides were picked from members of the United States military. Not until the outbreak of World War II did a standing army become officially established. The National Security Act of 1947, adopted following World War II and during the Cold Wars onset, the U. S. military is one of the largest militaries in terms of number of personnel. It draws its personnel from a pool of paid volunteers. As of 2016, the United States spends about $580.3 billion annually to fund its military forces, put together, the United States constitutes roughly 40 percent of the worlds military expenditures. For the period 2010–14, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute found that the United States was the worlds largest exporter of major arms, the United States was also the worlds eighth largest importer of major weapons for the same period. The history of the U. S. military dates to 1775 and these forces demobilized in 1784 after the Treaty of Paris ended the War for Independence. All three services trace their origins to the founding of the Continental Army, the Continental Navy, the United States President is the U. S. militarys commander-in-chief. Rising tensions at various times with Britain and France and the ensuing Quasi-War and War of 1812 quickened the development of the U. S. Navy, the reserve branches formed a military strategic reserve during the Cold War, to be called into service in case of war. Time magazines Mark Thompson has suggested that with the War on Terror, Command over the armed forces is established in the United States Constitution. The sole power of command is vested in the President by Article II as Commander-in-Chief, the Constitution also allows for the creation of executive Departments headed principal officers whose opinion the President can require. This allowance in the Constitution formed the basis for creation of the Department of Defense in 1947 by the National Security Act, the Defense Department is headed by the Secretary of Defense, who is a civilian and member of the Cabinet. The Defense Secretary is second in the chain of command, just below the President. Together, the President and the Secretary of Defense comprise the National Command Authority, to coordinate military strategy with political affairs, the President has a National Security Council headed by the National Security Advisor. The collective body has only power to the President
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Infantry
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Infantry is the general branch of an army that engages in military combat on foot. As the troops who engage with the enemy in close-ranged combat, infantry units bear the largest brunt of warfare, Infantry can enter and maneuver in terrain that is inaccessible to military vehicles and employ crew-served infantry weapons that provide greater and more sustained firepower. In English, the 16th-century term Infantry describes soldiers who walk to the battlefield, and there engage, fight, the term arose in Sixteenth-Century Spain, which boasted one of the first professional standing armies seen in Europe since the days of Rome. It was common to appoint royal princes to military commands, and the men under them became known as Infanteria. in the Canadian Army, the role of the infantry is to close with, and destroy the enemy. In the U. S. Army, the closes with the enemy, by means of fire and maneuver, in order to destroy or capture him, or to repel his assault by fire, close combat. In the U. S. Marine Corps, the role of the infantry is to locate, close with, and destroy the enemy fire and maneuver. Beginning with the Napoleonic Wars of the early 19th century, artillery has become a dominant force on the battlefield. Since World War I, combat aircraft and armoured vehicles have become dominant. In 20th and 21st century warfare, infantry functions most effectively as part of a combined arms team including artillery, armour, Infantry relies on organized formations to be employed in battle. These have evolved over time, but remain a key element to effective infantry development and deployment, until the end of the 19th century, infantry units were for the most part employed in close formations up until contact with the enemy. This allowed commanders to control of the unit, especially while maneuvering. The development of guns and other weapons with increased firepower forced infantry units to disperse in order to make them less vulnerable to such weapons. This decentralization of command was made possible by improved communications equipment, among the various subtypes of infantry is Medium infantry. This refers to infantry which are heavily armed and armored than heavy infantry. In the early period, medium infantry were largely eliminated due to discontinued use of body armour up until the 20th century. In the United States Army, Stryker Infantry is considered Medium Infantry, since they are heavier than light infantry, Infantry doctrine is the concise expression of how infantry forces contribute to campaigns, major operations, battles, and engagements. It is a guide to action, not a set of hard, doctrine provides a very common frame of reference across the military forces, allowing the infantry to function cooperatively in what are now called combined arms operations. Doctrine helps standardise operations, facilitating readiness by establishing common ways of accomplishing infantry tasks, doctrine links theory, history, experimentation, and practice
4.
Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania
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There are also five Mount Pleasant Townships in Pennsylvania. Mount Pleasant is a borough in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States and it stands 45 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. As of the 2010 census, the population was 4,454. The Borough of Mount Pleasant, consisting of the area, should not be confused with Mount Pleasant Township. Mount Pleasant Township is predominantly rural and adjoins the borough to the north, in the past, Mount Pleasant was a center of an extensive coke-making industry. Other products included flour, lumber, iron, glass, foundry products, braddock Road passed through the western end of the future town in 1755, opening the area to settlement. In 1793 Michael Smith was licensed to operate an inn, which would have served traffic on Glades Road, in 1797, Nathaniel Marshall sold land to Andrew McCready, who laid out the design of the town. Jacobs Creek Bridge, the first iron-chain suspension bridge built in the United States, was erected south of the town in 1801, unfortunately, no pre-1800 structures remain within the borough limits. The borough’s three oldest existing buildings all date from approximately 1812, The Shupe House at 201 Main Street, Hitchman House at 355 Main Street, Mount Pleasant became a borough on February 7,1828. Glass manufacturing was a foundation of the economy, with Bryce Brothers commencing operations in 1850. The invention of the Bessemer process of steelmaking in 1859, which required coke, had a impact on the region. The town prospered as coal deposits were developed, from which coke was made, however, the lives of coal miners in the outlying patch towns were arduous, and labor-management disputes became frequent. The strike in Morewood, west of Mount Pleasant borough, was the most violent of the area’s strikes, Mount Pleasant was disadvantaged when the main lines of the railroads bypassed the community in the 1850s. The community’s isolation lessened in 1871 with the opening of the Mount Pleasant and Broadford Railroad, later part of the Baltimore, in addition, a branch line of the Pennsylvania Railroad connected the borough to Scottdale, and West Penn Railways served Mount Pleasant from 1906 to 1952. Mount Pleasant is located at 40°8′59″N 79°32′33″W, according to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 1.1 square miles, all of it land. As of the census of 2000, there were 4,728 people,2,057 households, the population density was 4,127.5 people per square mile. There were 2,227 housing units at a density of 1,944.1 per square mile. The racial makeup of the borough was 97. 10% White,1. 67% African American,0. 15% Native American,0. 23% Asian,0. 15% from other races, hispanic or Latino of any race were 0. 32% of the population
5.
American Civil War
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The American Civil War was an internal conflict fought in the United States from 1861 to 1865. The Union faced secessionists in eleven Southern states grouped together as the Confederate States of America, the Union won the war, which remains the bloodiest in U. S. history. Among the 34 U. S. states in February 1861, War broke out in April 1861 when Confederates attacked the U. S. fortress of Fort Sumter. The Confederacy grew to eleven states, it claimed two more states, the Indian Territory, and the southern portions of the western territories of Arizona. The Confederacy was never recognized by the United States government nor by any foreign country. The states that remained loyal, including border states where slavery was legal, were known as the Union or the North, the war ended with the surrender of all the Confederate armies and the dissolution of the Confederate government in the spring of 1865. The war had its origin in the issue of slavery. The Confederacy collapsed and 4 million slaves were freed, but before his inauguration, seven slave states with cotton-based economies formed the Confederacy. The first six to declare secession had the highest proportions of slaves in their populations, the first seven with state legislatures to resolve for secession included split majorities for unionists Douglas and Bell in Georgia with 51% and Louisiana with 55%. Alabama had voted 46% for those unionists, Mississippi with 40%, Florida with 38%, Texas with 25%, of these, only Texas held a referendum on secession. Eight remaining slave states continued to reject calls for secession, outgoing Democratic President James Buchanan and the incoming Republicans rejected secession as illegal. Lincolns March 4,1861 inaugural address declared that his administration would not initiate a civil war, speaking directly to the Southern States, he reaffirmed, I have no purpose, directly or indirectly to interfere with the institution of slavery in the United States where it exists. I believe I have no right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so. After Confederate forces seized numerous federal forts within territory claimed by the Confederacy, efforts at compromise failed, the Confederates assumed that European countries were so dependent on King Cotton that they would intervene, but none did, and none recognized the new Confederate States of America. Hostilities began on April 12,1861, when Confederate forces fired upon Fort Sumter, while in the Western Theater the Union made significant permanent gains, in the Eastern Theater, the battle was inconclusive in 1861–62. The autumn 1862 Confederate campaigns into Maryland and Kentucky failed, dissuading British intervention, Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which made ending slavery a war goal. To the west, by summer 1862 the Union destroyed the Confederate river navy, then much of their western armies, the 1863 Union siege of Vicksburg split the Confederacy in two at the Mississippi River. In 1863, Robert E. Lees Confederate incursion north ended at the Battle of Gettysburg, Western successes led to Ulysses S. Grants command of all Union armies in 1864
6.
Pancho Villa Expedition
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The Pancho Villa Expedition—now known officially in the United States as the Mexican Expedition but originally referred to as the Punitive Expedition, U. S. The expedition was launched in retaliation for Villas attack on the town of Columbus, New Mexico, the declared objective of the expedition by the Wilson administration was the capture of Villa. The Constitutionalist forces used arms at the town of Parral to resist passage of a U. S. Army column, the U. S. mission was changed to prevent further attacks on it by Mexican troops and to plan for war in the eventuality it broke out. When war was averted diplomatically, the expedition remained in Mexico until February 1917 to encourage Carranzas government to pursue Villa, feeling betrayed, Villa began attacking U. S. nationals and their property in northern Mexico. On November 26,1915, Villa sent a force to attack the city of Nogales and in the course of the ensuing battle, engaged with American forces before withdrawing. On January 11,1916, sixteen American employees of the American Smelting and Refining Company were removed from a train near Santa Isabel, Chihuahua, brigadier General John J. Raids were so commonplace, however, that the rumor was not seen as credible. Ten civilians and eight soldiers were killed in the attack, the raiders burned the town, stole horses and mules, and seized machine guns, ammunition and merchandise, before fleeing back to Mexico. However, Villas soldiers had suffered losses, with at least sixty-seven dead. Many of the casualties were inflicted when the machine gun troop of the 13th Cavalry led by 2nd Lt. John P, about thirteen of Villas wounded later died of their wounds, and five wounded Villistas taken prisoner by the Americans were tried and hanged for murder. Local lore in Columbus holds that the attack may have been caused by a merchant in Columbus who supplied Villa with arms and ammunition. Villa is said to have several thousand dollars in cash for the weapons. The next day, acting on the recommendations of the commanders of his cavalry regiments and this can and will be done in entirely friendly aid to the constituted authorities in Mexico and with scrupulous respect for the sovereignty of that Republic. The 2nd Provisional Cavalry Brigade reached Colonia Dublán after dark on March 17, the entire squadron flew to the advanced camp at Colonia Dublán on March 19–20, losing two aircraft in the process. Pershing immediately sent the 7th Cavalry south just after midnight on March 18 to begin the pursuit, persistent winter weather through early April, particularly bitterly cold nights at high altitude, made both pursuit and logistics more difficult. An additional regiment of cavalry and two of infantry were added to the expedition in late April, bringing its size to 4,800 men. This was the first use of convoys in a U. S. military operation. His headquarters advanced as far as the 1st Aero Squadrons field at Satevó, southeast of Chihuahua City, before falling back at the end of April. Villa had a head start on the pursuit, all but ensuring that his forces would successfully break up into smaller bands
7.
World War I
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World War I, also known as the First World War, the Great War, or the War to End All Wars, was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilised in one of the largest wars in history and it was one of the deadliest conflicts in history, and paved the way for major political changes, including revolutions in many of the nations involved. The war drew in all the worlds great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances, the Allies versus the Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary. These alliances were reorganised and expanded as more nations entered the war, Italy, Japan, the trigger for the war was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, by Yugoslav nationalist Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. This set off a crisis when Austria-Hungary delivered an ultimatum to the Kingdom of Serbia. Within weeks, the powers were at war and the conflict soon spread around the world. On 25 July Russia began mobilisation and on 28 July, the Austro-Hungarians declared war on Serbia, Germany presented an ultimatum to Russia to demobilise, and when this was refused, declared war on Russia on 1 August. Germany then invaded neutral Belgium and Luxembourg before moving towards France, after the German march on Paris was halted, what became known as the Western Front settled into a battle of attrition, with a trench line that changed little until 1917. On the Eastern Front, the Russian army was successful against the Austro-Hungarians, in November 1914, the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers, opening fronts in the Caucasus, Mesopotamia and the Sinai. In 1915, Italy joined the Allies and Bulgaria joined the Central Powers, Romania joined the Allies in 1916, after a stunning German offensive along the Western Front in the spring of 1918, the Allies rallied and drove back the Germans in a series of successful offensives. By the end of the war or soon after, the German Empire, Russian Empire, Austro-Hungarian Empire, national borders were redrawn, with several independent nations restored or created, and Germanys colonies were parceled out among the victors. During the Paris Peace Conference of 1919, the Big Four imposed their terms in a series of treaties, the League of Nations was formed with the aim of preventing any repetition of such a conflict. This effort failed, and economic depression, renewed nationalism, weakened successor states, and feelings of humiliation eventually contributed to World War II. From the time of its start until the approach of World War II, at the time, it was also sometimes called the war to end war or the war to end all wars due to its then-unparalleled scale and devastation. In Canada, Macleans magazine in October 1914 wrote, Some wars name themselves, during the interwar period, the war was most often called the World War and the Great War in English-speaking countries. Will become the first world war in the sense of the word. These began in 1815, with the Holy Alliance between Prussia, Russia, and Austria, when Germany was united in 1871, Prussia became part of the new German nation. Soon after, in October 1873, German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck negotiated the League of the Three Emperors between the monarchs of Austria-Hungary, Russia and Germany
8.
World War II
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World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, although related conflicts began earlier. It involved the vast majority of the worlds countries—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing alliances, the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. Marked by mass deaths of civilians, including the Holocaust and the bombing of industrial and population centres. These made World War II the deadliest conflict in human history, from late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or controlled much of continental Europe, and formed the Axis alliance with Italy and Japan. Under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union partitioned and annexed territories of their European neighbours, Poland, Finland, Romania and the Baltic states. In December 1941, Japan attacked the United States and European colonies in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the Western Pacific. The Axis advance halted in 1942 when Japan lost the critical Battle of Midway, near Hawaii, in 1944, the Western Allies invaded German-occupied France, while the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Germany and its allies. During 1944 and 1945 the Japanese suffered major reverses in mainland Asia in South Central China and Burma, while the Allies crippled the Japanese Navy, thus ended the war in Asia, cementing the total victory of the Allies. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world, the United Nations was established to foster international co-operation and prevent future conflicts. The victorious great powers—the United States, the Soviet Union, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years. Meanwhile, the influence of European great powers waned, while the decolonisation of Asia, most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in Europe, emerged as an effort to end pre-war enmities, the start of the war in Europe is generally held to be 1 September 1939, beginning with the German invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later. The dates for the beginning of war in the Pacific include the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War on 7 July 1937, or even the Japanese invasion of Manchuria on 19 September 1931. Others follow the British historian A. J. P. Taylor, who held that the Sino-Japanese War and war in Europe and its colonies occurred simultaneously and this article uses the conventional dating. Other starting dates sometimes used for World War II include the Italian invasion of Abyssinia on 3 October 1935. The British historian Antony Beevor views the beginning of World War II as the Battles of Khalkhin Gol fought between Japan and the forces of Mongolia and the Soviet Union from May to September 1939, the exact date of the wars end is also not universally agreed upon. It was generally accepted at the time that the war ended with the armistice of 14 August 1945, rather than the formal surrender of Japan
9.
Korean War
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The Korean War began when North Korea invaded South Korea. The United Nations, with the United States as the principal force, China came to the aid of North Korea, and the Soviet Union gave some assistance. Korea was ruled by Japan from 1910 until the days of World War II. In August 1945, the Soviet Union declared war on Japan, as a result of an agreement with the United States, U. S. forces subsequently moved into the south. By 1948, as a product of the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States, Korea was split into two regions, with separate governments, both governments claimed to be the legitimate government of all of Korea, and neither side accepted the border as permanent. The conflict escalated into open warfare when North Korean forces—supported by the Soviet Union, on that day, the United Nations Security Council recognized this North Korean act as invasion and called for an immediate ceasefire. On 27 June, the Security Council adopted S/RES/83, Complaint of aggression upon the Republic of Korea and decided the formation, twenty-one countries of the United Nations eventually contributed to the UN force, with the United States providing 88% of the UNs military personnel. After the first two months of war, South Korean forces were on the point of defeat, forced back to the Pusan Perimeter, in September 1950, an amphibious UN counter-offensive was launched at Inchon, and cut off many North Korean troops. Those who escaped envelopment and capture were rapidly forced back north all the way to the border with China at the Yalu River, at this point, in October 1950, Chinese forces crossed the Yalu and entered the war. Chinese intervention triggered a retreat of UN forces which continued until mid-1951, after these reversals of fortune, which saw Seoul change hands four times, the last two years of fighting became a war of attrition, with the front line close to the 38th parallel. The war in the air, however, was never a stalemate, North Korea was subject to a massive bombing campaign. Jet fighters confronted each other in combat for the first time in history. The fighting ended on 27 July 1953, when an armistice was signed, the agreement created the Korean Demilitarized Zone to separate North and South Korea, and allowed the return of prisoners. However, no treaty has been signed, and the two Koreas are technically still at war. Periodic clashes, many of which are deadly, continue to the present, in the U. S. the war was initially described by President Harry S. Truman as a police action as it was an undeclared military action, conducted under the auspices of the United Nations. In South Korea, the war is referred to as 625 or the 6–2–5 Upheaval. In North Korea, the war is referred to as the Fatherland Liberation War or alternatively the Chosǒn War. In China, the war is called the War to Resist U. S
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Frank Tompkins
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Colonel Frank Tompkins was an officer in the United States Army. Tompkins served in conflicts including the Spanish–American War in Cuba, the Philippine–American War, the Mexican Border War. Recommended by General John J. Pershing for the Medal of Honor, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his leadership during the 1916 Battle of Columbus, New Mexico. Educated at private schools in St. Paul Minnesota and Chicago, Illinois, Tompkins graduated from Shattuck Military Academy and Bradens Preparatory School at Cornwall-on-Hudson, New York. On April 23,1890 he was awarded the Silver Lifesaving Medal for rescuing a sailor from drowning in the Narrows off Governors Island in New York City on July 27,1889. Three months later he accepted a second lieutenants position with the 7th Cavalry. In 1897 he graduated from the Infantry and Cavalry School at Fort Leavenworth, Tompkins accompanied the regiment to its new station at Fort Des Moines, Iowa. From October 1906 to March 1909 his unit served in Cuba as part of the Army of Pacification, in September 1910 Tompkins became a professor of military science in tactics at Norwich University, Vermont. He served three tours as its commandant of cadets, from 1910–1913, 1916–1917, and 1919–1923, during the Punitive Expedition that ensued, Tompkins led several provisional squadrons in flying columns deep into Mexico in search of Villa. He was wounded twice during the campaign, in the knee during the Villa raid on Columbus and in the chest and he returned to Norwich in September 1916 for his second tour as commandant while recuperating from his wounds. In 1918 Tompkins received the Distinguished Service Medal for valor at Columbus, the award was upgraded in 1934 to the Distinguished Service Cross, a decoration second only to the Medal of Honor. After the United States entered World War I, Tompkins became a lieutenant colonel in May 1917, Tompkins asked Pershing, now commanding the AEF, for transfer to a combat division and was assigned command of the 110th Infantry of the 28th Division on the Vesle River. He reported August 12 and led the 110th during the Oise-Aisne Campaign until September 7, Tompkins was hospitalized near Paris until November and found unfit for further front line duty. Tompkins returned to the United States in December 1918, stationed at Fort Myer, Virginia, until March 1919, when he again became a professor and commandant of cadets at Norwich. He was retired on July 1,1920, with a disability in a reorganization of the army but was immediately recalled to duty until 1923 to finish his tour at Norwich. He then retired again but remained affiliated with Norwich as a trustee until his death in 1954 at the age of eighty-six and he is buried in the Mount Hope Cemetery in Northfield, Vermont. Tompkins came from a military family. The elder Tompkins later became Assistant Quartermaster General of the United States Army with the rank of colonel and his great-great-uncle, Daniel D. Tompkins, was the sixth Vice President of the United States and, earlier, the Governor of New York
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109th Infantry Regiment (United States)
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The 109th Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment of the United States Army. Its legacy unit, 1st Battalion, 109th Infantry, is part of the 55th Heavy Brigade Combat Team, assigned to the 28th Infantry Division. Currently, the 1st Battalion/109th Infantry is a component unit of the 55th Heavy Brigade Combat Team of the 28th Infantry Division, eddie Slovik, a member of this regiment was the only American soldier executed for desertion in the 20th century. Attached below the shield a Gold scroll inscribed CIVES ARMA FERANT in Blue letters, symbolism The shield is blue for Infantry. Background The distinctive unit insignia was approved on 11 June 1929 and it was amended to correct the description on 6 July 1929. Shield Azure, in fess a sheathed Roman sword, point to base, shield The shield is blue for Infantry. Crest The crest is that of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard, the coat of arms was approved on 2 July 1929. One soldier, Technical Sergeant Francis J. Clark of Company K, Infantry Regiments This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Army Institute of Heraldry document 109th Infantry. This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Army Center of Military History
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111th Infantry Regiment (United States)
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The 111th Infantry Regiment, was originally the Pennsylvania Militia that fought in the American Revolution, composed of civilian males from the citizenry of Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Militia often fought in conjunction with General Washington and the Continental Army along the Delaware River, the regiment, founded as the Associators by Benjamin Franklin in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on 21 November 1747, is the oldest regiment in Pennsylvania. In February 1942, the 111th Regiment was re-formed as a combat team in the Army Ground Forces Reserve to guard militarily important facilities in the Chesapeake Bay area. From this assignment, it was transferred to the Pacific Theater in late 1943, throughout the rest of the war, the companies of the 111th would be used as replacement or additional units in combat conditions. The Third Battalion of the 111th was used for mopping up operations on Makin Atoll in the Gilbert Islands in December 1943, the 111th B Company was assigned to the Seventh Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop of the Seventh Division for the assault on Kwajalein Island in February 1944. In other actions, I Company of the 111th was involved in assaulting and capturing Ujeland Atoll in the Marshall Islands in April 1944. And in September 1944, both the D and H Companies were assigned to the 81st Division for an attack on Peleliu, later, in February 1945, the entire 111th returned to Peleliu Island for mopping-up operations. When the war ended in September 1945, the 111th had added three battle streamers, Central Pacific, Eastern Mandate and Western Pacific, for a total of 38 on its flag, the 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry Regiment was awarded the Meritorious Unit Commendation - Operation Iraqi Freedom. 1747 Constituted 7 December 1747 by official recognition of the Associators,1747 Organized 29 December 1747 as Associated Regiment of Foot of Philadelphia. 1775 Reorganized as Associates of the City and Liberties of Philadelphia,1777 Reorganized as the Philadelphia Brigade of Militia, commanded by Brigadier General John Cadwalader. 1793 Reorganized 11 April 1793 as Volunteer Infantry Elements of 1st Brigade,1814 Volunteer Infantry Companies of 1st Brigade reorganized as 1st Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, commanded by Colonel Clement C. Biddle, entered federal service 24 August 1814 and relieved 4 January 1815,1816 Reorganized 19 March 1816 as Volunteer Infantry Elements of 1st Division. 1846 Federal service 15 December 1846 to 27 July 1847 in War with Mexico,1858 Reorganized as 1st Infantry Regiment, 1st Division. 1861 Regiment consisted of the companies, State Fencibles Infantry Corps, Washington Blues, Minute Men of 76, National Grays, Garde Lafayette. Mustered into federal service 24 April 1861 as 18th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment,1870 Pennsylvania Militia redesignated Pennsylvania National Guard by Act of Legislature 1870. 1866 Perpetuated 1866-1878 by Weccacoe Legion and State Fencibles Infantry Corps,1879 Weccacoe Legion expanded and redesignated 31 July 1879 as 3rd Regiment Infantry, Pennsylvania National Guard. 1898 Mustered into federal service 9 May 1898 as 3rd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment, Mustered out 22 October 1898 at Philadelphia. 1916 3rd Infantry Regiment mustered into federal service 1 July 1916 for Mexican Border service,1917 Called into federal service 25 March 1917 and mustered in 28 March 1917 at Philadelphia
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28th Infantry Division (United States)
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The 28th Infantry Division is a unit of the Army National Guard and is the oldest division-sized unit in the armed forces of the United States. Some of the units of the division can trace their lineage to Benjamin Franklins battalion, the division was officially established in 1879 and was later redesignated as the 28th Division in 1917, after the entry of America into the First World War. It is today part of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard, Maryland Army National Guard, Ohio Army National Guard and it was originally nicknamed the Keystone Division, as it was formed from units of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard, Pennsylvania being known as the Keystone State. During World War II, it acquired the nickname the Bloody Bucket division by German forces due to its red insignia, but today the 28th Infantry Division goes by the name given to it by General Pershing during World War I, Iron Division. The 28th is the first Army National Guard division to field the Stryker infantry fighting vehicle, the 28th is also one of the most decorated infantry divisions in the United States Army. On 12 March 1879, Governor Henry Hoyt signed General Order Number One appointing Maj. Gen. John F. Hartranft as the first division commander of the National Guard of Pennsylvania, from 11–18 August 1894, Camp Samuel W. Crawford was the Division Encampment at Gettysburg. The division was mustered into service for the Spanish–American War in 1898, Pennsylvania was initially levied 10,800 men, in ten infantry regiments and four artillery batteries. However, only the 4th, 10th, and 16th Regiments, the 10th Regiment was then sent to the Philippines, being ordered home on 30 June 1899. The division was called up to respond to disturbances in 1877 and 1900. In 1914 the division was designated the 7th Division as part of a reorganization of the National Guard. On 29 June 1916 the 7th Division was mustered into service at Mount Gretna and deployed to El Paso, Texas, there was also a regiment of cavalry and one of artillery, plus two companies of signals troops and medical units. The camp outside El Paso gained the title Camp Stewart after the Adjutant General, on 19 September, one brigade was sent home. On 14 November, the 1st Artillery left for home, the 18th Infantry left for Pennsylvania on 18 December, and it appears that most of the division was Mustered out of service 23 February 1917 at Philadelphia. The remnant left on the border included the 8th and 13th Regiments and they were released from active service in March 1917. However, the process for World War I was underway as these units left the border. The 13th Regiment began its home from Texas on 21 March 1917. The division moved to Camp Hancock, Ga. in April 1917, from May to 11 October 1917, the division was reorganized into the two-brigade, four regiment scheme, and thus became the 28th Division. It thus comprised the 55th Infantry Brigade and the 56th Infantry Brigade, other units included the 107th, 108th, 109th and 229th Field Artillery Battalions and the 103rd Engineer Combat Battalion
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55th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade (United States)
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The 55th Heavy Brigade Combat Team STRIKE BRIGADE is a brigade of the United States Army, maintained by the Pennsylvania Army National Guard. It is a formation of the U. S. Army National Guard’s 28th Infantry Division. Its headquarters is in Scranton, PA, the headquarters was located in the Watres Armory from 1900-2012 until it was relocated to a newly built Armed Forces Reserve Center near the borough of Throop. During the move, the Brigade Commander COL Konzman discovered there was a capsule in a cornerstone of the facility and had it removed. The documents contained in the capsule were protected and are now kept at the new facility, pennsylvanias 7th Division moved to Camp Hancock, Georgia, in April 1917, and was there when the entire division was federalized on 5 August 1917. From May to 11 October 1917, the division was reorganized into the two-brigade, four regiment scheme and it thus comprised the 55th Infantry Brigade and the 56th Infantry Brigade. The brigade was inactivated in 1941-42, and reactivated after the Second World War, a news article dated 24 April 2014 stated the 55th BCT is under consideration for inactivation by late 2016. The history of the 55th HBCT headquarters began in July 1898 with the organization of Company K, in August,1899 the company was re-designated as Company K, 13th Pennsylvania Infantry. In September,1916 Company K was activated for service on the Mexico-United States border during the Pancho Villa Expedition, Company K was activated again for federal service in August,1917. In October,1917 Company K, 13th Pennsylvania was combined with Company K, 1st Pennsylvania Infantry, the 109th Infantry Regiment fought in France during World War I as part of the 28th Infantry Division, and was demobilized in May,1919. In July,1920 the unit was reorganized as Company K, 13th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment, in February,1941 the 109th Infantry was activated for service in World War II. The regiment fought in the European Theater as part of the 28th Infantry Division, the 109th Infantry was activated with the 28th Infantry Division during the Korean War, and served in West Germany from 1950 until returning home in 1954. In June,1959 Company B was reorganized and designated Company B, 1st Battle Group, Company B was re-designated Headquarters, 3rd Brigade, 28th Infantry Division in April,1963. In February 1968 3rd Brigade was renamed the 55th Brigade and it moved from the historic Watres Armory on Adams Avenue in 2012. The 55th Brigade has a strength of about 3,600 soldiers, the Brigades units are concentrated in Northeastern Pennsylvania. 55th Brigade Soldiers and units took part in Operation Joint Forge in Bosnia-Herzegovina in 2002 and 2003, Soldiers from the 55th Brigade have participated in operations since the September 11,2001 terrorist attacks, both as individuals and as members of units. These activations include Operations Noble Eagle, Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, while Task Force Keystone was on duty, another 1,100 soldiers from the 28th Division served as the core of the American peacekeeping presence in Bosnia. 3rd Battalion, 103rd Armor served in Afghanistan in 2008, and was awarded the Meritorious Unit Commendation, in 2005 and 2006 the 55th Brigade converted to a heavy brigade combat team as part of the Army’s transition to modular brigades
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Washington, Pennsylvania
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Washington is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States, within the Pittsburgh, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area in the southwestern part of the state. The population was 13,663 at the 2010 census, according to the United States Census Bureau, Washington has a total area of 3.3 square miles, all land. Delaware Indian chief Tangooqua, commonly known as Catfish, had a camp on a branch of Chartiers Creek, the French labeled the area Wissameking, meaning catfish place, as early as 1757. The area of Washington was settled by immigrants from Scotland. It was first settled by colonists around 1768, the Pennsylvania General Assembly passed an act on March 28,1781, erecting the County of Washington and naming Catfish Camp as the place for holding the first election. This was the first county in the U. S. to be named in honor of General George Washington, David Hoge laid out a plan of lots immediately after the legislatures action. There have long been rumors among locals that the town was named “Washington” because George Washington spent the night in the region once and this is not true however, Washington had never been to the area. The original plot dedicated a tract of ground to the people for recreational purposes. A lot was given for a courthouse where the current building now stands, and Lots 43 and 102, according to the plan, were presented by Hoge to His Excellency, General Washington, and Mrs. Washington. Washington, Pennsylvania, was the center for the Whiskey Rebellion of 1791, the rebellion was centered on a tax being imposed on whiskey distillation in the region. The house of David Bradford, one of the leaders of the rebellion, is now a devoted to the Whiskey Rebellion. The town was incorporated as a borough on February 13,1810, in August 1875, construction began of the 3 ft Waynesburg and Washington Railroad, conceived by John Day in 1874 and chartered in 1875. Passenger services ended in 1929, conversion to standard gauge followed in 1944, freight services ended in 1976, although part of the line still survives for access to a coal mine. The discovery of oil and natural gas among the Washington oil field caused a period from the 1800s to the early 1900s. James B. Wilson chartered the Washington Electric Street Railways in 1889 with construction beginning in November 1890, the first line was built from the Waynesburg and Washington Narrow Gauge station to Wilson Orchard, just north of the present day site of the Washington Hospital. In 1903 the Washington and Canonsburg Railway Company linked the two towns with a trolley line, the company was bought by the Philadelphia Company in 1906, later becoming part of the Pittsburgh Railway Company, linking through to Pittsburgh as part of their interurban service in 1909. The line closed on August 29,1953, a short section of the line and a number of trolley cars are preserved at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum north of the city. As of the census of 2010, there were 13,663 people residing in the city, the population density was 4,140.3 people per square mile
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Camp Shelby
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Camp Shelby is a military post whose North Gate is located at the southern boundary of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, on United States Highway 49. It is the largest state-owned training site in the nation, during wartime, the camps mission is to serve as a major independent mobilization station of the United States Army Forces Command. This is the normal Annual Training location for National Guard and Reserve units located in Mississippi, Alabama, however, units from across the country use its assets to support a variety of missions. The 2nd Battalion, 114th Field Artillery conducts its training and has the bulk of its combat equipment stored in the Mobilization. Camp Shelby Joint Forces Training Center, encompassing over 525 square kilometers, is located in portions of Perry and Forrest Counties, the training site consists of a mix of State, Department of Defense, and U. S. Forest Service lands in the DeSoto National Forest. Encompassing more than 134,820 acres, Camp Shelby, Mississippi is the largest state-owned and operated field training center in the United States and it is a training ground for the Abrams M1 Tank, Paladin Howitzers and home to the 3rd Brigade 87th Division Training Support. Camp Shelby serves as a site for National Guardsmen and Reservists from throughout the country hosting as many as 100,000 personnel annually. Camp Shelby was established in 1917, the post was named in honor of Isaac Shelby, Indian fighter, Revolutionary War hero and 1st Governor of Kentucky, by the first troops to train here, the 38th Division. In 1934, the State of Mississippi acquired the site for use as a camp by the National Guard. Because of Camp Shelbys natural advantages of climate, terrain and location, some of the divisions that have trained in Mississippi include the 31st, 37th, 38th, 43rd, 63rd, 65th, 69th, 85th, 94th, and the 99th Divisions. The famous Japanese-American 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the 100th Battalion trained here in preparation for World War II, womens Army Corps units also trained here. The post contained a large convalescent hospital and had a prisoner of war camp which housed soldiers of the famous German Afrika Corps, Camp Shelby is also home to the Mississippi Armed Forces Museum. The history of Camp Shelby is significant part of the museums collection, the post closed shortly after the end of World War II. During the Korean War, Camp Shelby was established as an emergency railhead facility, in the summer of 1954, non-divisional National Guard units trained at Camp Shelby and in 1956, it was designated a permanent training site by Continental Army Command. Over 5,000 troops were processed through Camp Shelby during Desert Storm operations, the 199th Light Infantry Brigade trained at Camp Shelby from September to November 1966 in preparation for deployment to Vietnam from Fort Benning Georgia. The 199th was the combat unit to train at Camp Shelby during the Vietnam War. Camp Shelby was federalized as a FORSCOM Mobilization Center on June 6,2004, U. S. Navy Seabee units homeported or mobilized from the Naval Construction Battalion Center in Gulfport, Mississippi utilize Camp Shelby as the site for their Field Training Exercises. Camp Shelby is also home to the Youth Challenge Academy, in mid-2007, the Air National Guard opened a new combat training runway at Camp Shelby
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United States Army Center of Military History
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The United States Army Center of Military History is a directorate within the Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Army. The center is responsible for the use of history and military records throughout the United States Army. Traditionally, this mission has meant recording the history of the army in both peace and war, while advising the army staff on historical matters. CMH is the organization leading the Army Historical Program. The center traces its lineage back to historians under the Secretary of War who compiled the Official Records of the Rebellion, a similar work on World War I was prepared by the Historical Section of the Army War College. They began publication of the United States Army in World War II series, since then, the Center has produced detailed series on the Armys role in the Korean and Vietnam Wars and has begun a series on the U. S. Army in the Cold War. These works are supplemented by monographs and other publications on a mix of topics and it has expanded its role in the areas of military history education, the management of the armys museum system, and the introduction of automated data-retrieval systems. The centers work with army schools ensures that the study of history is a part of the training of officers, much of this educational work is performed at field historical offices and in army museums. Under the direction of the chief of military history and his principal adviser and those works under way and projected are described in the Army Historical Program, an annual report to the Chief of Staff on the Army’s historical activities. All center publications are listed in the catalog Publications of the United States Army Center of Military History, CMH also serves as a clearinghouse for the oral history programs in the army at all levels of command. It also conducts and preserves its own oral history collections, including those from the Vietnam War, Desert Storm, in addition, the center’s end-of-tour interviews within the Army Secretariat and Staff provide a basis for its annual histories of the Department of the Army. As tangible representations of the mission, military artifacts and art enhance the soldier’s understanding of the profession of arms. CMH manages a system of more than 120 army museums and their holdings, current projects include the establishment of a National Army Museum at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, and a complementary Army Heritage and Educational Center at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania. The Chief of Military History is responsible for ensuring the use of military history in the teaching of strategy, tactics, logistics. This mission includes a requirement that military leaders at all levels be aware of the value of history in advancing military professionalism, in this effort, the chief of military history is assisted by a historical advisory committee that includes leading academic historians and representatives of the army school system. Staff rides enable military leaders to retrace the course of a battle on the ground, as one of the army’s major teaching devices, staff rides are particularly dependent on a careful knowledge of military history. Center historians lead rides directed by the Secretary of the Army and it administers the army’s Command History Program, to provide historical support to army organizations worldwide. To stimulate interest in history in the army and the nation
United States
