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.
California Army National Guard
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The California Army National Guard is composed of 18,450 soldiers. Nationwide, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the US Armys available combat forces, National coordination of various state National Guard units are maintained through the National Guard Bureau. California Army National Guard units are trained and equipped as part of the United States Army, the same enlisted and officer ranks and insignia are used and National Guardsmen are eligible to receive all United States military awards. The California Army National Guard also bestows a number of awards for local services rendered in or to the state of California. Prior to that time, the California Army Guard originated from the militia established by the Constitution of California in 1849. On April 4,1850, the first California Legislature in San Jose adopted enabling legislation formally establishing a militia of volunteer or independent companies. The law required every free, white, able-bodied male citizen of the State to perform military duty or to pay a $2 fee for nonperformance of this duty. Such payment exempted the person from duty except in case of war, insurrection, invasion, assistance to the sheriff, or a requisition of the militia. It provided that a judge of the court of a county should cause a suitable person to open a book. After required notice, the volunteers were to be organized, and their officers, the volunteer or independent companies were to be armed and equipped as in the Army of the United States. The units were to adopt a constitution and by-laws as well as rules and regulations for the government of its personnel and determination of fines and penalties to enforce them. The first unit, known as the First California Guard, was formed from volunteers in San Francisco, California under Captain Henry Morris Naglee on July 27,1849 and it then was the first organized under state authority. During 1850, Governor Burnett called out the two times. ”The second instance occurred in October 1850, when Governor Burnett ordered the sheriff of El Dorado County to muster 200 men. The commanders were instructed to “proceed to punish the Indians engaged in the attacks in the vicinity of Ringgold. Also two companies of Rangers were organized in San Francisco from members of the three companies that existed in that city then, First California Guard, Washington Guard. However, by the transportation to San Diego was arranged the revolt had been suppressed. In 1853, a company of California State Rangers was organized for the purpose of capturing the famous bandit Joaquin Murietta, at the same time Los Angeles County formed two companies, Los Angeles Rangers and the Los Angeles Guard. In 1854 the Monte Rangers were formed, during 1855 in San Bernardino County the San Bernardino Rough and Ready Cavalry was formed, replaced in 1856 by the San Bernardino Rangers
3.
Armour
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Personal armour is used to protect soldiers and war animals. Vehicle armour is used on warships and armoured fighting vehicles, a second use of the term armour describes armoured forces, armoured weapons, and their role in combat. After the evolution of armoured warfare, mechanised infantry and their weapons came to be referred to collectively as armour, the word armour began to appear in the Middle Ages as a derivative of Old French. It is dated from 1297 as a mail, defensive covering worn in combat, the word originates from the Old French armure, itself derived from the Latin armatura meaning arms and/or equipment, with the root armare meaning arms or gear. Armour has been used throughout recorded history and it has been made from a variety of materials, beginning with rudimentary leather protection and evolving through mail and metal plate into todays modern composites. For much of history the manufacture of metal personal armour has dominated the technology. Its production was influential in the revolution, and furthered commercial development of metallurgy. Armour was the single most influential factor in the development of firearms, significant factors in the development of armour include the economic and technological necessities of its production. For instance, plate armour first appeared in Medieval Europe when water-powered trip hammers made the formation of plates faster and cheaper, also, modern militaries usually do not equip their forces with the best armour available because it would be prohibitively expensive. The samurai warriors of feudal Japan utilised many types of armour for hundreds of years up to the 19th century, Japanese lamellar armour passed through Korea and reached Japan around the 5th century. These early Japanese lamellar armours took the form of a sleeveless jacket, armour did not always cover all of the body, sometimes no more than a helmet and leg plates were worn. The rest of the body was protected by means of a large shield. Examples of armies equipping their troops in this fashion were the Aztecs, in East Asia many types of armour were commonly used at different times by various cultures including, scale armour, lamellar armour, laminar armour, plated mail, mail, plate armour and brigandine. Around the dynastic Tang, Song, and early Ming Period, cuirasses and plates were also used, the Chinese, during that time used partial plates for important body parts instead of covering their whole body since too much plate armour hinders their martial arts movement. The other body parts were covered in cloth, leather, lamellar, in pre-Qin dynasty times, leather armour was made out of various animals, with more exotic ones such as the rhinoceros. Mail, sometimes called chainmail, made of interlocking iron rings is believed to have first appeared some time after 300 BC and its invention is credited to the Celts, the Romans were thought to have adopted their design. Gradually, small plates or discs of iron were added to the mail to protect vulnerable areas. Hardened leather and splinted construction were used for arm and leg pieces, the coat of plates was developed, an armour made of large plates sewn inside a textile or leather coat
4.
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
5.
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
6.
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
7.
Iraq War
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The Iraq War was a protracted armed conflict that began in 2003 with the invasion of Iraq by a United States-led coalition that toppled the government of Saddam Hussein. The conflict continued for much of the decade as an insurgency emerged to oppose the occupying forces. An estimated 151,000 to 600,000 or more Iraqis were killed in the first 3–4 years of conflict and it became re-involved in 2014 at the head of a new coalition, the insurgency and many dimensions of the civil armed conflict continue. The invasion began on 20 March 2003, with the U. S. joined by the United Kingdom and several allies, launching a shock. Iraqi forces were overwhelmed as U. S. forces swept through the country. The invasion led to the collapse of the Baathist government, President Hussein was captured during Operation Red Dawn in December of that same year, the United States responded with a troop surge in 2007. The winding down of U. S. involvement in Iraq accelerated under President Barack Obama, the U. S. formally withdrew all combat troops from Iraq by December 2011. Select U. S. officials accused Saddam of harboring and supporting al-Qaeda, while others cited the desire to end a repressive dictatorship, after the invasion, no substantial evidence was found to verify the initial claims about WMDs. The rationale and misrepresentation of pre-war intelligence faced heavy criticism within the U. S. in the aftermath of the invasion, Iraq held multi-party elections in 2005. Nouri al-Maliki became Prime Minister in 2006 and remained in office until 2014, the al-Maliki government enacted policies that were widely seen as having the effect of alienating the countrys Sunni minority and worsening sectarian tensions. The Iraq War caused hundreds of thousands of civilian, and thousands of military casualties, the majority of casualties occurred as a result of the insurgency and civil conflicts between 2004 and 2007. A1990 Frontline report on The arming of Iraq said, Officially, most Western nations participated in an arms embargo against Iraq during the 1980s. Western companies, primarily in Germany and Great Britain, but also in the United States, sold Iraq the key technology for its chemical, missile, any Western governments seemed remarkably indifferent, if not enthusiastic, about those deals. N Washington, the government consistently followed a policy which allowed and perhaps encouraged the growth of Saddam Husseins arsenal. The Western arming of Iraq took place in the context of the Iran-Iraq War, prior to September 2002, the CIA was the George W. Bush administrations main provider of intelligence on Iraq. The agency was out to disprove linkage between Iraq and terrorism the Pentagon adviser told me, the U. N. had prohibited Iraq from developing or possessing such weapons after the Gulf War and required Iraq to permit inspections confirming compliance. This was confirmed by The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, during 2002, Bush repeatedly warned of military action against Iraq unless inspections were allowed to progress unfettered. In accordance with U. N. Security Council Resolution 1441, Iraq agreed to new inspections under United Nations Monitoring, as part of its weapons inspection obligations, Iraq was required to supply a full declaration of its current weapons capabilities and manufacturing
8.
Presidential Unit Citation (United States)
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The unit with the most Presidential Unit Citations is the USS Parche with 9 citations. The Army citation was established by Executive Order 9075 on 26 February 1942, superseded by Executive Order 9396 on Dec.2,1943, as with other Army unit citations, the PUC is in a larger frame than other ribbons, and is worn above the right pocket. All members of the unit may wear the decoration, whether or not they participated in the acts for which the unit was cited. Only those assigned to the unit at the time of the action cited may wear the decoration as a permanent award, for both the Army and Air Force, the emblem is a solid blue ribbon enclosed in a gold frame. The Air Force PUC was adopted from the Army Distinguished Unit Citation after the Air Force became a military branch in 1947. By Executive Order 10694, dated Jan,10,1957 the Air Force redesignated the Distinguished Unit Citation as the Presidential Unit Citation. The Air Force PUC is the color and design as the Army PUC but slightly smaller. The Citation is carried on the units colors in the form of a blue streamer,4 ft long and 2.75 in wide. For the Army, only on rare occasions will a larger than battalion qualify for award of this decoration. The Navy citation was established by Executive Order 9050 on 6 February 1942, the Navy version has blue, yellow, and red horizontal stripes, and is the only Navy ribbon having horizontal stripes. These are only worn by persons who meet the criteria at the time it is awarded to the unit, unlike the Army, those who later join the unit do not wear it on a temporary basis. The current decoration is known as the Department of Homeland Security Presidential Unit Citation. A Coast Guard version of the award was awarded to all U. S. Coast Guard and Coast Guard Auxiliary personnel responding to Hurricane Katrina by President George W. Bush for rescue, the United States Public Health Service Presidential Citation was established in 2015. The design was finalized by the Army Institute of Heraldry on 17 August 2015, two units of the Free French Forces were awarded Presidential Unit Citations during World War II. On April 22,1986, the 1st Fighter Group Força Aérea Brasileira was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation for its actions in the Po Valley region of Italy in World War II. The Brazilians, operating in Italy in support of Allied forces, destroyed in one day over 45 vehicles, strafed pontoon bridges on the River Po, eleven missions of 44 sorties were flown destroying nine motor transports and damaging 17. One Belgian-Luxembourgian battalion of the Belgian United Nations Command was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation once for actions during the Battle of the Imjin River, the Colombia Battalion received the citation while attached to the American 21st Infantry Regiment in 1951. One Dutch unit, the Netherlands Detachment United Nations, part of the Regiment Van Heutsz, was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation twice for actions during the Korean War, the first citation was awarded after the battle near Wonju and Hoengson in February 1951
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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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160th Infantry Regiment (United States)
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The 160th Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment of the United States Army. The 1st Battalion, 160th Infantry is an infantry component of the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team. The regiment traces its history to the 7th Infantry Battalion, formed 1885, the regiment was formed during the Spanish–American War in 1898. Its initial training took place at the Presidio of San Francisco and it later served under General John J. Pershing during the Mexican Border Campaign of 1914. During World War I, the regiment participated in the French Meuse-Argonne Offensive in 1918, during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, units of the 160th Regiment along with units of the 307th Infantry Regiment became known as the Lost Battalion. Captain Nelson Holderman, a member of the 160th Regiment, was awarded the Medal of Honor during the Lost Battalion action. The regiments armory, located in Los Angeles, California, hosted the competition at the 1932 Summer Olympics as well as the fencing part of the modern pentathlon. As part of the United States mobilization during World War II, the regiment trained there for over a year as part of the 40th Division before relocating to Fort Lewis, Washington, on 29 April 1942. From there, the regiment went to San Francisco, on 1 September 1942, the regiment trained in jungle warfare there for over a year before being moved forward during January 1944 to the Solomon Islands. From April through December the regiment fought on New Britain Island during the New Britain campaign, the regiment redeployed through New Guinea and they invaded the Japanese-held Philippines on 9 January 1945. The regiment participated in actions in the Philippines Campaign during the rest of the war. It returned to San Francisco on 5 April 1946 and was inactivated the next day, for actions in the Zambales Mountains, Company I was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation. The regiment fought in the Korean War, as part of the United States National Guard, the unit was not mobilized for Vietnam, but engaged in suppressing civil disturbances. During the 1965 Watts Riots in Los Angeles, the 160th Regiment was among the first units deployed and they were also activated during the 1992 Los Angeles riots in the wake of the Rodney King trial. Following the 1994 Northridge earthquake, the regiment provided humanitarian aid, federal recognition concurrently withdrawn from the 223rd Infantry 1st Battalion, 223rd Infantry, reorganized and redesignated on 1 July 1954, as the 223rd Armored Infantry Battalion. Symbolism The shield is blue for Infantry, the red bendlet denotes service during the Spanish War and the green bendlet, Mexican border duty. The angel’s wings represent Los Angeles, the headquarters of the 160th Infantry, the gold engrailed border symbolizes the State of California on the shores of the Pacific Ocean. Background The distinctive unit insignia was approved for the 160th Infantry Regiment on 22 May 1928
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185th Infantry Regiment (United States)
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The 185th Infantry Regiment is a unit of the United States Army made up of soldiers from the California Army National Guard. Only the 1st Battalion of the regiment remains active, the 185ths higher headquarters is the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, headquartered in San Diego. The unit was expanded, reorganized, and redesignated on 21 February 1888 as the 6th Infantry Regiment and it was mustered into federal service on 11 May 1898 at San Francisco as the 6th California Volunteer Infantry, and mustered out on 15 December 1898 at Fort Point, CA. It was reduced and consolidated on 11 May 1907 with the 2nd Infantry Regiment, California National Guard to form the 2nd Infantry Regiment, California National Guard, with headquarters at Sacramento. The unit was called into service on 15 June 1916 for Mexican border service, mustered into federal service on 27 June 1916 at Sacramento. It was called into service on 26 March 1917. In 1930, the coat of arms were approved. The regiment trained there for over a year as part of the 40th Division before relocating to Fort Lewis, from there, the regiment went to San Francisco, California, in August and was shipped to Hawaii the following month. The regiment stayed in Hawaii where it trained in warfare for over a year before being moved forward during January 1944 to the Solomon Islands. From April through December the regiment was employed in combat on New Britain island during the New Britain campaign, then the regiment landed on Manus Island in December 1944 and invaded the Japanese-held Philippine Islands on 9 January 1945. The regiment was relieved on 25 June 1946 from assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, the unit was reorganized and federally recognized on 18 November 1946, with headquarters at Fresno. Following the events of 11 September multiple national guard units were activated for various reasons, the 185th was no different with the regiment activated for Operation Noble Eagle, when it was assigned to guard military bases, airports, and other possible targets of opportunity. In late 2003 the 185th was activated again, this time in the wake of the Invasion of Iraq and this is not to be confused with the activation of the 185th Armor Regiment, which was activated at the same time. In 2005, the unit returned from active duty, in 2006, Headquarters Company was activated, and was deployed to Camp Bucca, Iraq for a year. During the 2006–07 deployment when the only death, as of June 2009. Specialist Sellen, posthumously promoted to sergeant, was killed while attached to 16th MP Brigade due to a discharge of a firearm by a fellow soldier. On 22 February 2008, the company transferred responsibility to Charlie company, 1st Battalion, on 6 March 2008, the company returned to Los Alamitos. The company received a Meritorious Unit Commendation for their service pursuant to Department of the Army Permanent Orders 272-43 dated 29 September 2009
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40th Infantry Division (United States)
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The 40th Infantry Division is a modular division of the United States Army. Following the armys modularization the division has become a four brigade combat team division with National Guardsmen from throughout the Pacific/Western United States and its division headquarters is located at Los Alamitos Joint Forces Training Base in Los Alamitos, California. Later, the served in Korea and some of its units were designated for Vietnam. The division was later reorganized redesigned as a National Guard unit completely within California, later reorganizations included units from other states. The 40th Infantry Division was organized at Camp Kearny, near San Diego, California, on 16 September 1917 and it was composed of National Guard units from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The division was activated on 18 July 1917, as a National Guard division from the California, Nevada and it was sent overseas on 3 August 1918 and redesignated as the 6th Depot Division, received, equipped, trained, and forwarded replacements. Strong was assigned as commander on 25 August 1917, but was replaced less than a month later by Brigadier General G. H. Cameron on 18 September 1917. The division then saw a rapid turnover of leaders – Brigadier General L. S. Lyon, Brigadier General G. H. Cameron, Brigadier General L. S. Lyon, strong again on 8 December 1917. When the division arrived in France in August 1918, the German Army had just completed a series of offensives that started on 21 March and it was decided that the new divisions would be used as depot divisions, supplying fresh troops to the more experienced combat divisions. By the end of the war, the 40th Division had provided over 27,000 replacements to the 26th, 28th, 32nd, 77th, 80th, 81st, 82nd, the division returned to the United States on 30 June 1919 where it was deactivated. The division was reconstituted on 18 June 1926 with its headquarters in Berkeley, the division was organized much as it was in 1917 with a lot of the units coming from Nevada and Utah. However, the Arizona and Colorado infantry regiments were replaced by two new California regiments, the 184th Infantry and 185th Infantry, in 1937 the division headquarters was moved to Los Angeles. Story Major General Ernest J. Dawley Major General Rapp Brush Brigadier General Donald J. Myers The 40th Infantry Division was activated for World War II on 3 March 1941. It was at the time a National Guard division from the California, Nevada Army National Guard, in February 1942, the 40th Infantry Division was reorganized from a square, two-brigade, four-regiment division to a three-regiment division without any intermediate brigade headquarters. Thus the 79th and 80th Infantry Brigade were inactivated, the division departed for overseas service on 23 August 1942. The divisions first overseas assignment was the defense of the outer Hawaiian Islands, Training continued as defensive positions were improved and maintained. In July 1943, the division was concentrated on Oahu, relieved of the North Sector in October 1943, the 40th entered upon a period of intensive amphibious and jungle training. On 20 December 1943, the first units left for Guadalcanal, and by mid-January 1944, movement was completed, on 24 April 1944, it left Guadalcanal for New Britain
13.
Camp San Luis Obispo
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Camp San Luis Obispo is the original home of the California Army National Guard. It served as an Infantry Division Camp and Cantonment Area for the United States Army during World War II, Camp San Luis Obispo, formerly called Camp Merriam, was established in 1928 and is called the original home of the California National Guard. The camp is in San Luis Obispo County, which is on the Central Coast of California, state Route 1 passes through the camp about halfway between the cities of Morro Bay and San Luis Obispo. Since World War II, the camp has had an area of 15,433 acres, the camp originally comprised 6,274 acres, and a further 9,159 acres was acquired during 1941. During World War II, the camp had quarters for 1,523 officers and 19,383 enlisted personnel, during the Korean war, from early January 1950 to late 1953, the camp was again used by the US Army, for signal corps training. There was eight weeks of combat training, shorter than the usual 16 weeks for combat arms. Then there were technical schools covering all aspects of the signal corps, from lineman and teletype. It was also a Prisoner of War Camp during WW ll, Cuesta College opened for classes in 1965 on a southwest portion of the camp, rented from the California National Guard. The Cuesta College Board of Trustees purchased 160 acres of the camp and 20 acres adjoining for a permanent campus, the land was on the other side of Chorro Creek from the temporary campus. Construction was started in 1970 and the transfer from the site was completed in 1978. El Chorro Regional Park was created in 1972 when over 700 acres of the camp were given to San Luis Obispo County, the park contains barbecue facilities, a softball field, volleyball courts and camping sites. Dairy Creek Golf Course is located in the portion of the park. An area in the portion of the park is off limits due to the discovery of unexploded munitions. Salinas Dam, which forms Santa Margarita Lake, was built to water to Camp San Luis Obispo. The lake now supplies water to the city of San Luis Obispo, opened in 1995, the museum exhibits the works of the Civilian Conservation Corps in California. One building is a replica of a 1930s CCC barracks, including tools, uniforms, the museum is open by appointment. It contains the library and research center of the National Association of Civilian Conservation Corps Alumni Buildings, a major tenant of Camp San Luis Obispo since the early 2000s has been the Grizzly Youth Academy, Californias version of the Youth Challenge Program. Camp San Luis Obispo was assigned as the new permanent headquarters of the California Cadet Corps in July 2011
14.
Washington National Guard
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The Washington National Guard is one of the four elements of the State of Washingtons Washington Military Department and a component of the National Guard of the United States. It is headquartered at Camp Murray, Washington and is defined by its state, the Washington National Guard is also subject to the call of the President of the United States to serve as part of the total U. S. The Washington National Guard is made up of the Washington Army National Guard, the WAARNG is a reserve component of the U. S Army and the WA ANG is a reserve component of the U. S. Air Force. There are approximately 8,400 citizen-soldiers and airmen serving in the Washington National Guard, the Territorial Militia organized in 1855 and supported the Territorial Government, provided defense against Indian uprisings and sent a unit to fight for the Union in the Civil War. The Washington National Guard trained as completely uniformed and equipped force for the first time in 1890 on the shores of American Lake near Tacoma, units of the Washington National Guard served in the Philippine Insurrection, both World Wars, the Berlin Airlift and the first Gulf War. Since the September 11 attacks in 2001, the Washington National Guard units have served in support of Operation Noble Eagle, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. Approximately 700 members of the Washington National Guard served in support of the Hurricane Katrina Relief Mission in the gulf coast, and more than 300 served in support of Operation Jump Start. The citizen soldiers and airmen of The Washington National Guard are dedicated to the mission of safeguarding lives and property in Washington State in serving in the USA, members come from a wide diversity of communities, professions and backgrounds from around the State of Washington. President Fillmore signed the Organic Act creating the Washington Territory and Maj. Issac Stevens was appointed first governor, Washington Territorial Militia members informally mustered in support of the Territorial government involving local Indian uprisings. Washington Territorial Militia members formed into the “1st Washington Territory Infantry”, Washington Territory Militia “officially” formed and recognized as the Washington National Guard in the Legislative Assembly of Washington Territory. On November 11,1889 Washington became a state, State Legislature met and appropriated $20,319.33 for a “Brigade Encampment” to be held that summer. Completely uniformed and equipped for the first time, the Washington State National Guard trained on the shores of American Lake near Tacoma, Washington National Guard members involved in additional Indian conflicts, civil unrest, riots and fire fighting. Washington National Guard members called into Federal Service during the Philippine Insurrection, Washington National Guard members involved in Mexican Border dispute. Washington National Guard members Federalized for in World War I, Washington National Guard members involved in civil disturbance, labor conflicts, flooding assistance and fire fighting. Nearly 12,000 Washington National Guard members were inducted into Federal Service at the beginning of World War II, Washington National Guard members involved in civil disturbance, labor conflicts, flooding assistance, fire fighting. Washington National Guard members activated for the Berlin Crisis and the Berlin Airlift, Washington National Guard members involved in flooding assistance, fire fighting. More than 2,000 members of the Washington National Guard are called to active duty when Mt. St. Helens erupted. Washington National Guard members involved in assistance to law enforcement, search and rescue, emergency recovery, flood assistance, Washington National Guard members activated in support of Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm
15.
M1 Abrams
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The M1 Abrams is an American third-generation main battle tank. It is named after General Creighton Abrams, former Army chief of staff, highly mobile, designed for modern armored ground warfare, the M1 is well armed and heavily armored. Notable features include the use of a powerful multifuel turbine engine, the adoption of sophisticated composite armor, weighing nearly 68 short tons, it is one of the heaviest main battle tanks in service. The M1 Abrams entered U. S. service in 1980, the M1 remains the principal main battle tank of the United States Army and Marine Corps, and the armies of Egypt, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Australia and Iraq. Three main versions of the M1 Abrams have been deployed, the M1, M1A1, and M1A2, incorporating improved armament, protection and these improvements and other upgrades to in-service tanks have allowed this long-serving vehicle to remain in front-line service. In addition, development for the improved M1A3 version was reported in 2009, the M1 Abrams was developed during the Cold War as a successor to the canceled MBT-70. The M1 Abrams contract went to Chrysler Defense and was the first vehicle to adopt Chobham armor, adaptations before the Persian Gulf War gave the vehicle better firepower and NBC protection. Being vastly superior to Iraqi tanks, very few M1 tanks were hit by enemy fire, Upgrades after the war improved the tanks weapons sights and fire control unit. The Abrams participated in the 2003 invasion of Iraq, exposing vulnerabilities in urban combat that were addressed with the TUSK modification, the Marine Corps sent a company of M1A1 Abrams tanks to Afghanistan in 2010. The first attempt to replace the aging M60 tank was the MBT-70, the MBT-70 had advanced features such as a height-adjustable air suspension and a very low-profile chassis with the driver located in the turret. The MBT-70 ultimately proved to be too heavy, complex, as a result of the imminent failure of this project, the U. S. Army introduced the XM803, using some technologies from the MBT-70 but removing some of the more troublesome features. This succeeded only in producing a system with capabilities similar to the M60. Congress canceled the MBT-70 in November and XM803 December 1971, and redistributed the funds to the new XM815, prototypes were delivered in 1976 by Chrysler Defense and General Motors armed with the license-built version of the 105 mm Royal Ordnance L7 gun along with a Leopard 2 for comparison. The turbine-powered Chrysler Defense design was selected for development as the M1, in February 1982, General Dynamics Land Systems Division purchased Chrysler Defense, after Chrysler built over 1,000 M1s. A total of 3,273 M1 Abrams tanks were produced 1979–85, Production at the government-owned, GDLS-operated Lima Army Tank Plant in Lima, Ohio, was joined by vehicles built at the Detroit Arsenal Tank Plant in Warren, Michigan from 1982 to 1996. The M1 was armed with the version of the 105 mm Royal Ordnance L7 gun. An improved model called the M1IP was produced briefly in 1984, the M1IP models were used in the Canadian Army Trophy NATO tank gunnery competition in 1985 and 1987. Production of M1 and M1A1 tanks totaled some 9,000 tanks at a cost of approximately $4.3 million per unit, by 1999, costs for the tank were upwards of US$5 million a vehicle
16.
Abu Ghraib prison
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The Baghdad Central Prison, formerly known as Abu Ghraib prison was a prison complex in Abu Ghraib, an Iraqi city 32 km west of Baghdad. The prison was built by British contractors in the 1950s, the prison held as many as 15,000 inmates in 2001. In 2002, Saddam Husseins government began a project to add six new cellblocks to the prison. In October 2002, he gave amnesty to most prisoners in Iraq, after the prisoners were released and the prison was left empty, it was vandalized and looted. Almost all of the documents relating to prisoners were piled and burnt inside of prison offices and cells, known mass-graves related to Abu Ghraib include, Khan Dhari, west of Baghdad - Mass grave with the bodies of political prisoners from Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad. Fifteen victims were executed on 26 December 1998 and buried by prison authorities under the cover of darkness, al-Zahedi, on the western outskirts of Baghdad - Secret graves near a civilian cemetery contain the remains of nearly 1,000 political prisoners. According to an eyewitness,10 to 15 bodies arrived at a time from the Abu Ghraib prison and were buried by local civilians, an execution on 10 December 1999 in Abu Ghraib claimed the lives of 101 people in one day. On 9 March 2000,58 prisoners were killed at a time, the last corpse interred was number 993. Until August 2006, the known as the Abu Ghraib prison was used for detention purposes by both the U. S. -led coalition occupying Iraq and the Iraqi government. The Iraqi government has controlled the area of the facility known as The Hard Site, the prison was used to house only convicted criminals. Suspected criminals, insurgents or those arrested and awaiting trial were held at other facilities, the U. S. housed all its detainees at Camp Redemption, which is divided into five security levels. This camp built in the summer of 2004 replaced the three-level setup of Camp Ganci, Camp Vigilant, the remainder of the facility was occupied by the U. S. military. Abu Ghraib served as both a FOB and a detention facility, when the U. S. military was using the Abu Ghraib prison as a detention facility, it housed approximately 7,490 prisoners there in March 2004. The U. S. military initially held all persons of interest in Camp Redemption, some were suspected rebels, and some suspected criminals. Those convicted by trial in Iraqi court are transferred to the Iraqi-run Hard Site, the story included photographs depicting the abuse of prisoners. The events created a political scandal within the U. S. On April 20,2004, insurgents fired 40 mortar rounds into the prison, killing 24 detainees, commentators thought the attack was either an attempt to incite a riot or retribution for detainees cooperating with the United States. In May 2004, the U. S. -led coalition embarked on a policy to reduce numbers to fewer than 2,000
17.
Iraq Campaign Medal
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The medal was designed by the U. S. Army Institute of Heraldry and was awarded during the Iraq War, from 29 November 2004 to 31 December 2011. The medal is bronze in appearance,1 1⁄4 inches in diameter, the obverse depicts a relief of the map of Iraq, surmounted by two lines representing the Tigris and Euphrates rivers throughout, superimposed over a palm wreath. Above is the inscription IRAQ CAMPAIGN, on the reverse, the Statue of Freedom surmounts a sunburst, encircled by two scimitars pointing down with the blades crossing at the tips. Below is the inscription FOR SERVICE IN IRAQ, the medal is suspended from a ribbon 1 3⁄8 inches wide. The stripes of the ribbon are, 5⁄32 inch scarlet at the edges, followed by 1⁄16 inch white, 1⁄32 inch green, the white is separated by a 5⁄32 inch black with a 7⁄16 inch stripe in chamois in the center. The Iraq Campaign Medal was awarded to any member of the U. S. military who performed duty within the borders of Iraq for a period of thirty days or sixty non-consecutive days. The medal was awarded retroactively from 19 March 2003 until the end of Operation New Dawn on 31 December 2011, the medal was also awarded posthumously to any service member who died in the line of duty within Iraq, including from non-combat injuries such as accidents and mishaps. On 23 April 2012, an order terminating the award of the Iraq Campaign Medal was issued by the Department of Defense, the order is effective to 31 December 2011, the day Operation New Dawn ended. U. S. military personnel serving inside the borders of Iraq after December 2011 will not be eligible to receive the ICM. U. S. However, the U. S. government dubbed their operations in Iraq post-2014 as Operation Inherent Resolve, and in March 2016, the IRCM is now awarded to those who have served in missions in Iraq against ISIS from June 2014 to the present. Those who were awarded the GWOTEM for serving in Iraq from June 2014 to March 2016 can put in a request for the Inherent Resolve Campaign Medal instead. The Iraq Campaign Medal replaced the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal for service in Iraq from 19 March 2003, personnel who previously received the GWOTEM for Iraq service were given the option to exchange the medal for the Iraq Campaign Medal. Both medals were not authorized for the period of service in Iraq. The Decorations and Medals of Operation Iraqi Freedom, claymont, DE, Orders and Medals Society of America
18.
Meritorious Unit Commendation
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The Meritorious Unit Commendation is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. Army Meritorious Unit Commendation The Army MUC emblem worn to represent award of the MUC is 1 7⁄16 inches wide, the emblem consists of a 1⁄16 inch wide gold frame with laurel leaves which encloses a scarlet 67111 ribbon. The previously authorized emblem was a gold color embroidered laurel wreath,1 5⁄8 inches in diameter on a 2 inches square of olive drab cloth, Service in a combat zone is not required, but must be directly related to the combat effort. Units based in CONUS are excluded from this award, as are other units outside the area of operation, the unit must display such outstanding devotion and superior performance of exceptionally difficult tasks as to set it apart and above other units with similar missions. The degree of achievement required is the same as that which would warrant award of the Legion of Merit to an individual, recommendations for units larger than a brigade will not be submitted. For services performed during World War II, awards will be only to service units. Such service is interpreted to relate to combat service support type activities and not to the type of activities performed by senior headquarters, combat, all members of the unit cited for the award are approved to wear the emblem of the MUC. The emblem is thought of as a decoration for those in connection with the cited acts and is approved to be worn if they continue as members with the unit or not. Other personnel serving with the unit are approved to wear the emblem to show that the unit is a recipient of the MUC, the Army Meritorious Unit Commendation is worn after the Valorous Unit Award and before the Superior Unit Award. Additional awards of the Army MUC are denoted by oak leaf clusters. The Meritorious Service Unit Plaque was originally established by War Department Circular 345 on 23 August 1944, the circular provided units which received the Plaque were entitled to wear on their right sleeves of their service coat and shirt the Meritorious Service Unit Insignia. A gold star placed on the plaque represented additional awards until War Department Circular No,54,1946, provided that additional awards would be shown by placing a gold numeral on the inside of the wreath. In December 1946, the Meritorious Service Unit Plaque was eliminated, replaced with the issue of the Meritorious Unit Commendation, a new design of the Meritorious Service Unit Emblem was approved in April 1947. This replaced the sleeve insignia and was to be effective 1 January 1949, on 11 April 1949, TAG advised D/PA that the stock position was such that it would not be exhausted prior to 1959. However, the level was still so high that it was not introduced into the supply system until 14 July 1966. This award may also be conferred upon units of the branches of the U. S. Armed Forces, and the forces of friendly foreign nations serving with U. S. Armed Forces, provided such units meet the established for Navy
19.
43rd Military Police Brigade (United States)
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The 43rd Military Police Brigade is a military police brigade of the United States Army. Within the Rhode Island Army National Guard, the 43rd Military Police Brigade commands the 118th Military Police Battalion, in addition, the brigade exercises administrative control over 1st Battalion, 103rd Field Artillery. The headquarters of the 43rd Military Police Brigade is located in Warwick, the 43rd Military Police Brigade was constituted 4 March 1959 and allotted to the Rhode Island Army National Guard as Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 103d Replacement Battalion. Organized and Federally recognized 1 April 1959 at Providence, converted and redesignated 18 March 1963 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 43d Engineer Group. Converted and redesignated 1 May 1968 as Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, reorganized and redesignated 1 May 1976 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 43d Military Police Brigade. One of the major state activations came in 1978. The Blizzard of 78 crippled the state and forced all units to be called to duty from 6–16 February 1978, the 43rd organized traffic control to allow engineers to perform snow removal. MPs were stationed throughout the area to prevent looting. There had not been a call up since the Hurricane of 38. Prior to 1986, the 43rd MP Brigade had two subordinate Military Police Battalions - the 118th and the 243rd, the 118th MP Battalion had the 115th and 119th MP companies assigned to it and the 243rd had the 169th and 1111th MP companies assigned to it. In 1986, the 243rd MP Battalion and the 1111th MP Company were deactivated with the 169th MP Company being transferred to the 118th MP Battalion, other units under the 43d MP Brigade were the 1207th Transportation Company and Company D, 280th Signal Battalion. The brigade was under the command of Brigadier General Richard Baccus, there they replaced the 89th Military Police Brigade as the new headquarters element for Joint Task Force –160. In early 2002, the US Southern Command established JTF-160 and JTF-170 to operate a detention and interrogation facility at the naval base, in November of the same year, the two task forces consolidated to become Joint Task Force – Guantanamo. During this period, US military personnel from all five services planned and executed a mission to safely and humanely detain suspected terrorists, soldiers redeployed in November/December 2002 and demobilized in January 2003. Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 43rd Military Police Brigade, was mobilized in August 2005, the mission was to provide Command and Control for all Theater Internment Facilities in support of Joint Task Force 134 and Multi-National Force – Iraq. Additionally the brigade managed the training and integration of Iraqi Corrections Officers, soldiers from the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 43rd Military Police Brigade, mobilized in March 2011, deploying to Afghanistan under the command of Brigadier General Charles Petrarca. The unit had control of operations along with the Afghan National Police at Bagram Airbase. They returned home to Rhode Island on 7 March 2012, in October 2012 elements of the 43rd MP Brigade were mobilized following Superstorm Sandy to conduct security and traffic control operations
20.
Rhode Island Army National Guard
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The Rhode Island Army National Guard is the land force militia for the U. S. state of Rhode Island. It operates under Title 10 and Title 32 of the United States Code, units of the Rhode Island Army National Guard may be called up for federal service by act of Congress. If federally activated, units operate as part of the Army National Guard of the United States, the Rhode Island Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard and is maintained by the National Guard Bureau. Members and units are trained and equipped as part of the United States Army, the same ranks and insignia are used and National Guardsmen are eligible to receive all United States military awards in addition to state awards. Note - Most of the information in this section is taken from Civil and Military List of Rhode Island, 1647-1800 by Joseph Jencks Smith published in 1900. The Rhode Island National Guard traces it origins to the earliest known colonial defensive force which was formed on May 13,1638, and called the Traine Band, in Portsmouth, Rhode Island. The new force was founded as, “Freemen as a subject to call and expected to perform certain military duties in the protection of the people. ”During the Colonial era. Each town had at least one militia company commanded by a captain or a lieutenant, in May 1673 future governor John Cranston was appointed captain in chief of the Colony Military Force. In 1675 Cranston was promoted to major, in 1683 the town companies were organized into two regiments - the Regiment of the Islands and the Regiment of the Main. Each regiment originally was commanded by a major and the two majors presumably reported directly to the governor, in 1714 the Militia of the Island was designated the 1st Regiment and the Militia of the Main Land was designated the 2nd Regiment. The 1st Regiment consisted of six companies and the 2nd Regiment had nine companies, the number of companies in each town varied with its population with Newport and Providence having three apiece. In 1719 the rank of the commanders was increased to colonel. In 1731, a regiment was formed for each of the three then existing counties - Newport, Providence and Kings which were designed the 1st, 2nd, the Newport County regiment had six companies, Providence County had 13 companies and Kings County had 9 companies. The Rhode Island Militia undertook its first military actions against England on July 19,1769, three years later, on the night of June 10,1772, now under Captain Abraham Whipples command, the militia seized and burned the British schooner HMS Gaspée in Narragansett Bay. Major General James Mitchell Varnum was also involved in the war effort, over twenty Rhode Island units had fought for independence including the First Rhode Island Continentals who stood at Yorktown for the surrender of British General Cornwallis. After the war, the militia reorganized into five brigades, the Bristol County, the Kent County, the Newport County, the Providence County, several militia units were mobilized to defend Rhode Island against possible British attack during the War of 1812. Additionally, the Providence Marine Corps of Artillery was mobilized as the 1st Rhode Island Battery, the 1st Rhode Island fought at the Battle of Bull Run, under command of Major Joseph Pope Balch who succeeded to command after Burnside was promoted to brigadier general. The 1st Rhode Island discharged, along with the 1st Battery, during the Spanish–American War, a regiment consisting of three battalions of four companies each was mobilized and called the 1st Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry
21.
184th Infantry Regiment (United States)
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The 184th Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment of the United States Army consisting of soldiers from the California Army National Guard. Only the regiments 1st Battalion remains a military unit. The battalion supports state and federal missions in the State of California, United States of America, the 184th Infantry Regiment can trace its lineage to the mid-19th century. The regiments 1st Battalion is currently one of two battalions in the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team. The battalion is currently conducting training and maintenance in order to prepare for future state, the 184th Infantry Regiment is a descendant of a number of unofficial militias that were formed in California in the mid-to-late-19th century. Bravo Company is the descendant of the Sarsfield Grenadier Guards. Charlie Company is the descendant of the Auburn Greys. In its dual role in service to both the United States of America and the State of California, the regiment can be mobilized to serve under state control, the 184th Infantry Regiment was formed on 20 October 1924 from what had been known as the 2d Infantry Regiment. On 9 December 1895, the 2d Infantry Regiment was formed by consolidating the 1st Artillery Regiment with the 8th Infantry Regiment, the headquarters of the 2d Infantry Regiment was in Sacramento and the unit was part of the California National Guard. The lineage of two units is described below. On 19 March 1880, the 1st Artillery Regiment was formed from the consolidation of the Sacramento Light Artillery, the headquarters of the 1st Artillery Regiment was in Sacramento and the unit was part of the California National Guard. Sacramento Light Artillery. In 1864, the Sacramento Light Artillery was formed from precursor militia elements in Sacramento as part of the California Militia. On 15 March 1872, the 4th Infantry Regiment was formed from precursor militia elements, including the Sarsfield Grenadier Guards as G company, from 1875 through 1877, the 1st Infantry Battalion was formed through the reduction, reorganization, and redesignation of the 4th Infantry Regiment. The headquarters of the 4th Infantry Regiment was in Sacramento and the unit was part of the California National Guard, on 15 February 1890, the 8th Infantry Battalion was formed from precursor militia elements with headquarters in Chico, as part of the California National Guard. On 31 October 1891, the 8th Infantry Regiment was formed through the expansion, reorganization, the headquarters of the 8th Infantry Regiment was in Chico and the unit was part of the California National Guard. Although the units were mobilized for service, they never left the United States. From 28 January 1899 through 6 February 1899, the three companies were demobilized in Washington and California and returned to the 2d Infantry Regiment, on 18 June 1916, the 2d Infantry Regiment was mobilized for border security duty during the Mexican Border Crisis. On 15 November 1916, the unit was demobilized, on 26 March 1917, the 2d Infantry Regiment was mobilized into federal service for World War I
22.
Mechanized infantry
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Mechanized infantry is infantry equipped with armored personnel carriers or infantry fighting vehicles for transport and combat. Mechanized infantry is distinguished from motorized infantry in that its vehicles provide a degree of protection from hostile fire, most APCs and IFVs are fully tracked or are all-wheel drive vehicles, for mobility across rough ground. Some nations distinguish between mechanized and armored infantry, designating troops carried by APCs as mechanized and those in IFVs as armored. The support weapons for mechanized infantry are also provided with motorized transport, compared with light truck-mobile infantry, mechanized infantry can maintain rapid tactical movement and, if mounted in IFVs, has more integral firepower. It requires more combat supplies and ordnance supplies, and a larger proportion of manpower is required to crew. For example, most APCs mount a section of seven or eight infantrymen but have a crew of two, most IFVs carry only six or seven infantry but require a crew of three. To be effective in the field, mechanized units also require many mechanics, with specialized maintenance and recovery vehicles, arguably, the first mechanized infantry were assault teams mounted on A7V tanks. The vehicles were extra-large to let them carry sizeable assault teams, all-machine gun armed A7V tanks carried two small flame throwers for their dismounts to use. A7V tank would often carry a second officer to lead the assault team, during the Battle of St. Quentin, A7Vs were accompanied by 20 stormtroopers from Rohr Assault Battalion, but it is unspecified if they were acting as dismounts or were accompanying the tanks on foot. During the battle, tank crews were reported to dismount and attack enemy positions with grenades, towards the end of World War I, all the armies involved were faced with the problem of maintaining the momentum of an attack. Tanks, artillery, or infiltration tactics could all be used to break through an enemy defense and it was widely acknowledged that cavalry was too vulnerable to be used on most European battlefields, but many armies continued to deploy them. Motorized infantry could maintain rapid movement, but their trucks required either a road network or firm open terrain. They were unable to traverse a battlefield obstructed by craters, barbed wire, tracked or all-wheel drive vehicles were to be the solution. Following the war, development of mechanized forces was largely theoretical for some time, although some proponents of mobile warfare, such as J. F. C. Fuller, advocated building tank fleets, other, such as Heinz Guderian in Germany, as the Germans rearmed in the 1930s, they equipped some infantry units in their new Panzer divisions with the half-track Sd. Kfz. 251, which could keep up with tanks on most terrain, the French Army also created Light Mechanized divisions in which some of the infantry units possessed small tracked carriers. Together with the motorization of the infantry and support units. The German doctrine was to use them to exploit breakthroughs in Blitzkrieg offensives, as World War II progressed, most major armies integrated tanks or assault guns with mechanized infantry, as well as other supporting arms, such as artillery and engineers, as combined arms units
23.
Kosovo Force
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The Kosovo Force is a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation-led international peacekeeping force which was responsible for establishing a secure environment in Kosovo. KFOR entered Kosovo on 12 June 1999, two days after the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1244, at the time, Kosovo was facing a grave humanitarian crisis, with military forces from the FRY and the KLA in daily engagement. According to NATO, Serb forces had committed ethnic cleansing of Kosovo Albanians, nearly one million people had fled Kosovo as refugees. KFOR has gradually transferred responsibilities to the Kosovo Police and other local authorities, as of 23 May 2016, KFOR consisted of 4,600 troops. The Contact Group countries have said publicly that KFOR will remain in Kosovo to provide the security necessary to support the provisions of a settlement of Kosovos status. KFOR contingents were originally grouped into 4 regionally based multinational brigades, the brigades were responsible for a specific area of operations, but under a single chain of command under the authority of Commander KFOR. At its height, KFOR troops numbered 50,000 and came from 39 different NATO and non-NATO nations, the official KFOR website indicated that in 2008 a total 14,000 soldiers from 34 countries were participating in KFOR. The following is a list of the number of troops which have participated in the KFOR mission. According to Amnesty International, most women trafficked into Kosovo from abroad are from Moldova, Romania, Bulgaria, since the KFOR entered Kosovo in June 1999,168 NATO soldiers have been killed, mostly in accidents. On 19 October 2004, it was confirmed that 115 NATO soldiers had killed during the operation. After that 50 more NATO soldiers were confirmed to have died, eight UNMIK police officers have been killed in Kosovo since 1999, in addition to the KFOR fatalities. The fatalities by country are,3 American,1 Indian,1 Jordanian,1 Nigerian,1 Ghanaian and 1 Ukrainian police officer, in July 2011, following the Kosovo Polices attempts to seize two border outposts and consequent clashes that followed, KFOR troops intervened. In 2013, KFOR was involved in an operation of the last restaurant bears in Kosovo. The bears are now kept at the Bear Sanctuary Prishtina, KFOR Placemap KFOR official site K-For, The task ahead First deaths in K-For operation Memorial honors soldiers sacrifices June 2002,68 soldiers have died since KFOR entered Kosovo. Nato force feeds Kosovo sex trade Radio KFOR
24.
Fort McCoy, Wisconsin
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Fort McCoy is a United States Army installation. It is located on 60,000 acres between Sparta and Tomah, Wisconsin, in Monroe County, since its creation in 1909, the post has been used primarily as a military training center. A part of Fort McCoy is also used by the Wisconsin State Patrol as a training facility, the post has been in virtually constant use since it was first formed as the Sparta Maneuver Tract on 14,000 acres in 1909. At first, the tract was made up of two camps, Camp Emory Upton and Camp Robinson and these were separated by a line of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad that ran across the land from east to west. In 1926, the name of the post was shortened to Camp McCoy, in 1938, the United States began a major expansion of the camp. This included the addition of over 45,000 acres to the post and this increased the camps capacity to 35,000 soldiers. In all, the project was estimated to have cost about $30 million, the expansion was officially concluded with a new inauguration on August 30,1942. During World War II, Fort McCoy was used as a center for approximately 170 Japanese and 120 German and Italian American civilians arrested as potentially dangerous enemy aliens in 1942. The post was used as a prisoner-of-war camp during the conflict, holding 4,000 Japanese. Fort McCoys POWs were featured in the 2011 film Fort McCoy, the camp was briefly deactivated following World War II, but with the advent of the Korean War in 1950, it was once again used for training. This continued until 1953, when the camp was again deactivated and it was then used to house various small national, state and civilian projects, and served as a training center for the National Guard and the Job Corps. In response, a Milwaukee official proposed that the camp be used as a landfill for Milwaukee garbage, in 1973, the Army reactivated Camp McCoy as a permanent training center, and on September 30,1974, it was officially re-designated as Fort McCoy. In the 1990s, a major construction project was undertaken. Today, Fort McCoy serves as a Total Force Training Center, around 100,000 members of the military are trained at the fort every year, and the total number has exceeded 149,000 in the past. Fort McCoy also is the headquarters of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion-25 which served a tour in Iraq. The 181st Infantry Brigade is the largest unit stationed at Fort McCoy, Fort McCoy was used as a mobilization station during Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm. This was the first time units had mobilized at Fort McCoy since the Korean War,74 military units deployed through Fort McCoy, totaling over 9,000 Soldiers, 8% of the reserve forces activated during the Persian Gulf War. Volk Field Air National Guard Base was used as the point of departure
25.
Wisconsin
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Wisconsin is a U. S. state located in the north-central United States, in the Midwest and Great Lakes regions. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, Wisconsin is the 23rd largest state by total area and the 20th most populous. The state capital is Madison, and its largest city is Milwaukee, the state is divided into 72 counties. Wisconsin is second to Michigan in the length of its Great Lakes coastline, Wisconsin is known as Americas Dairyland because it is one of the nations leading dairy producers, particularly famous for its cheese. Manufacturing, especially paper products, information technology, and tourism are major contributors to the states economy. The word Wisconsin originates from the given to the Wisconsin River by one of the Algonquian-speaking Native American groups living in the region at the time of European contact. French explorer Jacques Marquette was the first European to reach the Wisconsin River, arriving in 1673, subsequent French writers changed the spelling from Meskousing to Ouisconsin, and over time this became the name for both the Wisconsin River and the surrounding lands. English speakers anglicized the spelling from Ouisconsin to Wisconsin when they began to arrive in numbers during the early 19th century. The legislature of Wisconsin Territory made the current spelling official in 1845, the Algonquin word for Wisconsin and its original meaning have both grown obscure. Interpretations vary, but most implicate the river and the red sandstone that lines its banks, other theories include claims that the name originated from one of a variety of Ojibwa words meaning red stone place, where the waters gather, or great rock. Wisconsin has been home to a variety of cultures over the past 12,000 years. The first people arrived around 10,000 BCE during the Wisconsin Glaciation and these early inhabitants, called Paleo-Indians, hunted now-extinct ice age animals such as the Boaz mastodon, a prehistoric mastodon skeleton unearthed along with spear points in southwest Wisconsin. After the ice age ended around 8000 BCE, people in the subsequent Archaic period lived by hunting, fishing, agricultural societies emerged gradually over the Woodland period between 1000 BCE to 1000 CE. Toward the end of period, Wisconsin was the heartland of the Effigy Mound culture. Later, between 1000 and 1500 CE, the Mississippian and Oneota cultures built substantial settlements including the village at Aztalan in southeast Wisconsin. The Oneota may be the ancestors of the modern Ioway and Ho-Chunk tribes who shared the Wisconsin region with the Menominee at the time of European contact, the first European to visit what became Wisconsin was probably the French explorer Jean Nicolet. He canoed west from Georgian Bay through the Great Lakes in 1634, pierre Radisson and Médard des Groseilliers visited Green Bay again in 1654–1666 and Chequamegon Bay in 1659–1660, where they traded for fur with local Native Americans. In 1673, Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet became the first to record a journey on the Fox-Wisconsin Waterway all the way to the Mississippi River near Prairie du Chien
26.
Iraq
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The capital, and largest city, is Baghdad. The main ethnic groups are Arabs and Kurds, others include Assyrians, Turkmen, Shabakis, Yazidis, Armenians, Mandeans, Circassians, around 95% of the countrys 36 million citizens are Muslims, with Christianity, Yarsan, Yezidism, and Mandeanism also present. The official languages of Iraq are Arabic and Kurdish, two major rivers, the Tigris and Euphrates, run south through Iraq and into the Shatt al-Arab near the Persian Gulf. These rivers provide Iraq with significant amounts of fertile land, the region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, historically known as Mesopotamia, is often referred to as the cradle of civilisation. It was here that mankind first began to read, write, create laws, the area has been home to successive civilisations since the 6th millennium BC. Iraq was the centre of the Akkadian, Sumerian, Assyrian and it was also part of the Median, Achaemenid, Hellenistic, Parthian, Sassanid, Roman, Rashidun, Umayyad, Abbasid, Ayyubid, Mongol, Safavid, Afsharid, and Ottoman empires. Iraqs modern borders were mostly demarcated in 1920 by the League of Nations when the Ottoman Empire was divided by the Treaty of Sèvres, Iraq was placed under the authority of the United Kingdom as the British Mandate of Mesopotamia. A monarchy was established in 1921 and the Kingdom of Iraq gained independence from Britain in 1932, in 1958, the monarchy was overthrown and the Iraqi Republic created. Iraq was controlled by the Arab Socialist Baath Party from 1968 until 2003, after an invasion by the United States and its allies in 2003, Saddam Husseins Baath Party was removed from power and multi-party parliamentary elections were held in 2005. The American presence in Iraq ended in 2011, but the Iraqi insurgency continued and intensified as fighters from the Syrian Civil War spilled into the country, the Arabic name العراق al-ʿIrāq has been in use since before the 6th century. There are several suggested origins for the name, one dates to the Sumerian city of Uruk and is thus ultimately of Sumerian origin, as Uruk was the Akkadian name for the Sumerian city of Urug, containing the Sumerian word for city, UR. An Arabic folk etymology for the name is rooted, well-watered. During the medieval period, there was a region called ʿIrāq ʿArabī for Lower Mesopotamia and ʿIrāq ʿajamī, for the region now situated in Central and Western Iran. The term historically included the south of the Hamrin Mountains. The term Sawad was also used in early Islamic times for the region of the plain of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. In English, it is either /ɪˈrɑːk/ or /ɪˈræk/, the American Heritage Dictionary, the pronunciation /aɪˈræk/ is frequently heard in U. S. media. Since approximately 10,000 BC, Iraq was one of centres of a Caucasoid Neolithic culture where agriculture, the following Neolithic period is represented by rectangular houses. At the time of the pre-pottery Neolithic, people used vessels made of stone, gypsum, finds of obsidian tools from Anatolia are evidences of early trade relations
27.
Camp Speicher
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Camp Speicher, officially known as the Tikrit Air Academy and formerly as FOB Speicher, COB Speicher, and Al Sahra Airfield is an air installation near Tikrit in northern Iraq. The installation is approximately 170 kilometers north of Baghdad and 11 kilometers west of the Tigris River, the United States Army captured the base from the Iraqi Army during the 2003 invasion of Iraq and used it during the Iraq War as the headquarters of the United States Division–North. The airfield is served by two main runways measuring 9,600 feet long with a runway measuring 7, 200-foot. The Americans named the airfield after Captain Michael Scott Speicher, a United States Navy pilot who was killed in action in Iraq during the 1991 Gulf War, prior to the 2003 invasion, Al Sahra Airfield was the main base of the Iraqi Air Force Air Academy. The base was one of several Iraqi Air Force airfields in the mid-1970s which were re-built under project Super-Base in response to the experiences from Arab-Israeli wars in 1967 and 1973. During the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the runway and some taxiways were cut by bomb hits. The remains of the large hangar next to it burned down in a large fire in July 2003. The original unit to control of the base was 1-10th Cavalry of the 4th Infantry Division. The base was handed over to the 4th Aviation Brigade of the 4th Infantry Division in the second week of the war. The Americans originally christened the base Forward Logistics Base Sycamore, but the name was changed to Forward Operating Base Speicher. The name was changed in honor of Scott Speicher, an American pilot who was shot down in the 1991 Gulf War, American soldiers, civilians, and contractors had access to a variety of amenities over the course of the United States occupation of the base. The base had a large Post Exchange, as well as several American fast food restaurants, including Subway, Burger King, 4th Infantry Division - Combat Aviation Brigade - 4th Aviation Regiment - 1st Battalion - Boeing AH-64 Apaches. 4th Infantry Division - Combat Aviation Brigade - 4th Aviation Regiment - 2d Battalion - Boeing CH-47 Chinooks, 743rd Maintenance Company Florida National Guard. 164th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron from the Ohio Air Guard, 1/140th Aviation Battalion, California National Guard B Co. 1/140th Aviation Battalion, California National Guard C Co. S, elements of the Ohio National Guards 16 Engineering Brigade were stationed here from 2003 through 2005 and helped bring the structures and roadways of the base to livable conditions. Elements of the Kentucky National Guard were stationed at FOB Speicher from 2004 though 2006, 88th RRC was stationed here from 2004 to 2005. 2007 In 2007-2008, the 111th Engineer Brigade of the West Virginia Army National Guard was headquartered within the Badgerville section of COB Speicher, serving under the 25ID and later the 1AD, the 111th Engineer Brigade conducted engineer missions throughout Multi-National Division North. 2011 The US Army left COB Speicher in October 2011 as part of the withdrawal of US Forces
28.
Tikrit
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Tikrit sometimes transliterated as Takrit or Tekrit, is a city in Iraq, located 140 kilometres northwest of Baghdad and 220 kilometres southeast of Mosul on the Tigris River. It is the center of the Saladin Governorate. As of 2012, it had a population of 160,000, in recent years the city has been the site of conflict cumulating in the Second Battle of Tikrit from March through April 2015, resulting in the displacement of 28,000 civilians. The Iraqi government regained control of the city from the Islamic State on March 31,2015. As a fort along the Tigris, the city is first mentioned in the Fall of Assyria Chronicle as being a refuge for the Babylonian king Nabopolassar during his attack on the city of Assur in 615 BC, Tikrit is usually identified as the Hellenistic settlement Birtha. Under Marutha of Tikrit, the bishopric was elevated into a maphrianate, the city remained predominantly Syriac Orthodox Christian in the early centuries of Islamic rule and gained fame as an important centre of Syriac and Christian Arab literature. From the ninth century Christians began to migrate due to restrictive measures taken by some Muslim governors. Many settled in Mosul and villages in the Nineveh Plains, especially Bakhdida, another governor permitted the reconstruction of the cathedral. However, instability returned and the maphrian moved indefinitely to Mosul in 1156, regardless, The city remained an important center of the Syriac Orthodox Church until its destruction by Timur in the late 14th century. A Christian presence has not existed in the city since the 17th century, the town was also home to the Arab Christian tribe of Iyad. The Arabs of the town secretly assisted the Muslims when they besieged the town, the Muslims entered Tikrit in 640, it was from then considered as part of the Jazira province, it was later regarded as belonging to Iraq by Arab geographers. The Arab Uqaylid Dynasty took hold of Tikrit in 1036, around 1138, Saladin was born there. The modern province of which Tikrit is the capital is named after him, the city was devastated in the 14th century by Timur. During Ottoman period Tikrit existed as a settlement that belonged to the Rakka Eyalet and whose population never exceeded 4. In September 1917, British forces captured the city during an advance against the Ottoman Empire during World War I. The Tikriti Jewish community was mostly gone by 1948, by the time Saddam Hussein rose to power there were only two Jewish families in the city. The city is the birthplace of Saddam Hussein, Saddam Hussein was buried near Tikrit in his hometown of Owja following his hanging on December 30,2006. In the opening weeks of the 2003 U. S. -led invasion, the city was subjected to intense aerial bombardment meant to throw Saddams elite Republican Guard troops out of the city
29.
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
30.
Fort Lewis
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Fort Lewis is a United States military facility located 9.1 miles south-southwest of Tacoma, Washington, under the jurisdiction of the United States Army Joint Base Garrison, Joint Base Lewis–McChord. It was merged with the United States Air Forces McChord Air Force Base on February 1,2010 into a Joint Base as a result of Base Realignment and Closure Commission recommendations of 2005. Joint Base Lewis-McChord is a training and mobilization center for all services and is the only Army power-projection base west of the Rocky Mountains and its geographic location provides rapid access to the deep water ports of Tacoma, Olympia and Seattle for deploying equipment. Units can be deployed from McChord Field, and individuals and small groups can use nearby Sea-Tac Airport. The strategic location of the base provides Air Force units with the ability to conduct combat, the Joint Base Garrison operates the installation on behalf of the warfighting units, families and extended military community who depend on JBLM for support. 627th Air Base Group Provides command and control and administrative oversight to the Airmen who perform installation support duties on behalf of the garrison, JBLM Soldiers receive medical care through on-base Madigan Healthcare System facilities such as Madigan Army Medical Center, the Okubo Clinic, and the Nisqually Clinic. JBLM Airmen receive medical care at the McChord Clinic as well as Madigan Army Medical Center, JBLM has more than 25,000 soldiers and civilian workers. The post supports over 120,000 military retirees and more than 29,000 family members living both on and off post, Fort Lewis proper contains 86,000 acres, the Yakima Training Center covers 324,000 acres. JBLM Main & North have abundant high-quality, close-in training areas, additional training space is available at the Yakima Training Center in eastern Washington, including maneuver areas and additional live fire ranges. In 2009, the former Fort Lewis Regional Correction Facility was remodeled and renamed the Northwest Joint Regional Correctional Facility, the facility houses minimum and medium security prisoners from all branches of the U. S. Also adjacent to the post is Camp Murray, Fort Lewis, named after Meriwether Lewis of the Lewis and Clark expedition, is one of the largest and most modern military reservations in the United States. Consisting of 87,000 acres of land cut from the glacier-flattened Nisqually Plain. A portion of the land was taken from the Nisqually tribes reservation. In 1927, Pierce County passed another bond measure to establish an airfield just north of Fort Lewis. The airfield, called Tacoma Field, opened in 1930 and was renamed McChord Field in 1940, McChord Field separated from Fort Lewis when the U. S. Air Force was created in 1947 and was subsequently renamed McChord Air Force Base. The two bases operated independently of one another for more than 60 years before merging in 2010. Fort Lewis began as Camp Lewis in 1917 when the citizens of Pierce County voted by an eight to one margin to bond themselves for $2 million to buy 68,721 acres of land and they donated the land to the federal government for military use. The only stipulation was that the tract be used as a permanent army post, Captain David L. Stone and his staff arrived at the camp site 26 May 1917, and a few days later the initial construction began
31.
Seattle
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Seattle is a seaport city on the west coast of the United States and the seat of King County, Washington. With an estimated 684,451 residents as of 2015, Seattle is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region of North America. In July 2013, it was the major city in the United States. The city is situated on an isthmus between Puget Sound and Lake Washington, about 100 miles south of the Canada–United States border, a major gateway for trade with Asia, Seattle is the fourth-largest port in North America in terms of container handling as of 2015. The Seattle area was inhabited by Native Americans for at least 4,000 years before the first permanent European settlers. Arthur A. Denny and his group of travelers, subsequently known as the Denny Party, arrived from Illinois via Portland, the settlement was moved to the eastern shore of Elliott Bay and named Seattle in 1852, after Chief Siahl of the local Duwamish and Suquamish tribes. Logging was Seattles first major industry, but by the late-19th century, growth after World War II was partially due to the local Boeing company, which established Seattle as a center for aircraft manufacturing. The Seattle area developed as a technology center beginning in the 1980s, in 1994, Internet retailer Amazon was founded in Seattle. The stream of new software, biotechnology, and Internet companies led to an economic revival, Seattle has a noteworthy musical history. From 1918 to 1951, nearly two dozen jazz nightclubs existed along Jackson Street, from the current Chinatown/International District, to the Central District, the jazz scene developed the early careers of Ray Charles, Quincy Jones, Ernestine Anderson, and others. Seattle is also the birthplace of rock musician Jimi Hendrix and the alternative rock subgenre grunge, archaeological excavations suggest that Native Americans have inhabited the Seattle area for at least 4,000 years. By the time the first European settlers arrived, the people occupied at least seventeen villages in the areas around Elliott Bay, the first European to visit the Seattle area was George Vancouver, in May 1792 during his 1791–95 expedition to chart the Pacific Northwest. In 1851, a party led by Luther Collins made a location on land at the mouth of the Duwamish River. Thirteen days later, members of the Collins Party on the way to their claim passed three scouts of the Denny Party, members of the Denny Party claimed land on Alki Point on September 28,1851. The rest of the Denny Party set sail from Portland, Oregon, after a difficult winter, most of the Denny Party relocated across Elliott Bay and claimed land a second time at the site of present-day Pioneer Square, naming this new settlement Duwamps. For the next few years, New York Alki and Duwamps competed for dominance, david Swinson Doc Maynard, one of the founders of Duwamps, was the primary advocate to name the settlement after Chief Sealth of the Duwamish and Suquamish tribes. The name Seattle appears on official Washington Territory papers dated May 23,1853, in 1855, nominal land settlements were established. On January 14,1865, the Legislature of Territorial Washington incorporated the Town of Seattle with a board of managing the city
32.
California
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California is the most populous state in the United States and the third most extensive by area. Located on the western coast of the U. S, California is bordered by the other U. S. states of Oregon, Nevada, and Arizona and shares an international border with the Mexican state of Baja California. Los Angeles is Californias most populous city, and the second largest after New York City. The Los Angeles Area and the San Francisco Bay Area are the nations second- and fifth-most populous urban regions, California also has the nations most populous county, Los Angeles County, and its largest county by area, San Bernardino County. The Central Valley, an agricultural area, dominates the states center. What is now California was first settled by various Native American tribes before being explored by a number of European expeditions during the 16th and 17th centuries, the Spanish Empire then claimed it as part of Alta California in their New Spain colony. The area became a part of Mexico in 1821 following its war for independence. The western portion of Alta California then was organized as the State of California, the California Gold Rush starting in 1848 led to dramatic social and demographic changes, with large-scale emigration from the east and abroad with an accompanying economic boom. If it were a country, California would be the 6th largest economy in the world, fifty-eight percent of the states economy is centered on finance, government, real estate services, technology, and professional, scientific and technical business services. Although it accounts for only 1.5 percent of the states economy, the story of Calafia is recorded in a 1510 work The Adventures of Esplandián, written as a sequel to Amadis de Gaula by Spanish adventure writer Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo. The kingdom of Queen Calafia, according to Montalvo, was said to be a land inhabited by griffins and other strange beasts. This conventional wisdom that California was an island, with maps drawn to reflect this belief, shortened forms of the states name include CA, Cal. Calif. and US-CA. Settled by successive waves of arrivals during the last 10,000 years, various estimates of the native population range from 100,000 to 300,000. The Indigenous peoples of California included more than 70 distinct groups of Native Americans, ranging from large, settled populations living on the coast to groups in the interior. California groups also were diverse in their organization with bands, tribes, villages. Trade, intermarriage and military alliances fostered many social and economic relationships among the diverse groups, the first European effort to explore the coast as far north as the Russian River was a Spanish sailing expedition, led by Portuguese captain Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, in 1542. Some 37 years later English explorer Francis Drake also explored and claimed a portion of the California coast in 1579. Spanish traders made unintended visits with the Manila galleons on their trips from the Philippines beginning in 1565
33.
Kosovo Campaign Medal
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The Kosovo Campaign Medal is a military award of the United States Armed Forces established by Executive Order 13154 of President Bill Clinton on May 3,2000. The medal recognizes service performed in Kosovo from March 24,1999 through December 31,2013. Kosovo Defense Campaign June 11,1999 to a date to be determined, while participating as a regularly assigned aircrew member flying sorties into, out of, within, or over the area of operations in direct support of the military operations. Any one of the two campaigns Both campaigns Service stars are awarded for participation in either the Air Campaign or the Defense Campaign, two service stars may be awarded provided that two separate tours, exceeding the 30/60 day requirement, were performed in both the Defense and Air Campaigns. The Kosovo Campaign Medal is always awarded with at least one service star, the Fleet Marine Force combat operation insignia is also authorized for certain sailors. Behind the mountains a rising sun, and superimposed over the rays are the words. The stylized wreath of grain reflects the character of the area and its economy and symbolizes basic human rights while high-lighting the desire of all for peace. The rocky terrain, fertile valley, and mountain pass refer to the Dinartic Alps, the sunrise denotes the dawning of a new age of unity and hope, the right to forge a future of freedom, progress, and harmony, thus fulfilling the goal of the Alliance. Reverse In the center of a medallion, the outline of a map of the Yugoslavian Province of Kosovo. Beneath the map is a three-pointed star, in a circle surrounding the map and star are the words IN DEFENSE OF HUMANITY. The inscription reinforces the objective of the military action conducted during the campaign, the red, white, and blue were suggested by the NATO Alliances colors, and the red, white, and blue pinstripes represent the colors of the United States flag. Combat Zones Q-1, What geographic areas are considered combat zones, a-1, Combat zones are designated by an Executive Order from the President as areas in which the U. S. Armed Forces are engaging or have engaged in combat, there are currently three such combat zones, Arabian Peninsula Areas, beginning Jan. Kosovo area, beginning Mar.24, 1999—Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Albania, the Adriatic Sea, the AFEM area of eligibility mirrors that of the KCM, Wright explained, with the addition of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia and Hungary. The eligible area also encompasses Serbian land and airspace including Vojvodina, Montenegro, Albania, Macedonia, the Department of Defense Manual 1348.33, Volume 2, “Manual of Military Decorations and Awards” contains specific eligibility criteria
34.
81st Stryker Brigade Combat Team
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The 81st Stryker Brigade Combat Team is a modular brigade of the United States Army National Guard based in Washington, Oregon and California and is subordinate to the 7th Infantry Division. On July 9,2015 it was announced that the 81st Brigade would convert from being an Armored BCT to Stryker BCT, in September of 2016 the 81st Brigade began the transition to a Stryker Brigade Combat Team. On 3 December,2016 the 81st Brigade became part of the 2nd Infantry Division, the brigade contains six battalions and a Headquarters and Headquarters Company. Headquarters Company, 81st BCT – Seattle, Washington, the 81st Infantry Brigade was constituted as part of the 41st Infantry Division on 1 April 1917, consisting of the 161st and 162nd Infantry Regiments. The 41st deployed to France, but was designated a replacement division, with its infantry components sent to the 1st, between the wars, the brigade joined the rest of the division in the Pacific Northwest, the headquarters moving with the home of the current brigade commander. In January 1942, the 41st Infantry Division was reorganized from a two-brigade, the 81st ceased to exist and its two component regiments split up. The 161st went to the 25th Infantry Division while the 162nd remained in the 41st Infantry Division, in 1971, the brigade converted to mechanized infantry, substituting one infantry battalion with 1st Battalion, 303rd Armor. In 1991, the 9th Division was deactivated and the 81st was a separate brigade once again, like many National Guard units, the 81st Brigade has been activated for state duty several times to respond to disasters and disorder. It responded to floods in December 1975 and November 1990, the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, forest fires in 1994 and many years. Most of its troops conducted pre-mobilization training at Fort Lewis, WA, the 1st Battalion, 161st Infantry was responsible for the security and combat operations of a densely populated area of southeast Baghdad known as Al Zafranaya and Jsr Diayla. The battalion operated out of Forward Operating Base Gunner, Baghdad. For its performance in combat, the 1–161st Infantry was awarded the Meritorious Unit Citation by the Department of the Army. Upon its return from overseas in March 2005, the brigade began to reorganize in accordance with the Armys new Unit of Action Brigade design, between deployments, the brigade responded to floods in Southwest Washington caused by the Great Coastal Gale of 2007. The 81st Brigade was alerted for a deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and it received its mobilization order on 19 March 2008 from the Department of Defense. The brigade completed pre-deployment training at Fort McCoy, WI and then deployed to Iraq from August 2008 to August 2009, the main focus of the brigade in OIF was security and force protection operations. The brigade was led into Iraq by Colonel Ronald Kapral and State Command Sergeant Major Robert Sweeney, during their time in Iraq, the brigade was visited by Washington state Governor Christine Gregoire and Washington Adjutant General, Brigadier General Toney. It suffered one fatality during its deployment, Specialist Samuel D. Stone, troop A, 1st Squadron, 303rd Cavalry Regiment received the Distinguished Service Unit award. The award was received on behalf of the unit by Captain Patrick Gehring, the brigade has shifted mobilization affiliation several times since the 1990s
35.
Stryker
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The IAV Stryker is a family of eight-wheeled armored fighting vehicles derived from the Canadian LAV III and based on the Swiss Piranha III 8×8. Stryker vehicles are produced by General Dynamics Land Systems Canada for the United States Army and it has 4-wheel drive and can be switched to all-wheel drive. In October 1999, General Eric Shinseki, then U. S. Army Chief of Staff, the plan, named Objective Force, would have the army adopt a flexible doctrine that would allow it to deploy quickly, and equipped for a variety of operations. On 27 February 2002, the Army formally renamed the Interim Armored Vehicle as the Stryker, the Stryker 105mm M1128 Mobile Gun System moved into low-rate initial production in 2005 for evaluation, and entered full production in 2007. General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada assembles the Stryker for the U. S. Army in a plant in London, the vehicle is employed in Stryker Brigade Combat Teams, light and mobile units based on the Brigade Combat Team Doctrine that relies on vehicles connected by military C4I networks. The Stryker has come under scrutiny from military experts since its introduction in the US Army. General Dynamicss Robotic Systems division was developing autonomous navigation for the Stryker, more than 1,000 Stryker vehicles have been rebuilt by Anniston Army Depot and returned to operations. The upgraded V-hull will be part of the new StrykShield situational awareness kit, allegheny Technologies ATI 500-MIL armor steel was designated the primary armored plating for the StrykShield package in 2008. In March 2010, it was reported that General Dynamics and Army were working to incorporate a double V-hull into the Stryker design, in July 2010 the Army awarded a $30 million contract to GDLS to start production of the new hull. On 9 March 2011, the Department of Defenses director of operational test, the issues are due to the tight drivers compartment and difficulty releasing the seat to extract an incapacitated driver. General Dynamics stated these issues would be corrected before the new Stryker version deploys, the upgrade also adds significant weight to the vehicle, which can cause it to sink into soft ground. In July 2011,450 Double V-Hull variants of the Stryker vehicle were ordered, DVH Strykers include a new hull configuration, increased armor, upgraded suspension and braking systems, wider tires, blast-attenuating seats, and a height management system. By August 2012, the Armys Stryker fleet included over 4,187 vehicles, in Afghanistan, it retained a 96 percent readiness rate. In mid-October 2014, the Army approved the procurement of DVH Strykers for a fourth Stryker brigade, with conversions to 360 vehicles to begin in FY2017. ECP enhancements include a more robust 450 HP engine, a more powerful 910 amp power generator, an upgrade to handle the new engine. Upgrading the fourth brigade also kept the line active through 2018, whereas deciding to upgrade after the line had closed would be more difficult. The Army plans to increase the lethality of Stryker ICVs by having half equipped with a 30 mm cannon, the Stryker is based on the LAV III light-armored vehicle, which in turn was based on the Swiss MOWAG Piranha III 8x8. The vehicle comes in variants with a common engine, transmission, hydraulics, wheels, tires, differentials
36.
Washington Army National Guard
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The Washington Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the Washington National Guard based in Washington. The history of the Washington Army National Guard dates back to 1854 with formation of the Washington Territorial Militia, the command is headquartered at Camp Murray in Pierce County. It consists of 6,200 soldiers in two brigades and various smaller units located throughout the state, reorganized and federally recognized 18 March 1947 with HQ at Centralia. Reorganized and redesignated 15 April 1959 as the 303d Armor, with one battalion, consolidated with 803d Armor between 15 April and 1 September 1993. Transferred from CARS to USARS1 June 1989 with headquarters at Camp Murray, reorganized, redesignated, and consolidated 1 May 1992, consisting as Troop E, a component of the 81st Infantry Brigade, at Puyallup. Washington Air National Guard Washington State Guard Washington Military Department McLatchy, the Development of the National Guard of Washington as an Instrument of Social Control, 1854-1916. Ph. D dissertation, University of Washington,1973, the Washington State National Guard, 1901-1917. MA thesis, Washington State University,1993, Washington State, Military Department, Office of the Adjutant General. Washington National Guard Pamphlet, The Official History of the Washington National Guard, Washington State, Military Department, Office of the Adjutant General. A Brief History of the Washington Territorial Militia, 1855–1889 and the National Guard of the State of Washington, Military Dept. - Army National Guard Bibliography of Washington Army National Guard History compiled by the United States Army Center of Military History
37.
San Bernardino, California
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San Bernardino /ˈsæn ˌbɜːrnɑːrˈdiːnoʊ/ is a city located in the Riverside-San Bernardino metropolitan area. It serves as the county seat of San Bernardino County, California, as one of the Inland Empires anchor cities, San Bernardino spans 81 square miles on the floor of the San Bernardino Valley and has a population of 209,924 as of the 2010 census. San Bernardino is the 17th-largest city in California and the 100th-largest city in the United States, San Bernardino is home to numerous diplomatic missions for the Inland Empire, being one of four cities in California with numerous consulates. The governments of Guatemala and Mexico have established their consulates in the area of the city. California State University, San Bernardino is located in the part of the city. The university also hosts the Coussoulis Arena, in addition, the city is home to the Inland Empire 66ers baseball team, they play their home games at San Manuel Stadium in downtown San Bernardino. In August 2012, San Bernardino became the largest city to choose to file for protection under Chapter 9 of the U. S. Bankruptcy code, San Bernardinos case was filed on August 1. On December 2,2015, a terrorist attack left 14 people dead and 22 seriously injured, the city of San Bernardino, California, occupies much of the San Bernardino Valley, which indigenous tribespeople originally referred to as The Valley of the Cupped Hand of God. The Tongva Indians also called the San Bernardino area Waaach in their language, upon seeing the immense geological arrowhead-shaped rock formation on the side of the San Bernardino Mountains, they found the hot and cold springs to which the arrowhead seemed to point. Politana was the first Spanish settlement in the San Bernardino Valley, Two years later the settlement was destroyed by superstitious local tribesmen, following the powerful earthquakes that shook the region. Several years later, the Serrano and Mountain Cahuilla rebuilt the Politana rancheria and they did and established the San Bernardino de Sena Estancia. Serrano and Cahuilla people inhabited Politana until long after the 1830s decree of secularization, the city of San Bernardino one of the oldest communities in the state of California, and in its present-day location, was not largely settled until 1851, after California became a state. The first Anglo-American colony was established by pioneers associated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or Mormons, hardworking Mormon colonists developed irrigated, commercial farming and lumbering, supplying agricultural produce and lumber throughout Southern California. The city was incorporated in the year 1857. Later that year most of the colonists were recalled by Brigham Young in 1857 due to the Utah War, once highly regarded in early California, news of the Mountain Meadows Massacre poisoned attitudes toward the Mormons. They sold these lands to new settlers who came to dominate the culture and politics in the county, many the new land owners unlike the sober Mormons, indulged in drinking at saloons now allowed in the town. Disorder, fighting and violence in the vicinity became common, reaching a climax in the 1859 Ainsworth - Gentry Affair, in 1860 a gold rush began in the mountains nearby with the discovery of gold by William F. Holcomb in Holcomb Valley early 1860. Another strike followed in the reach of Lytle Creek
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Bakersfield, California
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Bakersfield is a city in California, United States, and the county seat of Kern County. It covers about 142 square miles near the end of the San Joaquin Valley. Bakersfields population is approximately 365,000, making it the ninth-most populous city in California, the Bakersfield–Delano Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Kern County, had a 2010 census population of 839,631, making it the 62nd largest metropolitan area in the United States. The more built-up urban area that includes Bakersfield and areas immediately around the city, such as East Bakersfield, the city is a significant hub for both agriculture and oil production. Kern County is the most productive oil producing county, and the fourth most productive county in the United States. Industries include natural gas and other energy extraction, aerospace, mining, petroleum refining, manufacturing, distribution, food processing, the city is also the birthplace of the country music genre known as the Bakersfield sound. Archaeological evidence indicates the presence of Native American settlements dating back thousands of years, the Yokuts lived in lodges along the branches of the Kern River Delta and hunted antelope, tule elk, deer, bear, fish, and game birds. In 1776, Spanish missionary Father Francisco Garcés became the first European to explore the area, following the discovery of gold in California in 1848, settlers flooded into the San Joaquin Valley. In 1851, gold was discovered along the Kern River in the southern Sierra Nevada, the Bakersfield area, once a tule-reed-covered marshland, was first known as Kern Island to the handful of pioneers who built log cabins there in 1860. The area was subject to flooding from the Kern River, which occupied what is now the downtown area. In 1862, disastrous floods swept away the original settlement founded in 1860 by the German-born Christian Bohna, among those attracted to the area by the California gold rush was Thomas Baker, a lawyer and former colonel in the militia of Ohio, his home state. Baker moved to the banks of the Kern River in 1863, at what became known as Bakers Field, by 1870, with a population of 600, what is now known as Bakersfield was becoming the principal town in Kern County. In 1873, Bakersfield was officially incorporated as a city, alexander Mills was hired as the city marshal, a man one historian would describe as. An old man by the time he became Marshal of Bakersfield, but he was a Kentuckian, a handy man with a gun, and not lacking in initiative and resource when the mood moved him. Businessmen and others began to resent Mills, who was cantankerous, wanting to fire him but fearing reprisals, they came up with a scheme to disincorporate, effectively leaving him without an employer. According to local historian Gilbert Gia, the city was also failing to collect the taxes it needed for services, in 1876, the city voted to disincorporate. For the next 22 years, a citizens council managed the community, by 1880, the town had a population of 801, and by 1890, it had a population of 2,626. Migration from Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Southern California brought new residents, the city reincorporated on January 11,1898
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Riverside, California
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Riverside is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, located in the Inland Empire metropolitan area. Riverside is the county seat of the county and named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. It is the most populous city in the Inland Empire and in Riverside County and it is also part of the Greater Los Angeles area. Riverside is the 59th most populous city in the United States, as of the 2010 Census, Riverside had a population of 303,871. Riverside was founded in the early 1870s and it is the birthplace of the California citrus industry and home of the Mission Inn, the largest Mission Revival Style building in the United States. It is also home to the Riverside National Cemetery, the University of California, Riverside, is located in the northeastern part of the city. The university also hosts the Riverside Sports Complex, in the late 1700s and early 1800s, the area was inhabited by Cahuilla and the Serrano people. Californios such as Bernardo Yorba and Juan Bandini established ranches during the first half of the 19th century, in the 1860s, Louis Prevost launched the California Silk Center Association, a short-lived experiment in sericulture. In the wake of its failure, John W. North purchased some of its land, in March 1870, North distributed posters announcing the formation of a colony in California. North, a staunch temperance-minded abolitionist from New York State, had formerly founded Northfield, a few years later, some navel orange trees were planted and found to be such a success that full-scale planting began. Riverside was temperance minded, and Republican, there were four saloons in Riverside when it was founded. The license fees were raised until the saloons moved out of Riverside, investors from England and Canada transplanted traditions and activities adopted by prosperous citizens. As a result, the first golf course and polo field in Southern California were built in Riverside. C, the trees came from Bahia, Brazil. The Bahia orange did not thrive in Florida, but its success in Southern California was phenomenal, the three trees were planted on the Tibbetts property. One of the trees died after it was trampled by a cow during the first year it was planted, after the trampling, the two remaining trees were transplanted to property belonging to Sam McCoy to receive better care than L. C. That tree still stands to this day inside a protective fence abutting what is now a major intersection, the trees thrived in the Southern California climate and the navel orange industry grew rapidly. Many growers purchased bud wood and then grafted the cuttings to root stock, by 1882, there were more than half a million citrus trees in California, almost half of which were in Riverside. The development of refrigerated cars and innovative irrigation systems established Riverside as the richest city in the United States by 1895
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Palmdale, California
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Palmdale is a city in the center of northern Los Angeles County in the U. S. state of California. The San Gabriel Mountains separate Palmdale from the City of Los Angeles, on August 24,1962, Palmdale became the first community in the Antelope Valley to incorporate. 47 years later, in November 2009, voters approved making it a charter city and its population was 152,750 at the 2010 census, up from 116,670 at the 2000 census. Palmdale is the 33rd most populous city in California, in 2013, the Palmdale / Lancaster urban area had an estimated population of 513,547. According to area folklore, the travelers had been told they would know they were close to the ocean when they saw palm trees, never actually having seen palm trees before, they mistook the local Joshua trees for palms and so named their settlement after them. According to David L. Durham Joshua trees were sometimes called yucca palms at the time, the village was officially established upon the arrival of a post office on June 17,1888. By the 1890s farming families continued to migrate to Palmenthal and nearby Harold to grow grain, however, most of these settlers were unfamiliar with farming in a desert climate, so when the drought years occurred, most abandoned their settlement. By 1899, only one family was left in the original village, the rest of the settlers, including the post office, moved closer to the Southern Pacific railroad tracks. This new community was renamed Palmdale and was located where the present day civic center is, a railroad station was built along the tracks there. This railroad was operated by Southern Pacific and traveled between Los Angeles and San Francisco, the Wells Fargo stagecoach line that ran between San Francisco and New Orleans stopped there as well. During this period, crops of apples, pears and alfalfa became plentiful, in 1915, Palmdales first newspaper, the Palmdale Post, was published. Today it is called the Antelope Valley Press, in 1921, the first major link between Palmdale and Los Angeles was completed, Mint Canyon/Lancaster Road, later designated U. S. Route 6. Completion of this caused the local agricultural industry to flourish and was the first major step towards defining the metropolis that exists today. Presently this road is known as Sierra Highway, in 1924, the Little Rock Dam and the Harold Reservoir, present day Lake Palmdale, were constructed to assist the agricultural industry and have enough water to serve the growing communities. Agriculture continued to be the foremost industry for Palmdale and its northern neighbor Lancaster until the outbreak of World War II, in 1933, the United States government established Muroc Air Base six miles north of Lancaster in Kern County, now known as Edwards Air Force Base. They also bought Palmdale Airport in 1952 and established an aerospace development, one year later, in 1953, Lockheed established a facility at the airport. After this point in time, the industry took over as the primary local source of employment. Today the city is referred to as the Aerospace Capital of America because of its rich heritage in being the home of many of the aircraft used in the United States military
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Madera, California
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Madera is a city in California and the county seat of Madera County. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 61,416. Located in the San Joaquin Valley, Madera is a city of the Madera–Chowchilla Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Madera County. It is located in Californias San Joaquin Valley, the city is also home to the Madera Unified School District. Madera is located at 36°57′41″N 120°03′39″W, the geographic center of California is 38 mi east of Madera. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 15.8 square miles. Madera is the location of the Madera AVA wine region, Madera has a hot semi-arid climate. Average January temperatures are a maximum of 53.9 °F, the record high temperature was 116 °F on July 13,1961. The record low temperature was 15 °F on January 10,1949, average annual rainfall is 10.97 inches and there are an average of 43 days with measurable precipitation. The wettest year was 1983 with 22.13 inches and the driest year was 1932 with 4.73 inches, the most rainfall in one month was 7.11 inches in March 1991. The most rainfall in 24 hours was 2.60 inches on May 6,2005, although snow is rare,4.0 inches fell in January 1962. The town was named after the Spanish term for lumber, the town was laid out by the California Lumber Company in 1876. From 1876 to 1931 a 63-mile water flume carried lumber from the mountains to Madera where the lumber was shipped by train, the first post office at Madera opened in 1877 and the town incorporated on March 27,1907. One of the citys first African Americans to hold an office was Rev. Naaman N. Haynes. Landmarks include the notable and historic Madera water tower and a fully operational drive-in movie theater, the adopted son of classical guitarist Francisco Mayorga and film actress Lupe Mayorga, who were living in Madera at the time. His early life in Madera is eloquently covered in his autobiography, cowen award from the American Geophysical Union in Washington, DC. Frank Bergon, the author of four novels including Jesses Ghost, lee Evans, Olympic gold medalist and former world record holder in track and field. Zoila Frausto, womens Mixed Martial Arts champion Lavar Johnson, American mixed martial artist who competed as a heavyweight for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, jack W. Kelso, Medal of Honor recipient
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Southern California
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Southern California, often abbreviated as SoCal, is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises Californias 10 southernmost counties. The region is described as eight counties, based on demographics and economic ties, Imperial, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara. The more extensive 10-county definition, which includes Kern and San Luis Obispo counties, is used and is based on historical political divisions. Southern California is an economic center for the state of California. The 8-county and 10-county definitions are not used for the greater Southern California Megaregion, the megaregions area is more expansive, extending east into Las Vegas, Nevada and south across the Mexican border into Tijuana.5 million people. With over 22 million people, Southern California contains roughly 60 percent of Californias population, located east of Southern California is the Colorado Desert and the Colorado River at the border with Arizona. The Mojave Desert is located at the border with the state of Nevada while towards the south is the Mexico–United States border, within Southern California are two major cities, Los Angeles and San Diego, as well as three of the countrys largest metropolitan areas. With a population of 3,792,621, Los Angeles is the most populous city in California and the second most populous in the United States. South of Los Angeles and with a population of 1,307,402 is San Diego, the second most populous city in the state and the eighth most populous in the nation. The counties of Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, San Bernardino, and Riverside are the five most populous in the state, the motion picture, television, and music industry are centered in the Los Angeles area in Southern California. Hollywood, a district within Los Angeles, gives its name to the American motion picture industry, headquartered in Southern California are The Walt Disney Company, Sony Pictures, Universal, MGM, Paramount Pictures, 20th Century Fox, and Warner Brothers. Universal, Warner Brothers, and Sony also run major record companies, Southern California is also home to a large homegrown surf and skateboard culture. Companies such as Vans, Volcom, Quiksilver, No Fear, RVCA, some of the worlds biggest action sports events, including the X Games, Boost Mobile Pro, and the U. S. Open of Surfing, are all held in Southern California. Southern California is also important to the world of yachting, the annual Transpacific Yacht Race, or Transpac, from Los Angeles to Hawaii, is one of yachtings premier events. The San Diego Yacht Club held the Americas Cup, the most prestigious prize in yachting, from 1988 to 1995, Southern California is home to many sports franchises and sports networks such as Fox Sports Net. Many locals and tourists frequent the Southern California coast for its popular beaches, the desert city of Palm Springs is popular for its resort feel and nearby open spaces. Southern California is not a geographic designation and definitions of what constitutes Southern California vary. Geographically, Californias North-South midway point lies at exactly 37°958.23 latitude, around 11 miles south of San Jose, however, when the state is divided into two areas, the term Southern California usually refers to the 10 southernmost counties of the state
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San Diego
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San Diego is a major city in California, United States. It is in San Diego County, on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, approximately 120 miles south of Los Angeles and immediately adjacent to the border with Mexico. With an estimated population of 1,394,928 as of July 1,2015, San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest in California. It is part of the San Diego–Tijuana conurbation, the second-largest transborder agglomeration between the US and a country after Detroit–Windsor, with a population of 4,922,723 people. San Diego has been called the birthplace of California, historically home to the Kumeyaay people, San Diego was the first site visited by Europeans on what is now the West Coast of the United States. Upon landing in San Diego Bay in 1542, Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo claimed the area for Spain, the Presidio and Mission San Diego de Alcalá, founded in 1769, formed the first European settlement in what is now California. In 1821, San Diego became part of the newly independent Mexico, in 1850, California became part of the United States following the Mexican–American War and the admission of California to the union. The city is the seat of San Diego County and is the center of the region as well as the San Diego–Tijuana metropolitan area. San Diegos main economic engines are military and defense-related activities, tourism, international trade, the presence of the University of California, San Diego, with the affiliated UCSD Medical Center, has helped make the area a center of research in biotechnology. The original inhabitants of the region are now known as the San Dieguito, the area of San Diego has been inhabited by the Kumeyaay people. The first European to visit the region was Portuguese-born explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo sailing under the flag of Castile, sailing his flagship San Salvador from Navidad, New Spain, Cabrillo claimed the bay for the Spanish Empire in 1542, and named the site San Miguel. In November 1602, Sebastián Vizcaíno was sent to map the California coast, in May 1769, Gaspar de Portolà established the Fort Presidio of San Diego on a hill near the San Diego River. It was the first settlement by Europeans in what is now the state of California, in July of the same year, Mission San Diego de Alcalá was founded by Franciscan friars under Junípero Serra. By 1797, the mission boasted the largest native population in Alta California, with over 1,400 neophytes living in, Mission San Diego was the southern anchor in California of the historic mission trail El Camino Real. Both the Presidio and the Mission are National Historic Landmarks, in 1821, Mexico won its independence from Spain, and San Diego became part of the Mexican territory of Alta California. In 1822, Mexico began attempting to extend its authority over the territory of Alta California. The fort on Presidio Hill was gradually abandoned, while the town of San Diego grew up on the land below Presidio Hill. The Mission was secularized by the Mexican government in 1833, the 432 residents of the town petitioned the governor to form a pueblo, and Juan María Osuna was elected the first alcalde, defeating Pío Pico in the vote
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David Hackworth
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David Haskell Hackworth, also known as Hack, was a prominent military journalist and a former United States Army colonel who was decorated in both the Korean War and Vietnam War. Hackworth is known for his role in the creation and command of Tiger Force, Boorda committed suicide during Hackworths investigation. Merchant Marine in early-1945 at age 14, towards the end of World War II, the following year, he enlisted in the United States Army at the age of 15. He was assigned as a rifleman to the 351st Infantry Regiment, 88th Infantry Division and his unit, part of Trieste United States Troops, at times served under British command. In the Korean War, he became a sergeant, volunteering again to serve, Hackworth fought in Korea with the 25th Reconnaissance Company and the 27th Infantry Regiment of the 25th Infantry Division. He gained a commission as a second lieutenant in 1951 and was awarded three Silver Stars for heroism and three Purple Hearts. After a successful raid on Hill 1062 and battlefield promotion to first lieutenant, Hackworth created the 27th Wolfhound Raiders and led them from August to November 1951. He subsequently volunteered for a tour in Korea, this time with the 40th Infantry Division. Hackworth was promoted to the rank of captain, demobilized after the Armistice Agreement in Korea, Hackworth became bored with civilian life after two years of college and reentered the U. S. Army in 1956 as a captain. When Hackworth returned to duty, the expanding Cold War substantially changed the structure of the army from what he had known. He was involved in a number of fire drills around the Berlin Crisis of 1961 and he recounted his experiences with the Russian guard and his views on military history in his book About Face. When President Kennedy announced that an advisory team was being sent to South Vietnam. His request was denied, on the grounds that he had too much combat experience for the mission, in 1965, he deployed to Vietnam as a major. He served as an officer and battalion commander in the 101st Airborne Division. In November 1965 he founded the platoon-sized unit Tiger Force to outguerrilla the guerrillas, Tiger Force Initially Tiger Force was a highly decorated small unit in Vietnam which suffered heavy casualties and was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation. Hackworth has stated he did not know about the atrocities and does not know what caused the unit to spiral out of control, Hackworth quickly developed a reputation as an eccentric but effective soldier, becoming a public figure in several books authored by General S. L. A. The book advised counter-insurgency fighters to adopt some of the tactics used by Mao Zedong, Che Guevara. Hackworth described the strategy as out-G-ing the G and his personal and professional relationship with Marshall soured as Hackworth became suspicious of his methods and motivation
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Coats of arms of U.S. Armor Regiments
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Armored regiments of the United States Army have a long history. This coat of arms forms the basis for the units distinctive unit insignia. All 2005 unit listings are from Baumgarter and Aumiller, 1st Cavalry Regiment 1st Squadron is the armored reconnaissance squadron of the 2nd Brigade, 1st Armored Division stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas. 2nd Squadron is the reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition squadron of the 1st Brigade, 4th Infantry Division stationed at Fort Carson, 3rd Squadron is the armored reconnaissance squadron of the 3rd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, stationed at Fort Benning, Georgia. 5th Squadron is the reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition squadron of the 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, stationed at Fort Wainwright, Alaska. 6th Squadron is the reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition squadron of the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas. 8th Squadron is the reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition squadron of the 2nd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington. In July 2016, 8th Squadron - 1st Cavalry Regiment participated in Hanuman Guardian 2016, 3rd Squadron is the cavalry squadron of the 3d BCT, 25th Infantry Division, stationed at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. 4th Squadron was deactivated in October 2015, 5th Squadron is the armored reconnaissance squadron of the 2d BCT, 1st Infantry Division, stationed at Fort Riley, Kansas. It was redesignated and reactivated in 2005 as the 40th Cavalry Regiment serving in the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division. 1st Squadron, 1st Battalion, 94th Armor In 2015 the battalion had become 1st Squadron, 94th Cavalry, 1st Bde, 34th ID. 102nd Armor Regiment 103rd Armor Regiment 1st Battalion 2nd Battalion 3rd Battalion, 103rd Armor, as of 2011, is part of 55th Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division. 106th Armor Troop E, In 1952 Companies A and C of the 106th Tank Battalion were headquartered at Camp Lincoln in Illinois, the unit was reorganized on 1 February 1968 to consist of Troop E, an element of the 33d Infantry Brigade. 108th Armor 109th Armor 110th Armor 112th Cavalry Rarin to Go - From 1973 all of the Texas Army National Guard armor units were renumbered as battalions of the 112th Armor, the unit carries the colors and lineage of the original 112th Cavalry Regiment. The squadron Headquarters and Headquarters Troop are based in Bryan, Texas, with A Troop, B Troop and C Troop based in Taylor, Rosenberg, a and B Troops are equipped as cavalry units with HMMWVs, and C Troop is a dismounted infantry unit. The Squadron is part of the 72nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team of the 36th Infantry Division, most units were reconfigured as parts of 1-172 Cavalry or the 86th Brigade Special Troops Battalion. 1st Squadron, 172nd Cavalry 2nd Battalion, 172nd Armor - inactive, 1st Reconnaissance Squadron 2nd Medium Tank Battalion 198th Armor Regiment 203rd Armor - Missouri National Guard, 1963-68. Redesignated 1 October 1953 as 203rd Antiaircraft Artillery Battalion and it was consolidated 15 April 1959 with 203rd Combat Arms Regiment, a parent regiment under the Combat Arms Regimental System. This was part of the reorganisation that placed the Army National Guard under the ROCID/Pentomic organization
United States
