The 13th Division was an infantry division of the United States Army. It was established at Camp Lewis, Washington, in 1918, during World War I. [1] The war ended before the division saw combat, and it was inactivated in 1919. [2]
The 13th Division was an infantry division of the United States Army. It was established at Camp Lewis, Washington, in 1918, during World War I. [1] The war ended before the division saw combat, and it was inactivated in 1919. [2]
The 13th Division was activated at Camp Lewis, Washington on 16 July 1918 as part of the U.S. military mobilization for World War I. [2] It was manned and trained at Camp Lewis in preparation for combat in France, Several existing Regular Army units, and cadres taken from these units, formed the division's nucleus, while draftees, predominantly from California, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Colorado, North Dakota, and Utah, filled out the rest of the division. [2]
The "square" 13th Division's complement of four regiments included the 1st, 44th, 75th, and 76th Infantry Regiments. [2] In August 1918, the regiments were organized to form two brigades—the 25th (1st and 75th Regiments, plus the 38th Machine Gun Battalion) -- and the 26th Brigade (44th and 76th Regiments, plus the 39th Machine Gun Battalion). [2]
Cornelius Vanderbilt III served as the division's interim commander in the summer of 1918. [2] As they had for the recently departed 91st Division, community leaders welcomed Vanderbilt at a formal reception which took place at the newly-constructed Camp Lewis gymnasium, and included an orchestra, and more than 1,000 guests, including Governor Ernest Lister. [2] In addition to the reception for Vanderbilt, the civilian community welcomed the 13th Division's soldiers with public events, including a picnic and a track meet. [2]
Horace R. Cayton Sr., the publisher of Cayton's Weekly and Seattle's first African American journalist, criticized Vanderbilt for barring black troops from Camp Lewis's most popular recreation center. [2] He had also segregated the camp's Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) Hostess House, which was widely popular among soldiers. [2] Vanderbilt lifted the bans in September as the result of the public outcry generated by Cayton's articles. [2]
The 13 Division was briefly commanded by Brigadier General Frank B. Watson, with Vanderbilt taking command of the 25th Brigade. [2] When the permanent commander, Major General Joseph D. Leitch arrived in October 1918, Watson assumed command of the 26th Brigade. [2]
In late September 1918, the Spanish influenza epidemic reached Camp Lewis, and the post soon averaged 10 deaths per week. [2] In early October, the 213th Engineer Regiment arrived for assignment to the 13th Division, and brought even more ill soldiers into the camp. [2] In an effort to halt the widening epidemic, Leitch imposed a quarantine on 19 October. [2]
A Tacoma Daily Ledger fundraising campaign to erect the world's largest flagpole at Camp Lewis culminated on 12 October 1918, when soldiers attempted to raise a 60-by-90-foot American flag which was mounted on a 314-foot-tall pole made from a Douglas fir tree. [2] The event was sparsely attended because of the flu quarantine, and soon after the pole went up, a gust of wind whipped the flag hard enough to snap the pole in three places. [2] An attempt to raise a 214-foot pole in November also met with failure, as the wind caught the flag during the dedication ceremony, snapped the pole into two pieces and shredded the flag. [2] A third, more traditional flagpole was successfully erected later in November. [2]
Major Alexander P. Cronkhite was a company commander in the 213th Engineers and the son of Major General Adelbert Cronkhite. [2] He arrived at Camp Lewis in early October, and was soon hospitalized with influenza. [2] Major Cronkhite was released on 21 October, and joined his company for a cross-country hike. [2] Because he was still recovering, another officer was temporarily in command. [2] When the group stopped to rest and eat lunch, Cronkhite used a borrowed handgun to engage in target practice by shooting at a tobacco tin on a nearby fence post. [2] While engaged in this activity, Cronkhite sustained a gunshot wound and died at the scene. [2] Subsequent investigation found that it was accidental and self-inflicted. [2]
Adelbert Cronkhite did not accept this finding, and pushed for several years to have the investigation reopened. [2] In the mid-1920s, the sergeant and captain who had been with Alexander Cronkhite when he died were arrested and charged with murder. [2] Because the captain was Jewish, Adelbert Cronkhite's cause was taken up by anti-Semitic newspapers, creating a nationwide story. [2] When the sergeant was tried, defense attorneys were able to demonstrate that an accidental shooting was the most likely possibility. [2] He was acquitted, and charges against the captain were soon dismissed. [2]
The armistice of 11 November 1918 ended World War I before the 13th Division could complete its training and depart for France. [2] Within a few days, Leitch began permitting the release of officers who were no longer needed, as well as soldiers who requested discharge so they could return home to support their families. [2] The 13th Division held a demobilization parade on 22 November 1918, with members of the local community watching primarily from their automobiles as a precaution against the spread of influenza. [2]
The division was nearly demobilized by February 1919, except for the 13th Field Artillery Brigade, which was briefly employed in Seattle to help restore order during a labor strike. [2] Demobilization resumed again on 25 February, and the soldiers of the 13th Field Artillery Brigade were soon discharged to civilian life. [2]
The 13th Division's shoulder sleeve insignia was approved by the War Department shortly before the division demobilized. [2] It consisted of a blue circle featuring the number 13 in white. [2] A black cat depicted above a red horseshoe open at the top were intended to represent hoodoo that the Germans could not defeat, and the good luck that the division expected to have during combat in France. [2]
The 2nd Infantry Division ("Indianhead") is a formation of the United States Army. Since the 1960s, its primary mission has been the pre-emptive defense of South Korea in the event of an invasion from North Korea. Approximately 17,000 soldiers serve in the 2nd Infantry Division, with 10,000 stationed in South Korea, accounting for about 35% of the United States Forces Korea personnel. Known as the 2nd Infantry Division-ROK/U.S. Combined Division (2ID/RUCD), the division is bolstered by rotational Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs) from other U.S. Army divisions.
The 4th Infantry Division is a division of the United States Army based at Fort Carson, Colorado. It is composed of a division headquarters battalion, three brigade combat teams, a combat aviation brigade, a division sustainment brigade, and a division artillery.
The 5th Infantry Division (Mechanized)—nicknamed the "Red Diamond", or the "Red Devils" —was an infantry division of the United States Army that served in World War I, World War II and the Vietnam War, and with NATO and the U.S. Army III Corps. It was deactivated on 24 November 1992 and reflagged as the 2nd Armored Division.
The 8th Infantry Division, ("Pathfinder") was an infantry division of the United States Army during the 20th century. The division served in World War I, World War II, and Operation Desert Storm. Initially activated in January 1918, the unit did not see combat during World War I and returned to the United States. Some units would serve in the American Expeditionary Force to Siberia. Activated again on 1 July 1940 as part of the build-up of military forces prior to the United States' entry into World War II, the division saw extensive action in the European Theatre of Operations. Following World War II, the division was moved to West Germany, where it remained stationed at the Rose Barracks in Bad Kreuznach until it was inactivated on 17 January 1992.
The 80th Training Command is a formation of the United States Army Reserve.
The 97th Infantry Division was a unit of the United States Army in World War I and World War II. Nicknamed the "Trident division" because of its shoulder patch, a vertical trident in white on a blue background, it was originally trained in amphibious assaults as preparation for deployment in the Pacific Theater. It was deployed to Europe in 1944 when casualties from the Battle of the Bulge needed to be replaced.
The 98th Infantry Division ("Iroquois") was a unit of the United States Army in the closing months of World War I and during World War II. The unit is now one of the U.S. Army Reserve's training divisions, officially known as the 98th Training Division. Its primary mission is to conduct Initial Entry Training (IET) for new soldiers. It is one of three training divisions subordinate to the 108th Training Command (IET) and handles command and control of units throughout the eastern United States and in Puerto Rico.
The 76th Infantry Division was a unit of the United States Army in World War I, World War II and the Cold War. The division was inactivated in 1996 and has been reconstituted as the 76th US Army Reserve Operational Response Command in 2013.
The 9th Infantry Division is an inactive infantry division of the United States Army. It was formed as the 9th Division during World War I, but never deployed overseas. In later years it was an important unit of the U.S. Army during World War II and the Vietnam War. It was also activated as a peacetime readiness unit from 1947 to 1962 at Fort Dix, New Jersey as a Training Division, West Germany, and Fort Carson, Colorado as a Full Combat Status Division, and from 1972 to 1991 as an active-duty infantry division at Fort Lewis, Washington. The division was inactivated in December 1991.
The 37th Infantry Division was a unit of the United States Army in World War I and World War II. It was a National Guard division from Ohio, nicknamed the "Buckeye Division". Today, its lineage is continued through the 37th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, with battalions from Ohio, Michigan, and South Carolina.
The 30th Infantry Division was a United States Army unit of the National Guard that served in World War I and World War II. It was nicknamed the "Old Hickory" division, in honor of President Andrew Jackson. The Germans nicknamed this division "Roosevelt's SS". The 30th Infantry Division, involved in 282 days of intense combat over a period from June 1944 through April 1945, was regarded by a team of historians led by S.L.A. Marshall as the American infantry division that had "performed the most efficient and consistent battle services" in the European Theater of Operations (ETO). In the present day, the division's lineage continues as 30th Armored Brigade Combat Team, part of the North Carolina National Guard. The unit's most recent combat deployment was in 2019.
The 85th Infantry Division also known as the "Custer Division," was an infantry division of the United States Army in World War I and World War II. It currently exists as the 85th Support Command in the United States Army Reserve.
The 40th Division was an infantry division of the British Army active during the First World War, where it served on the Western Front. It was a division of Lord Kitchener's New Army volunteers, mostly "bantam" recruits of below regulation height. It was later briefly reformed as a deception formation in the Second World War, and during the early years of the Cold War was recreated a third time to garrison Hong Kong.
The 14th Indian Infantry Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army during World War II. It fought in the Arakan Campaign 1942–43, and was subsequently converted into a Training Division, providing drafts of replacements for units of the Fourteenth Army during the Burma Campaign.
Four regiments of the United States Army have used the designation 44th Infantry Regiment; one during the War of 1812, one during the Reconstruction Era, one during World War I, and one regiment of the Philippine Scouts.
The 44th Air Defense Artillery Regiment is an Air Defense Artillery regiment of the United States Army, first constituted in 1918 in the Regular Army during World War I. During World War II the unit served as the 54th Coast Artillery Regiment
The 16th Division was an infantry division of the United States Army raised during World War I. It was the second formation of that name raised in the United States, the first being renamed to 37th Division in 1917.
The 213th Brigade was a Home Defence and training formation of the British Army during both the First and Second World Wars.
73rd Division was a short-lived infantry division of the British Army during World War I. It served in Home Forces and never went overseas.
Adelbert Cronkhite was a career officer in the United States Army. He was notable for his command of the 80th Division during World War I. He also served as interim commander of IX Corps and commander of VI Corps after the war. In addition, his later command assignments included the Newport News Port of Debarkation, the Coast Artillery Training Center, and Third Corps Area.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) Divisions of the United States Army | |
|---|---|
| Airborne | |
| Armored | |
| Cavalry | |
| Infantry |
|
| Mountain | |
