157th Infantry Brigade (United States)

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name= 157th Infantry Brigade


caption=157th Infantry Brigade shoulder sleeve insignia
dates= 1917-1919
1963-1995
2006-Present
country= United States
allegiance=
branch= U.S. Army
type= Infantry
role= Training
size= Brigade
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garrison= Fort Jackson
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battle_honours= World War 1: Meuse-Argonne
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notable_commanders=Brig. Gen. Harry J. Mier
Brig. Gen. Edwin D. Miller
Col. Richard B. Smith
Brig. Gen. Dean W. Meyerson
Brig. Gen. Talmadge J. Jacobs
Brig. Gen. Joseph M. Cannon
Brig. Gen. John L. Kotcho
Brig. Gen. William J. Collins Jr.
Brig. Gen. Eddi Z. Zyko
Brig. Gen. William J. Nicholson
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identification_symbol_2_label=The 157th Infantry Brigade is an AC/RC unit based at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. The unit is responsible for training selected United States Army Reserve & National Guard units in South Carolina & the South Eastern US. The unit was formerly designated as 5th Brigade, 87th Division. The brigade is a subordinate unit of U.S. First Army

The 79th Division "Liberty" Division; also known as the "Lorraine" Division, was a National Army division established 5 Aug 17 by the War Department to be formed at Camp Meade, Maryland. The Division was commanded by Maj. Gen. Joseph E. Kuhn. Draftees were from Pennsylvania and Maryland. Movement overseas commenced on 6 July 1918 and was completed by 3 August 1918. Primary units included the 157th Infantry Brigade, consisting of the 313th Infantry Regiment, 314th Infantry Regiment, and 311th Machine Gun Battalion. The 157th Infantry Brigade was commanded by Brig. Gen. William J. Nicholson. One the Army's most expert cavalry officers, he was seldom seen off his horse at Camp Meade.

Shrouded in secrecy, the Brigade left from Hoboken, New Jersey in July 1918 on the SS Leviathan, a speedy ex-German liner that arrived at Brest, France the morning of July 15 1918. They trained for two months at Champ Little behind the French lines. On September 26, 1918 they "went over the top" in the Meuse-Argonne offensive. In a period of heartbreaking losses, the men struggled through nine kilometers of barbed wire and pot-marked earth. They destroyed German defenses that were said to be impregnable.Fact|date=February 2008 That night they were on the outskirts of Montfaucon, headquarters of the enemy command. The 313th fought until the end, November 11, 1918. Gen. John J. Pershing commended the men of the 79th Division, and especially the 313th Infantry Regiment whose forces penetrated deeper into enemy territory then any other outfit.

Until 1963 the 157th Infantry Brigade (Mechanized) was headquartered in Chester, Pennsylvania. From 1963-1968, the 157th was based in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. The Brigade was restationed to Horsham, Pennsylvania until its inactivation in 1995.

Organization at time of Inactivation

The unit consisted of:
*HHC, 157th Infantry Brigade -Horsham, PA
* Troop C, 9th Cavalry - Wilkes Barre, PA
* 1st Battalion, 314th Infantry (Mechanized) - Lock Haven PA
* 1st Battalion, 315th Infantry (Mechanized) - Germantown, PA
* 6th Battalion, 68th Armor - Bethlehem, PA
* 3rd Battalion, 42nd Field Artillery - Bristol, PA
* 157th Support Battalion - Edgemont, PA
* 420th Engineer Company - Pittsburgh, PA

In 2006, as part of the Army's Transformation Plan, the 5/87th was redesignated as the 157th Infantry Brigade.

Organization

The unit is composed of:
*HHD, 157th Infantry Brigade - Fort Jackson, SC
* 2nd Battalion, 307th Regiment - Fort Jackson, SC
* 1st Battalion, 345th Regiment - Fort Jackson, SC
* 2nd Battalion, 345th Regiment - Fort Jackson, SC
* 2nd Battalion, 347th Regiment - Fort Gordon, GA
* 1st Battalion, 349th Regiment - Fort Gordon, GA

For further information see "The Brigade, A History" by John J. McGrath from the Combat Studies Institute Press, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

External links

* [http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/lineage/branches/div/087d5bde.htm Lineage & Honors for 5th Brigade, 87th Division]
* [http://www.tioh.hqda.pentagon.mil/Inf/157InfantryBrigade.htm Heraldry of the 157th]
* [http://www.157thinfbde.army.mil/History.htm Official 157th history]
* [http://www.armyreserve.army.mil/USARC/DIV-TS/0087DIV-TS/0005BDE/Overview.htm Brigade Overview]