31st Infantry Division (United States)

31st Infantry Division (United States)
Unit name	31st Infantry Division
Caption	Shoulder sleeve insignia
Dates	1917–1968
Country	United States
Branch	United States Army
Type	Infantry
Size	Division
Garrison	St. Louis, Missouri
Nickname	The Dixie Division
Battles	Philippine campaign (1941–42); New Guinea campaign; Leyte; Southern Philippines
Notable commanders	Major General Clarence R. Huebner

31st Infantry Division (United States) was a National Guard infantry division of the United States Army organized during World War I and active through the Cold War. Raised from units of the National Guard in the Midwest and South, the division served in both world wars and underwent multiple reorganizations under National Guard Bureau and Department of Defense direction. The division is noted for its service in the Philippine Islands during World War II and its postwar role within the United States Army Reserve and state National Guard structures.

Formation and Early History

The division was constituted in 1917 as part of the American mobilization for World War I under the authority of the Selective Service Act of 1917 and federalization by the President of the United States. Units were drawn from the Alabama National Guard, Florida National Guard, Georgia National Guard, Louisiana National Guard, Mississippi National Guard, and Tennessee National Guard, with headquarters organized in St. Louis, Missouri. Early commanders coordinated training at camps such as Camp Shelby (Mississippi), Camp Beauregard, and Camp Jackson (South Carolina) while integrating personnel under the oversight of the War Department and the American Expeditionary Forces mobilization schema.

World War I and Interwar Period

During World War I, the division was mobilized but did not deploy as a complete formation to the Western Front; elements were used as replacements to units in France and in support roles connected to the American Expeditionary Forces. After demobilization in 1919, the division was reorganized in the 1920s under the National Defense Act of 1920 and assigned to the National Guard Bureau as part of interwar force structure. In the 1920s and 1930s, the division conducted annual training with other formations such as the 82nd Division and the 42nd Division at National Guard encampments, participated in civil support during events involving the Federal Bureau of Investigation and state authorities, and adjusted manpower in response to fiscal constraints during the Great Depression.

World War II Service

At the outbreak of hostilities in the Pacific following the Attack on Pearl Harbor, the division was federalized and elements were dispatched to the Philippine Department for reinforcement. Under commanders who coordinated with the United States Army Forces in the Far East and General Douglas MacArthur, troops of the division fought in the Philippine campaign (1941–42) and later reconstituted and retrained in the United States and Australia for the New Guinea campaign (1942–44). During the Leyte Campaign and the Southern Philippines campaign (1944–45), the division operated alongside formations such as the 6th Infantry Division (United States), 24th Infantry Division (United States), and units of the Philippine Commonwealth Army, supporting Amphibious warfare operations planned by United States Navy and United States Marine Corps components. The division's operations intersected with campaigns directed by South West Pacific Area headquarters and contributed to liberation efforts on islands contested by the Imperial Japanese Army.

Postwar Reorganization and Cold War Era

Following Victory over Japan Day and demobilization, the division was inactivated and elements returned to state control, where the National Guard Bureau reorganized the force in the context of the emerging Cold War and NATO commitments. Reactivated in various state National Guard configurations, the division underwent the Pentomic and later ROAD reorganizations directed by United States Army Training and Doctrine Command predecessors and the Secretary of Defense. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s the division's units were subject to federal activation for crises and supported continental defense plans coordinated with North American Aerospace Defense Command priorities, until final inactivation and reallocation of units under state adjutants general and the United States Army Reserve system in 1968.

Unit Composition and Insignia

The division's wartime organization included infantry regiments, field artillery battalions, engineer, medical, and signal units aligned under a divisional headquarters framework consistent with United States Army tables of organization. Infantry regiments affiliated during different periods included associations with the 124th Infantry Regiment (United States), 154th Infantry Regiment (United States), and other National Guard regiments drawn from participant states. The shoulder sleeve insignia—an Asian map-shaped motif adopted in the World War II era—was approved by the Institute of Heraldry (United States) and reflected theater associations; unit colors and distinctive unit insignia were registered with the Adjutant General of the Army and used on flags and campaign streamers.

Notable Engagements and Casualties

Key engagements attributed to the division or its elements include fighting in the Philippine campaign (1941–42), resistance during the Bataan campaign, operations in the New Guinea campaign, Leyte campaign, and liberation actions in the Southern Philippines campaign (1944–45). These operations generated casualties among infantry, artillery, and support units and involved coordination with Allied military operations in the South West Pacific Area, causing loss of personnel memorialized by state casualty rolls and federal military records maintained by the National Personnel Records Center. Individual soldiers and units received awards such as the Bronze Star Medal, Silver Star Medal, and unit citations distributed under United States military award regulations for actions in amphibious assaults and jungle warfare.

Legacy and Memorials

The division's legacy persists in state National Guard lineages, regimental histories, and commemorations by veterans' organizations such as the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion. Memorials dedicated to actions in the Philippines and plaques at state armories and veterans' museums commemorate service members listed in the World War II Memorial (United States) registers and state veteran cemeteries. Scholarly work in military history departments at institutions like United States Army War College and publications from the Center of Military History (United States) preserve operational accounts, while surviving veterans and descendants participate in reunions and historical societies that document the division's role in 20th-century American military operations.

Category:Infantry divisions of the United States Army Category:Military units and formations established in 1917 Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1968