The 53rd Infantry Regiment was an infantry

Infantry

Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...

 regiment

Regiment

A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...

 of the United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

. It served as a part of the 7th Infantry Division for most of its history.

World War I

The 53rd Infantry Regiment was first constituted and activated in the regular army

Regular army

A regular army consists of the permanent force of a country's army that is maintained under arms during peacetime.Countries that use the term include:*Australian Army*British Army*Canadian Forces, specifically "Regular Force"*Egyptian army*Indian Army...

 as the in the 12th Infantry Brigade, 6th Infantry Division. It served with the division until 1939.

World War II

On July 1, 1940, the division was reactivated at Camp Ord

Fort Ord

Fort Ord was a U.S. Army post on Monterey Bay in California. It was established in 1917 as a maneuver area and field artillery target range and was closed in September 1994. Fort Ord was one of the most attractive locations of any U.S. Army post, because of its proximity to the beach and California...

, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, under the command of Major General Joseph W. Stilwell. The 12th and 13th Brigades did not reactivate as part of an army-wide elimination of brigade commands within its divisions. The division was instead centered around three infantry regiments; the 17th Infantry Regiment

17th Infantry Regiment (United States)

The 17th Infantry Regiment is a United States Army infantry regiment. While the 17th Infantry Regiment was organized on January 11, 1812, it was consolidated with the 3rd Infantry due to extremely heavy losses at Frenchtown, and lost its identity two years later until May 3, 1861, when it was...

, the 32nd Infantry Regiment, and the 53rd Infantry Regiment. Most of the soldiers in the division were selective service soldiers, chosen as a part of the US Army's first peacetime military draft.

The 7th Infantry Division was assigned to III Corps of the Fourth United States Army, and that year it was sent to Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

 for tactical maneuvers. Division units also practiced boat loading at the Monterey Wharf

Monterey, California

The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...

 and amphibious assault techniques at the Salinas River

Salinas River (California)

The Salinas River is the largest river of the central coast of California, running and draining 4,160 square miles. It flows north-northwest and drains the Salinas Valley that slices through the Coast Range south from Monterey Bay...

 in California. With the Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese attack of Pearl Harbor

Attack on Pearl Harbor

The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...

, the division was sent to Camp San Luis Obispo

Camp San Luis Obispo

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.-History:...

 to continue its training. The 53rd Infantry Regiment was removed from the 7th Division and replaced with the 159th Infantry Regiment

159th Infantry Regiment (United States)

The 159th Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment of the United States Army. It served as a part of the 40th Infantry Division for most of its history before deploying in World War II as a part of the 7th Infantry Division.-World War I:...

, newly deployed from the California Army National Guard

California Army National Guard

The California Army National Guard is the land force component of the California National Guard, one of the reserve component United States Army and is part of the United States National Guard. The California Army National Guard is composed of about 20,000 soldiers...

.The 53rd followed the 7th Division to Alaska and garrisoned Adak island.