56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team
Encyclopedia
The 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division, also known as the Independence Brigade, is a brigade combat team
of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard
. The 56th SBCT is one of nine Stryker Brigade Combat Teams in the United States Army
and one of five brigades of the 28th Infantry Division. It is the only reserve component stryker unit in the Army and provides light infantry land assets for both federal and state active duty missions. The federal mission is to deploy on short notice as part of the 28th Infantry Division and destroy, capture, or repel enemy forces using maneuver and shock effect. The state mission of the brigade is to serve the Governor and the citizens of the Commonwealth
as needed in times of natural disaster or civil unrest. The 56th SBCT headquarters is located in Willow Grove
, Pennsylvania
.
. Units of the 111th Infantry
trace their lineage back to 1747, when Benjamin Franklin
first established his famed "Associators" in Philadelphia. The battalions, as well as the brigade, carry battle streamers from nearly every conflict throughout American history.
As part of the 28th Division, the brigade was part of its initial organization which included the 111th and 112th Infantry Regiments). During World War I it was involved in the Meuse-Argonne, Champagne-Marne, Aisne-Marne, Oise-Aisne, and Ypres-Lys (FA) operations. During the war, the 28th Infantry Division took a total of 14,139 casualties (KIA-2,165 ; WIA-11,974).
During World War II
, the 111th Infantry Regiment was mobilized and served in the Pacific Theater. The unit earned honors in the Central Pacific, the Eastern Mandates and the Western Pacific.
The brigade was called to active duty during the Blizzard of 1996, when flood emergencies were declared by the Governors of Pennsylvania and West Virginia
. During the blizzard in Philadelphia, the 56th SBCT won credit in saving over 70 lives by providing emergency medical transportation during the duration of the Governor's proclamation.
In December 2000, the United States Army proposed a multi-year program to take the country’s defense forces into the 21st century. The following year, the 56th Brigade, Pennsylvania Army National Guard was selected as the only reserve component Stryker Brigade out of seven in the entire United States Army.
The brigade was reflagged the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team on 24 October 2004 at Fort Indiantown Gap
's Muir Field.
On 1 September 2005 the entire Brigade Combat Team was mobilized to deploy to Louisiana
after Hurricane Katrina
, the sixth strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic Ocean, slammed into the Gulf Coast. The 56th SBCT was stationed in and around New Orleans to support the relief effort for nearly a month and a half. This included a subsequent deployment to the areas damaged by Hurricane Rita
, which made land fall near the Louisiana-Texas border.
The brigade trained at Camp Shelby, Mississippi from 19 September 2008 until November 2008 when it moved to the Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) in Fort Polk
, Louisiana
until December 2008. The brigade continued training at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in December 2008 and moved to Camp Buehring
, Kuwait in the United States Central Command
area of operations in January 2009 awaiting movement into Iraq
. The 56th SBCT, based out Camp Taji
, Iraq, conducted operations in the northern Baghdad Governorate from January to September 2009, before redeploying to Kuwait and returning home at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst.
56th Stryker Brigade – OIF Composition
The brigade is composed of the following additional units:
Brigade combat team
The brigade combat team is the basic deployable unit of maneuver in the US Army. A brigade combat team consists of one combat arms branch maneuver brigade, and its attached support and fire units. A brigade combat team is generally commanded by a colonel , but in rare instances it is commanded by...
of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard
Pennsylvania Army National Guard
The Pennsylvania Army National Guard, abbreviated PAARNG, is part of the United States Army National Guard and is based in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania...
. The 56th SBCT is one of nine Stryker Brigade Combat Teams in 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...
and one of five brigades of the 28th Infantry Division. It is the only reserve component stryker unit in the Army and provides light infantry land assets for both federal and state active duty missions. The federal mission is to deploy on short notice as part of the 28th Infantry Division and destroy, capture, or repel enemy forces using maneuver and shock effect. The state mission of the brigade is to serve the Governor and the citizens of the Commonwealth
Commonwealth (United States)
Four of the constituent states of the United States officially designate themselves Commonwealths: Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Virginia....
as needed in times of natural disaster or civil unrest. The 56th SBCT headquarters is located in Willow Grove
Willow Grove
Willow Grove may refer to:* Willow Grove , listed on the NRHP in Maryland* Willow Grove, Pennsylvania, United States* Willow Grove , listed on the NRHP in Virginia* Willow Grove Park, Pennsylvania...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
.
History
The 56th SBCT is composed of some of the oldest units in the United States Armed ForcesUnited States armed forces
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard.The United States has a strong tradition of civilian control of the military...
. Units of the 111th Infantry
111th Infantry Regiment (United States)
The 111th Infantry Regiment is represented in the U.S. Army by 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry assigned to the Pennsylvania Army National Guard's 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division...
trace their lineage back to 1747, when Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
first established his famed "Associators" in Philadelphia. The battalions, as well as the brigade, carry battle streamers from nearly every conflict throughout American history.
As part of the 28th Division, the brigade was part of its initial organization which included the 111th and 112th Infantry Regiments). During World War I it was involved in the Meuse-Argonne, Champagne-Marne, Aisne-Marne, Oise-Aisne, and Ypres-Lys (FA) operations. During the war, the 28th Infantry Division took a total of 14,139 casualties (KIA-2,165 ; WIA-11,974).
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the 111th Infantry Regiment was mobilized and served in the Pacific Theater. The unit earned honors in the Central Pacific, the Eastern Mandates and the Western Pacific.
The brigade was called to active duty during the Blizzard of 1996, when flood emergencies were declared by the Governors of Pennsylvania and West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
. During the blizzard in Philadelphia, the 56th SBCT won credit in saving over 70 lives by providing emergency medical transportation during the duration of the Governor's proclamation.
In December 2000, the United States Army proposed a multi-year program to take the country’s defense forces into the 21st century. The following year, the 56th Brigade, Pennsylvania Army National Guard was selected as the only reserve component Stryker Brigade out of seven in the entire United States Army.
The brigade was reflagged the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team on 24 October 2004 at Fort Indiantown Gap
Fort Indiantown Gap
Fort Indiantown Gap, also referred to as "The Gap" or "FIG", is a census-designated place and U.S. Army post primarily located in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania. A portion of the installation is located in eastern Dauphin County...
's Muir Field.
On 1 September 2005 the entire Brigade Combat Team was mobilized to deploy to Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
after Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
, the sixth strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic Ocean, slammed into the Gulf Coast. The 56th SBCT was stationed in and around New Orleans to support the relief effort for nearly a month and a half. This included a subsequent deployment to the areas damaged by Hurricane Rita
Hurricane Rita
Hurricane Rita was the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded and the most intense tropical cyclone ever observed in the Gulf of Mexico. Rita caused $11.3 billion in damage on the U.S. Gulf Coast in September 2005...
, which made land fall near the Louisiana-Texas border.
Iraq deployment
Fort Polk
Fort Polk is a United States Army installation located in Vernon Parish, approximately 7 miles east of Leesville, Louisiana and 20 miles north of DeRidder, Louisiana....
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
until December 2008. The brigade continued training at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in December 2008 and moved to Camp Buehring
Camp Buehring
Camp Buehring is a staging post for US troops in the northwestern region of Kuwait. The base is used for military troops heading north into Iraq as well as the primary location for the Middle Eastern Theater Reserve...
, Kuwait in the United States Central Command
United States Central Command
The United States Central Command is a theater-level Unified Combatant Command unit of the U.S. armed forces, established in 1983 under the operational control of the U.S. Secretary of Defense...
area of operations in January 2009 awaiting movement into Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
. The 56th SBCT, based out Camp Taji
Camp Taji
Camp Taji is a military installation, also known as Camp Cooke used by coalition forces near Taji or Al Taji , Iraq. The camp is located in a rural region approximately north of the city of Baghdad in the Baghdad Governorate.-History:...
, Iraq, conducted operations in the northern Baghdad Governorate from January to September 2009, before redeploying to Kuwait and returning home at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst.
56th Stryker Brigade – OIF Composition
- Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 56th Brigade Combat Team (Stryker)
- 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry Regiment111th Infantry Regiment (United States)The 111th Infantry Regiment is represented in the U.S. Army by 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry assigned to the Pennsylvania Army National Guard's 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division...
- 1st Battalion, 112th Infantry Regiment
- 2d Battalion, 112th Infantry Regiment
- 1st Battalion, 108th Field Artillery Regiment
- Battery B, 1st Battalion, 109th Field Artillery Regiment
- 328th Brigade Support Battalion
- 2d Squadron (RSTA), 104th Cavalry Regiment
- 856th Engineer Company
- 656th Signal Company
- 556th Military Intelligence Company
- Company D (Anti Tank), 112th Infantry Regiment
- 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry Regiment
Composition
-
- Headquarters and Headquarters Company
- 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry Regiment111th Infantry Regiment (United States)The 111th Infantry Regiment is represented in the U.S. Army by 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry assigned to the Pennsylvania Army National Guard's 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division...
- 1st Battalion, 112th Infantry Regiment
- 2nd Battalion, 112th Infantry Regiment
- 2nd Squadron, 104th Cavalry Regiment (Reconnaissance, Surveillance and Target Acquisition)
- 1st Battalion, 108th Field Artillery Regiment
- 328th Brigade Support Battalion
- D Company (Anti-Tank), 112th Infantry Regiment
- 856th Engineer Company
- 656th Signal Company
- 556th Military Intelligence Company
Lineage
- Organized 1800-05-01 at Philadelphia as the Weccacoe Fire Company of the Philadelphia City Volunteer Fire Department.
- Reorganized as Company B, 72nd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment (Fire Zouave Regiment), and mustered into federal service 1861-08-10 at Philadelphia;
- Mustered out 1864-08-24 at Philadelphia.
- Reorganized 1867-09-17 in the Pennsylvania Militia at Philadelphia as Company A, Weccacoe Legion.
- Re-designated 1868-03-06 as Company A, Keystone Guards.
- Disbanded 1868-09-30 at Philadelphia (Weccacoe Fire Company remained in service as a separate organization).
- Pennsylvania Militia re-designated 1870-04-07 as the Pennsylvania National Guard.
- Weccacoe Legion reorganized 1870-04-29 in the Pennsylvania National Guard at Philadelphia as a company.
- Expanded 1878-10-22 – 1878-10-26 as a battalion.
- Former Company A, Keystone Guards, reorganized 1878-10-30 as Company A, Weccacoe Legion.
- Re-designated 1879-07-31 as Company E, 3rd Infantry Regiment.
- Re-designated 1880-10-31 as Company A, 3rd Infantry Regiment.
- Mustered into federal service 1898-05-11 at Mount Gretna, as Company A, 3rd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry;
- Mustered out 1898-10-22 at Philadelphia.
- Reorganized 1899-02-01 at Philadelphia as Company A, 3rd Infantry Regiment.
- Mustered into federal service 1916-07-01 at Philadelphia;
- Mustered out 1916-10-18.
- Mustered into federal service 1917-03-28 at Philadelphia;
- Drafted into federal service 1917-08-05.
- Consolidated 1917-10-11 with Company A, 10th Infantry Regiment (organized in 1869), and consolidated unit reorganized and re-designated as Company A, 110th Infantry, an element of the 28th Division.
- Demobilized 1919-05-24 at Camp Dix, New Jersey.
- Former Company A, 3rd Infantry Regiment, reorganized 1920-08-02 in the Pennsylvania National Guard at Philadelphia as Company A, 3rd Infantry;
- Federally recognized 1920-08-07.
- Reorganized and re-designated 1921-04-01 as the Howitzer Company, 111th Infantry, an element of the 28th Division.
- Consolidated 1939-10-01 with Headquarters Company, 111th Infantry (see Headquarters Company, 6th Infantry Below), and consolidated unit designated as Headquarters Company, 111th Infantry.
- Inducted into federal service 1941-02-17 at Philadelphia.
- 111th Infantry relieved 1942-02-17 from assignment to the 28th Division.
- Inactivated 1945-11-22 at Camp AnzaCamp AnzaCamp Anza was a United States Army installation near Riverside, California during World War II. Construction began on July 3, 1942, and was completed on February 15, 1943....
, California. - Reorganized and federally recognized 1947-02-27 at Philadelphia.
- Consolidated 1959-06-01 with the Medical Company, 111th Infantry (see Medical Company, 111th Infantry Below), and consolidated unit reorganized and re-designated as Headquarters Company, 1st Battle Group, 111th Infantry, an element of the 28th Infantry Division.
- Reorganized and re-designated 1963-04-01 as HHC, 1st Brigade, 28th Infantry Division.
- Re-designated 1968-02-17 as HHC, 56th Brigade, 42d Infantry Division.
- Re-designated 1975-04-01 as HHC, 56th Brigade, 28th Infantry Division.
- Re-designated 2004-10-04 as HHC, 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division.
Unit decorations
| Ribbon | Award | Year | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Meritorious Unit Commendation Meritorious Unit Commendation The Meritorious Unit Commendation is a mid-level unit award of the United States military which is awarded to any military command which displays exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding service, heroic deeds, or valorous actions.... |
2009 | for service in Operation Iraqi Freedom |
Campaign streamers
- American Civil WarAmerican Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
- Peninsula
- Antietam
- Fredericksburg
- Chancellorsville
- Gettysburg
- Wilderness
- Spotsylvania
- Cold Harbor
- Petersburg
- Virginia 1863
- World War IWorld War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
- World War I
- Meuse-Argonne
- Champagne-Marne
- Aisne-Marne
- Oise-Aisne
- Ypres-Lys
- World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
- World War II
- Central Pacific
- Eastern Mandates
- Western Pacific
- Operation Iraqi Freedom
- Iraq