77th Infantry Division | |
---|---|
77th Infantry Division shoulder sleeve insignia
|
|
Active | 1917–19 1942–46 1963–present |
Country | United States |
Branch | United States Army |
Type | Infantry |
Size | Division |
Garrison/HQ | Fort Totten |
Nickname(s) | "Statue of Liberty" (special designation) |
Engagements | |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders |
Robert L. Eichelberger |
The 77th Sustainment Brigade is a unit of the United States Army that inherited the lineage of the 77th Infantry Division ("Statue of Liberty"), which served in World War I and World War II. Its headquarters is now at Fort Dix, New Jersey after its predecessor command, the 77th Regional Readiness Command, was disestablished in 2008 from Fort Totten, in Bayside (Queens), New York. Soldiers from the 77th have served in most every major conflict and contingency operation since World War II. Five soldiers from the 77th lost their lives at the World Trade Center in the September 11 attacks, while serving in their civilian duties.
The division was nicknamed the "Statue of Liberty Division"; the shoulder patch bears the Statue of Liberty in gold on a blue truncated triangle. U.S. Marines on Guam nicknamed them the "77th Marine Division". The Clearview Expressway in Queens, New York is named the "U.S. Army 77th Infantry Division Expressway", honoring the division and its successor commands.
The 77th Infantry Division was organized from draftees, drawn mostly of men from New York City, and trained at Camp Upton in Yaphank, New York in the central part of Suffolk County, Long Island; the camp is now Brookhaven National Laboratory. The division consisted of the 153rd Infantry Brigade (306th and 307th Infantry Regiment, 305th Machine Gun Battalion) and the 154th Infantry Brigade (307th and 308th Infantry Regiment, 306th Machine Gun Battalion), together with supporting units.