[Webmaster Note: The following division information is reproduced
from the public domain publication, The Army Almanac: A Book of
Facts Concerning the Army of the United States, U.S. Government Printing Office,
1950. Portions of the information may be out of date. Only minor formatting changes and
typographical corrections have been made.]
World War II
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Activated: 15 July 1943.
Overseas: 6 January 1945.
Campaigns: North Apennines, Po Valley.
Awards: MH-1; DSC-3; DSM-1; SS-449; LM-7; SM-15; BSM-7,729.
Commanders: Maj. Gen. Lloyd E. Jones (July 1943-November 1944),
Maj. Gen. George P. Hays (November 1944-15 November 1945),
Maj. Gen. Lester J. Whitlock (9 August 1948).
Returned to U.S.: 11 August 1945.
Inactivated: 30 November 1945.
Redesignated: 10th Infantry Division 10 June 1948.
Reactivated: 1 July 1948.
Combat Chronicle
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The 10th Mountain Division saw its first actual combat in Italy, although previously the
87th Mountain Infantry Regiment had participated in the assault landing on Kiska, 15-17 August 1943,
only to find the island completely deserted by the Japanese. Elements of the Division began
arriving in Italy in late December 1944, and after a brief training period entered combat,
8 January 1945, near Cutigliano and Orsigna. Preliminary defensive actions were followed,
19 February 1945, by a concerted attack on the Silla-Mount Belvedere sector, and the peak
was cleared after several days of heavy fighting. In early March the Division fought its
way north of Canolle, taking several more peaks, and moving to within 15 miles of
Bologna. Maintaining defensive positions for the neat 3 weeks, the Division jumped off
again in April, captured Mongiorgio, 20 April, and entered the Po Valley, seizing the
strategic points, Pradalbino and Bomporto. The 10th crossed the
Po River, 23 April,
reached Verona, 25 April, and ran
into heavy opposition at Torbole and Nago. After
an amphibious crossing of Lake Garda, it secured Gargnano and Porto di Tremosine,
30 April, as German resistance in Italy ended. After the Germans surrender in
Italy, 2 May 1945, the Division went on security duty, receiving the surrender
of various German units and screening the areas of occupation.
General
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Nickname: Mountain Division.
Shoulder patch: White-bordered blue powder keg on which are superimposed two crossed red bayonets.
Publications: America's Ski Troopers, by Mr. Kenneth S. Templeton, editor; Manz
Corp., Evanston, Ill.; 1945. History of the 10th Mountain Division; by
unit members; Albert Love Enterprises, Atlanta, Ga.; 1947. Mountaineers; by
Mr. Theodore Lockwood, editor; Artcraft Press, Denver, Colo.; 1946. Pictorial History; by
unit members; Albert Love Enterprises, Atlanta, Ga.; 1944. Night Climb (Story of the
Tenth Division); by Frank Harper; Longmans Green & Co., New York.
• 10th Mountain Division Links
• 10th Mountain Division Components
• 10th Mountain Division Medal of Honor Recipients
• 10th Mountain Division Commanders
• 10th Mountain Division Videos
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