42nd Infantry Division:
The Rainbow Division.

The 42nd Infantry Division was activated as a component
of the Army of the United States on July 14, 1943, with
Headquarters at Camp Gruber, Oklahoma. The Division trained
as a unit and also trained and processed over 15,000
replacements for overseas duty until embarking for the
European Theater with the three Infantry Regiments arriving
in Marseilles, France, on December 8th, 1944.

The shoulder patch worn by the 42nd Division is based on
a WW I insignia that was approved by the AEF on October 29th,
1918. The patch is a portion of a rainbow arc and suggests the
fact that the Division (at that time) was made up of units from
26 of the States and the District of Columbia. This was because
the War Department wished to make the first National Guard
Division to be sent to France as representative of as many
states as possible. The 42nd was referred to as "The Rainbow
Division" even before it was actually activated, and this
nickname was cordially accepted by the unit.

Worn from:
29 October 1918 - Current.


Campaigns:
World War I
(Champagne-Marne, Aisne-Marne, St.-Mihiel,
Meuse-Argonne, Champagne 1918, Lorraine 1918),

World War II
(Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace, Central Europe).