The Walking Dead

LINEAGE of the 1^stBATTALION 9th MARINES

1917 - 1919

Organized at Marine Barrack's, Quantico, VA on 20 November 1917 as one of two infantry regiments of the Advanced Base Force during World War I

Disbanded on 25 April 1919 upon debarking at the Navy Yard, Philadelphia

1925 – 1937

Organized 1 December 1925 as a Reserve Regiment, Central Reserve Area, the 9th's Headquarters was at Chicago.

1st Bn. stationed in Chicago, with Company C in St. Paul, Minnesoto, and Co. D at Omaha, Nebraska

2nd Bn. stationed at Kansas City, Missouri, with Companies G & H at St. Louis, Missouri

3rd Bn. stationed at Cincinnati, Ohio, with Company K at Indianapolis, Indiana, and Companies L & M at Detroit, Michigan

Disbanded on 1 September 1937 with all men transferred to the 9^th Reserve District, Great Lakes, Illinois

1942 – 1945

Activated 1 March 1942 at San Diego, California as the 1st Battalion 9th Marines and assigned to the 2nd Marine Division

Reassigned during August 1942 to Camp Pendleton, California and reassigned to the 3rd Marine Division

Deployed during January - February 1943 to Aukland, New Zealand

Participated in the following World War II Campaigns

Bougainville

Northern Solomons

Guam

Iwo Jima

Detached during November 1945 from the 3rd Marine Division

Returned during December 1945 to Camp Pendleton, California

Deactivated 31 December 1945

1952 - 1958

Reactivated 17 March 1952 at Camp Pendleton, California and assigned to the 3rd Marine Division

Deployed during August 1953 to Camp Gifu, Japan

Redeployed during June 1955 to Camp Napunja, Okinawa

Redeployed during March - April 1957 to West Camp Hauge, Okinawa

1959 - 1964

Relocated during March - April 1959 to Camp Pendleton, California and reassigned to the 1st Marine Division redeployed during September 1960 to the 3rd Marine Division

1965 - 1969

Deployed during June 1965 to Da Nang, Republic of Vietnam

Participated in the war in Vietnam from June 1965 - September 1966 and December 1966 - July 1969, operating from

Da Nang

Phu Bai

Demilitarized Zone

Dong Ha

Camp Carroll

Khe Sahn

A Shau Valley

Cam Lo

Returned during September 1966 to Camp Schwab, Okinawa and reassigned to the 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade participated in amphibious operations in the western Pacific as part of Special Landing Force, Seventh Fleet during December 1966 - January 1967

Redeployed during February 1967 to Da Nang, Republic of Vietnam and reassigned to the 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade reassigned during November 1969 to the 3rd Marine Division

Returned during July 1969 to camp Schwab, Okinawa and reassigned to the 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade reassigned during November 1969 to the 3rd Marine Division

1970 - 1994

Deployed at various times as Battalion Landing Team 1/9 with the Seventh Fleet during the 1970’s

Participated in the Southeast Asia Evacuations, April 1975

Relocated during May 1978 to Camp Hansen, Okinawa

Participated in Phase III, unit rotation to Camp Pendleton 5 March 1980

Deployed to Okinawa from September 1981 - March 1982

Deployed as a Battalion Landing Team One Nine to WestPac with Phibron I from June - December 1989

Deployed in May 1991 to the WestPac/SouthWest Asia as Battalion Landing Team One Nine and participated in the following operations

Operation Fiery Vigil

Operation Desert Storm

Deployed in September 1993 to WestPac/Somalia as Battalion Landing Team One Nine, and participated in the following operations

Unosom II/Continue Hope

Operation More Care

Operation Show Care

Deactivated/Redesignated 9 September 1994 as 2nd Battalion 1st Marines

2005-Present

Began reforming in September 2005

Deployed Company A (REIN) to Diyala Province, Iraq from April - October 2006, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom

Provided 135 personnel to other units and Mobile Training Teams for Operation Iraqi Freedom augmentation

Participated in Operation Trade Winds in Jamaica and the Chilean Bilateral exercise

Participated in MARCORSYSCOM testing of Modular vests and NBCD boot and glove field user evaluation

Reactivated 18 April 2007 at Camp Lejeune, NC, as part of the 2^nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF)

Deployed to Iraq (Operation Iraqi Freedom) March – October 2008

……..

World War I

     The 9^th Marines had its origin in the great expansion of the Marine Corps during World War I.  Created as one of two infantry regiments of the Advanced Base Force, it was assigned to duty in the Caribbean area as a mobile force in readiness.  The 9^th’s mission was the protection of advanced naval bases and the Panama Canal in the event of enemy action. (1)  One 10 November 1917, the 142^nd anniversary of the Marine Corps, the Commandant signed the order directing the formation of the regiment. (2)

     Ten days later, at Marine Barracks, Quantico, Virginia, the 9^th Regiment was organized. (3)  Its Headquarters Company was activated and one machine gun and eight rifle companies were assigned to its three battalions.  Three of the units, the 14^th (machine gun), 36^th, and 100^th Companies, were transferred to the east coast from the naval base at san Diego; the remaining six, the 121^st through 126^th Companies, were formed from Marines in training at Parris Island, South Carolina. (4)

     Cuba had entered the war on the Allied side soon after the entry of the United States, but insurgent bands left over from a recent rebellion still roamed the countryside, threatening the sugar crop vitally needed by the Allies for the war effort. (5)  As a result, groups of Marines had been stationed in the sugar-growing districts to keep order. (6) The first mission of the newly formed 9^th was to reinforce these Marines.

     Sailing aboard the USS Von Steuben on 20 December from Newport News, Virginia, the regiment landed on the 24^th at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (7)  The new unit took the field with a total strength of approximately 1,000 officers and men.  After its arrival on the island, the 9^th was joined with the 7^th Regiment, already stationed there, into the 3^rd Provisional Bridge. (8)  The Marines of the 9^th established their camp at Deer Point, Guantanamo Bay and stood by in alert status for whatever action was required of them.  The call never came, however, and for seven months the men were occupied with routine drill and target practice in the immediate vicinity of the camp.

     After the situation in Cuba improved, the 9^th was withdrawn from the island and sent to Texas to forestall the possible disruption by German agents of vital shipments from the Mexican oil fields, (9)  Embarking aboard the USS Hancock on 31 July 1918, the Brigade Headquarters and the 9^th sailed from Guantanamo Bay for Galveston, Texas.  Just before the departure, the 7^th Regiment and Companies 34 and 100 of the 9^th were detached from the 3^rd Provisional Brigade and left behind for duty in Cuba.

     Upon arrival at Galveston on 6 August, the 9^th disembarked and went into camp at Fort Crockett.  The same day, the 8^th Regiment, already stationed in Texas, was made part of the 3^rd Provisional Brigade, replacing the 7^th which had remained in Cuba. (10)  on 13 August, the strength of the 9^th was increased, when three companies, the 154^th, 155^th, and 156^th were added to it.

     Through the remainder of World War I, the Marines were to remain at Fort Crockett, spending their time in training and guard duty.  As part of the mobile force of the Advanced Base Force, they had to be maintained at a high state of efficiency, available at all times for any use the Navy might have for them. (11)  Although the anticipated trouble in Mexico did not occur, the presence near the Mexican Border of the 9^th and other American Forces probably helped keep the situation peaceful.

     With the end of hostilities, the need for the 9^th evaporated, so the regiment embarked 10 April 1919 aboard the USS Hancock for Philadelphia, where it arrived and unloaded 25 April.  The same day, it was officially disbanded.  Although the 9^th did not win combat honors during World War I, it did perform the exacting task of keeping itself at peak effectiveness as a mobile force in readiness.

Source: A Brief History of the 9^th Marines

                 Marine Corps Historical Reference Pamphlet

                 By: Truman R. Strobridge

Foot Notes as per Strobridge:

1. Clyde H. Metcalf, A History of the United States Marine Corps. (New York: G. P. Putman’s Sons, 1939). Page 456, hereafter Metcalf, USMC History.
2. CMC 1tr to CO, MB, Quantico, Va., dtd 10 Nov 17 (HistBr Archives, G-3 Division, HQMC).
3. Ibid.; Muster Rolls, 9^th Regiment, Nov 17 (Unit Diary Section, Personnel Department, HQMC), hereafter Muster Rolls with unit, month, and year.
4. Ibid.; CMC ltr to CO, MB, Quantico, Va., dtd 10 Nov 17 (HistBr Archives, G-3 Division, HQMC)
5. Metcalf, USMC History, page 336.
6. Ibid., page 337.
7. Muster Rolls, 9^th Regiment,  Dec 17, and , unless otherwise cited, the Muster Rolls are the source of the following account of the 9^th Regiment during World War I.
8. Metcalf, USMC History, page 337; Muster Rolls, 3^rd Provisional Marine Brigade, Dec 17; Muster Rolls, 7^th Regiment, Dec 17.
9. 1stLt L. D. Burrus, USMCR, (ed.), The Ninth Marines: A Brief History of the Ninth Marine Regiment with Lists of the Officers and Men Who Served From Organization to Disbandment 1942-45 (Washington: Infantry Journal Press, 1946), page 30, hereafter Burrus, Ninth; Metcalf, USMC History, page 460.
10. Burrus, Ninth, page 30.
11. “Report of the Commandant of the Marine Corps” in Report of the Secretary of the Navy 1918, page 1608

Bougainville

     Assigned to I Marine Amphibious Corps, the 9^th was part of the force assigned to hit the beaches as Empress Augusta Bay, Bougainville, on 1 November 1943.  En route to its destination, the regiment spent a week at Efate in the New Hebrides, where it engaged in a final rehearsal, landing on a beach that was believed to resemble the one at Bougainville. (25)

     The largest island in the Solomons, approximately 130 miles long by 30 miles wide, Bougainville was garrisoned by as estimated 35,000 Japanese soldiers.  Possessing a rugged central mountain spine, swamps, and a thick almost impenetrable, jungle the island’s few existing trails offered about the only means of land travel.  The torrential rains and the abundance of jungle life, especially the multitude of insects, added to the other difficulties of jungle travel.

Source: A Brief History of the 9^th Marines

               Marine Corps Historical Reference Pamphlet

               By: Truman R. Strobridge

Foot Notes as per Strobridge:

(25)

World War II

     Enough of the great surge of Marine recruits following Pearl Harbor had been processed by 12 February 1942 to make the establishment of another regiment possible, and the 9^th Marines was organized at Camp Elliott, San Diego, as part of the 2^nd Marine Division. (13)  By this activation, the regiment acquired its present and permanent designation, the 9^th Marines.

     The nucleus of the newly activated regiment, Headquarters and Service Company and the 3^rd Battalion, was formed by officers and men of the 2^nd Marines. (14)  On 1 March, the 1^st Battalion was activated, the largest percentage of its men coming from the 3^rd Battalion, 6^th Marines, recently returned from duty in Iceland. (15)  Regimental Weapons Company and the 2^nd Battalion were organized on 1 April, completing the regiment and increasing its strength to 99 officers and 3,003 enlisted men.

     Immediately, a training program was inaugurated to weld the 9^th Marines into a hard-striking, fighting team.  During the months of May and June, amphibious training was conducted in the San Diego–La Jolla area. (16)  A depletion of strength was suffered on 15 June when the regiment was called on to furnish the cadre for the formation of the 22^nd Marines. (17)  Again in July the unit was further reduced when it supplied personnel for the newly formed 23^rd Marines. (18)  Beginning 1 August, a gradual replacement of personnel soon brought the 9^th back up to full strength.  Two days later, it was detached from the 2^nd Marine Division and assigned to Amphibious Corps, Pacific Fleet.

     The first four days of September were spent marching from Camp Elliott up the coast to the new Marine Corps Base at Camp Pendleton, Oceanside.  On 8 September, the 9^th was transferred to the newly activated 3^rd Marine Division, an association which was to last until the end of the war.  Again the regiment engaged in intensive combat training, including two weeks of amphibious exercises in the San Diego-Oceanside area. (19)   

     Just a few weeks before shipping overseas, Colonel Lemuel C. Shepherd, Jr., Commanding Officer of the 9^th and later the 20^th Commandant of the Marine Corps (1952-1955) suggested the design for the unique “Striking Ninth” insignia.  Although not authorized for a shoulder patch, it was generally accepted and remained the regimental insignia during World War II. (20)  “The emblem consists of a bald eagle with outstretched wings carrying three chain links in each claw, the motto “Striking” on a ribbon running through a large figure nine and another ribbon lettered “Ninth Marines” below the shield.  The chain links typify the interlocked, interdependent battalions forming the backbone of the Regiment.  The eagle itself and the flashing lightning represent the striking power of the regiment. (21)

     Sailing aboard the USS Mt. Vernon for New Zealand on 24 January 1943, the 9^th Marines (Reinforced) arrived in Auckland on 5 February and disembarked two days later.  Because of the lack of accommodations, separate camp sites were assigned for each of the regimental units; a distance of 20 miles separated Headquarters, which was located at the Pukekohe race course, from the most distant battalion. (22)  Jungle warfare training, several 60-mile hikes, and practice in the seizure of a beach head, occupied the Marines until they loaded aboard five transports on 29 June bound for Guadalcanal, Solomons Islands. (23)

     Arriving 6 July, the 9^th Marines landed at Tetere Village and established camp about three miles from the village.  In addition to garrison duty and a five-week period as the island working party, the regiment continued intensive training with emphasis on further jungle conditioning and patrol work to ready its men for the fighting to come. (24)  Approximately a year and a half after its reactivation, the 9^th Marines was to engage in its first battle.

Source: A Brief History of the 9^th Marines

              Marine Corps Historical Reference Pamphlet

              By: Truman R. Strobridge

Foot Notes as per Strobridge:

13.     Richard W. Johnson, Follow Me!  The Story of the Second Marine Division in World War II (New York: Random House, 1948), page 16; Muster Rolls, 9^th Marines, Feb 42.  Unless otherwise cited, the Muster Rolls are the source of the 9^th Marines’ history until the Bouganville campaign.

14.     1stLt Robert A. Arthur, USMCR, and 1stLt Kenneth Cohlmia, USMCR, The Third Marine Division (Washington: Infantry Journal Press, 1948), page 11, hereafter Arthur and Cohlmia, Third Marine Division.

15.     Ibid.

16.     Ibid., Page 12.

17.     Burrus, Ninth, page 33.

18.    Ibid.

19.     Ibid., pages 34-35.

20.    Arthur and Cohlmia, Third Marine Division, page 14.

21.     Burrus, Ninth, page 36.

22.    Arthur and Cohlmia, Third Marine Division, page 14.

23.    Burrus, Ninth, pages 37-38.

24.    Ibid., pages 38-39.