201st Field Artillery
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| 201st Field Artillery Regiment | |
|---|---|
 201st Field Artillery coat of arms |
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| Active | 1735-present |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | West Virginia National Guard |
| Garrison/HQ | Fairmont, West Virginia |
| Motto | Yes Sir |
| Battles/wars | American Revolution War of 1812 Mexican War Civil War Spanish-AMerican War World War I Operation Iraqi Freedom |
| Insignia | |
| Distinctive Unit Insignia |  |
The 201st Field Artillery is the United States oldest active National Guard unit. Based in Fairmont, West Virginia, it was first activated in 1735 and has continued to serve ever since. In December of 1990, the unit was called to serve in Operation Desert Storm. The unit was called up for 180 days unless sooner released or later extended. The 201st left Fairmont and went to Fort Campbell, Kentucky for training. On the exact 256th anniversary of its founding, the unit fired 256 rounds downrange at Iraqi forces. David Tucker was a chaplain's assistant of the unit at the time and noted this in a letter to The Fairmont Times.
The units of the 201st returned to their home base in May. The unit did not lose a single man during the war.
In December of 2003, the 201st was again called to active duty for Operation Iraqi freedom. The soldiers trained at Fort Drum in New York in January and February, 2004 before going overseas, while overseas, the battalion was subordinated to the 197th Field Artillery Brigade, of the New Hampshire National Guard, under the command of Colonel James Guise, which was directly reporting to the III Corps Artillery, under the command of Brigadier General Richard Formica. The unit spent an entire year in Iraq before returning home in February of 2005. The battalion headquarters operated out of Camp Cedar II and Tallil Airbase, both of which are approximately 10 miles west of An Nasiriyah in the Dhi Qar province of Iraq. B Battery and Service batteries were co-located with the HHB. A Battery operated out of Convoy Support Center (CSC) Scania and C Battery operated out of CSC Navstar in Kuwait. The battalion's mission was convoy escort security and route clearanace for Main Supply Route (MSR) Tampa, the primary route for supplies in Iraq at the time. A rundown of leaders in the Battalion is as follows:
Battalion Commander: Major James Hennigan
Battalion Sergeant Major: Command Sergeant Major Roger Beverage
Battalion Executive Officer (XO): Major Clay Coatney
Battalion Chaplain: Major Gary Coffey
Personnel Officer (S-1): Captain Michael Estep
Intelligence Officer (S-2): Captain James Martin
Operations Officer (S-3): Major Randy Batiste
Asst Ops Officer: Captain Jimmy Thornton
Supply Officer (S-4): Captain Edward Luzadder
Civil Affairs Officer (S-5): First Lieutenant Phillip Smith
Signal Officer (S-6): First Lieutenant John Davis
Battalion Physician's Assistant: First Lieutenant Steven Nelson
A Battery Commander: Captain Timothy Vance
B Battery Commander: Captain James Martin
C Battery Commander: Captain Jeffery Setser
Service Battery Commander: Captain Todd Longanacre
HHB Commander: Captain Alan Moran
[edit] Distinctive Unit Insignia
- Description: A Gold color metal and enamel device 1 inch (2.54 cm) in height consisting of a shield blazoned: Or, a saltire per saltire Azure and Gray per cross counterchanged between in chief a rattlesnake coiled to strike Vert and in fess a sheathed Roman sword and a fleur-de-lis Gules, on a chief Azure two lions combatant of the first. Attached below the shield a Gold scroll inscribed “YES SIR” in Blue letters.
- Symbolism: The chief is blue for Infantry. The two lions represent the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. The saltire counterchanged denotes Civil War service in both the Confederate and Federal armies. The snake alludes to Mexican War service. The Roman sword is indicative of Spanish War service and the fleur-de-lis refers to service in France during World War I.
- Background: The distinctive unit insignia was originally approved for the 201st Infantry Regiment on 20 November 1929. It was redesignated for the 201st Armored Field Artillery Battalion on 20 July 1953. It was redesignated for the 201st Artillery Regiment on 18 July 1960. The insignia was redesignated for the 201st Field Artillery Regiment on 19 July 1972.
[edit] Coat of Arms
- Blazon:
- Shield: Or, a saltire per saltire Azure and Gray per cross counterchanged between in chief a rattlesnake coiled to strike Vert and in fess a sheathed Roman sword and a fleur-de-lis Gules, on a chief Azure two lions combatant of the first.
- Crest: That for the regiments and separate battalions of the West Virginia Army National Guard: On a wreath of the colors Or and Azure, a slip of mountain rhododendron in full bloom and leaved Proper.
- Motto: YES SIR.
Symbolism:
- Shield: The chief is blue for Infantry. The two lions represent the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. The saltire counterchanged denotes Civil War service in both the Confederate and Federal armies. The snake alludes to Mexican War service. The Roman sword is indicative of Spanish War service and the fleur-de-lis refers to service in France during World War I.
- Crest: The crest is that of the West Virginia Army National Guard.
- Background: The coat of arms was originally approved for the 201st Infantry Regiment on 21 November 1929. It was redesignated for the 201st Armored Field Artillery Battalion on 20 July 1953. It was redesignated for the 201st Artillery Regiment on 18 July 1960. The insignia was redesignated for the 201st Field Artillery Regiment on 19 July 1972.
