Combat Ready?: The Eighth U.S. Army on the Eve of the Korean War

5. The 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division

t HE 31st Infantry Regiment was activated and organized on July 1, 1916, at Manila, Territory of the Philippines. For two years the regiment remained in the Philippines on routine garrison and training duties. In 1918 the regiment joined the 27th Infantry Regiment as part of the American Expeditionary Forces in Siberia and adopted the regimental nickname “Polar Bears.” Within a few months the commander of the Siberian Expedition, Maj. Gen. William S. Graves, abandoned the unworkable neutrality policy urged on him by President Wilson and authorized combat operations against the Bolsheviks.The most active fighting for the 31st Infantry occurred in the vicinity of the Suchan coal mines—decisive terrain, since they constituted the region’s only source of coal to keep the Trans-Siberian Railway functioning. In forty-two battles and engagements , sixteen Polar Bears officers and soldiers received the Distinguished Service Cross for gallantry in action against Red forces. When American forces withdrew in 1920, the 31st Infantry returned to Manila, where it remained for the next twelve years. In early 1932 President Hoover ordered American forces to China to protect American lives and property during the “Shanghai Incident.”The 31st Infantry arrived in China in February and stayed until July. Although the Polar Bears observed several battles between the Chinese and Japanese, they were never directly engaged. The unit returned to the Philippines following the Song-Hu Armistice signed in May by the Chinese and Japanese governments.1 The only Regular Army formation in the Philippines on December 7, 1941, the 31st Infantry initially served as part of Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s reserve force. Withdrawing to the Alangan River after the battle of Abucay Hacienda 5 The 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division 56 57 in January 1942, the regiment remained in reserve until April. Just before its final battle the adjutant reported a total effective strength of 160 men of an original 2,100. The majority of these men passed into Japanese captivity when Major General King surrendered the Luzon force on April 9, 1942. The night before, the regimental colors were buried in a field atop Mount Bataan to prevent their capture by the enemy.2 With General King’s surrender the regiment was removed from the active rolls of the U.S. Army. On January 19, 1946, the army reactivated the 31st Infantry Regiment. Personnelandequipmentof theformer184thInfantryRegiment,40thInfantry Division, formed the nucleus of the unit when the latter unit was mustered out of federal service and its colors returned to the California National Guard. The ceremony took place on the parade ground at Camp Seobingo in Seoul, the headquarters of the 7th Infantry Division. The 31st Infantry became a part of the 7th Infantry Division and spent the next thirty-five months conducting counterguerilla operations along the 38th Parallel. From December 1948 to June 1949 the 7th Division conducted a phased move from Korea to Japan. The 31st Infantry replaced the 187th Glider Infantry Regiment of the 11th Airborne Division, taking over the latter’s headquarters at Camp Crawford near Sapporo on the northern island of Hokkaido. Camp Crawford also housed the 7th Infantry Division headquarters, the 57th Field Artillery Battalion (105-mm), and the division’s motorized reconnaissance company.3 reconstitution Personnel policies applied during the drawdown of U.S. troops in Korea meant the regiment arrived in Japan severely understrength. Although still a threebattalion regiment, only the 2nd and 3rd Battalions completed the trip from Seoul to Sapporo; the 1st Battalion remained on Honshu to relieve the 511th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 11th Airborne Division. Upon the completion of movement from Korea and the establishment of the regimental headquarters at Camp Crawford, the regiment numbered approximately seventy officers and eighteen hundred enlisted men.4 Several adjustments in personnel strength and authorizations occurred over the first several months of 1949. First, on February 1, 1949, 1st Battalion was removed from regimental control and established at Hachinoe, Honshu, as a separate unit reporting directly to the division commander. Next, on March 20 the regiment reorganized under the 1948 “N” series Table of Organization and Equipment. The new TO&E eliminated the regimental cannon company and reduced the overall strength of the rifle companies. This allowed for some personnel consolidation but did not bring any unit up to even the reduced 3 1 s t I n F A n t r y r e g I m e n t 58 authorizations in...