Reactivation: Field Exercises



By May, unit training had progress to the point where the principles of squad, platoon, company and battalion tactics could be extended to regimental combat-team exercises. The first phase extended from May 10 to June 26, including infantry battalion field exercises and combat tests. Following command post exercises on the Carson reservation, the 89th moved into the field near Lake George, Colorado, where the Division could maneuver one combat team against another in typical Rocky Mountain country about half way up between the Great Plains and the top of the Continental Divide. This was three-week period of division problems conducted by the VIII Corps, terminating the combined training phase.

Then, rumors the troops heard out on the reservation became fact. In mid-July the 89th was transferred to XI Corps and was notified of its pending reorganization as a light infantry division. In its first year the 89th had converted thousands of recruits into physically tough and well-trained soldiers, and molded a division capable of living and fighting in the field. It had overcome a number of handicaps, provided a cadre for another Division, and accomplished its training mission on schedule. Now the Division was to undergo a series of radical changes before shipping overseas eighteen months later.

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