The 112th Infantry Regiment, also known as the Sixteenth Pennsylvania, is a unit in the Pennsylvania National Guard which can trace its lineage back to before the American Civil War.
Heraldic items
Coat of arms
Blazon
Shield: argent, issuant in fess a bridge of one arch proper masoned sable, the center portion shot away, in chief a cross patée azure and a Spanish castle gules; in base a lion rampant of the third grasping a cross of Lorraine of the fourth. Crest: that for the regiments and separate battalions of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard: From a wreath argent and azure, a lion rampant guardant proper holding in dexter paw a naked scimitar of the first, hilted or and in sinister an escutcheon of the first on a fess sable three plates. Motto: Strive, Obey, Endure.
Symbolism
Shield: In 1951, a rampant lion as found on the arms of Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg grasping a red cross of the province of Lorraine in France were added to the old coat of arms of the 112th Infantry Regiment. The lion is in the infantry color and both symbols represent the locale of the regiment's combat in World War II. The shield is white, the old infantry color. Service in the Civil War is shown by the cross patée, the badge of the 5th Corps, 3rd Division, in which the organization served in that war. The Spanish castle indicates service in Puerto Rico during the Spanish–American War, while the bridge, which is a representation of the bridge over the Vesle River at Fismes, France where the regiment saw its hardest fighting, symbolizes service in World War I.
Crest: The crest is that of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard. Background: The coat of arms was approved on 2 January 1930. It was amended to show additional war service on 29 August 1951. The insignia was amended to correct the blazon on 16 May 2008.
Distinctive unit insignia
Description
A Silver color metal and enamel device in height overall consisting of shield blazoned: argent (silver gray), issuant in fess a bridge of one arch sable masoned of the first, the center portion shot away, in chief a cross patée azure and a Spanish castle gules; in base a lion rampant of the third grasping a cross of Lorraine of the fourth. Attached below and to the sides of the shield a Silver scroll inscribed "STRIVE OBEY ENDURE" in blue letters.
Symbolism and background
The symbolism of the distinctive unit insignia is the same as that of the coat of arms. The dates of its approval and amendment are also the same.
History
The 1st Battalion, 112th Infantry Regiment draws its origins from Civil War era units, including the 13th, 15th, and 17th Pennsylvania Regiments and still maintains the right to possess the silver bands and battle streamers awarded for battle service in the Peninsula and Virginia 1861–1863 campaigns and for participation in the battles of Manassas, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Gettysburg, the Wilderness, and Spottsylvania. On 22 November 1878, the battalion was organized as the 16th Regiment, Pennsylvania National Guard. The regiment consisted of companies from Erie, McKean, Venango, Elk, Warren, and Crawford counties. The units were located in Erie (Co A), Bradford (Co C), Oil City (Co D), Cooperstown (Co E), Franklin (Co F), Ridgeway, Pennsylvania (Co H), Warren (Co I), and Titusville (Co K).
The 2d Battalion, 112th Infantry Regiment's heritage can be traced back to the Logan Guards (Lewistown) and the Bellefonte Fencibles, both organized in 1858. These units were mustered into federal service during the American Civil War. The Logan Guards were mustered as Company E, 25th Pennsylvania Volunteers and then as Company A, 46th Pennsylvania Volunteers. The Bellefonte Fencibles were mustered as Company H, 2d Pennsylvania Volunteers. These units combined have 17 campaign streamers from the American Civil War: Po Valley, Manassas, Antietam, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Atlanta, Fredericksburg, Vicksburg, the Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Cold Harbor, Petersburg, Battle of Appomattox, Virginia 1861, South Carolina 1862, Mississippi 1863, Tennessee 1863.
In July 1865, these units were mustered out of federal service.