The 87th Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment in the United States Army. The regiment's 1st and 2nd Battalions are light infantry units assigned to the 1st and 2nd Brigade Combat Teams respectively of the 10th Mountain Division located at Fort Drum, New York. The 3d Battalion was active in the U.S. Army Reserve in Colorado. The 4th Battalion was a Regular Army unit assigned to the 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 25th Infantry Division (Light) at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii.
History
World War II
The 87th Mountain Infantry Battalion was activated on 15 November 1941 at Fort Lewis, Washington, with Lieutenant Colonel Onslow S. Rolfe as the commanding officer. This unit was the first American unit of mountain troops. On 12 May 1942, the regiment was reorganized as the 87th Mountain Infantry, with the remainder of the regiment activated there on 25 May 1942. It was expanded into a regiment in the summer of 1942 and moved to Camp Hale, Colorado, where it joined the 10th Mountain Division. On 29 July 1943, the regiment sailed to the Aleutian Islands as part of Amphibious Task Force 9. Also included in Task Force Force 9 were the First Special Service Force and the 13th Canadian Infantry Brigade. On 24 December 1943, it returned to Camp Carson, Colorado, and returned to the 10th Mountain Division on 22 February 1944, replacing the 90th Infantry Regiment. The regiment was part of the Italian Campaign from January 1945 to the end of the campaign, and remained as part of the occupying force until August 1945.
Postwar
The 87th Infantry was again assigned to the 10th Mountain Division on 18 June 1948, where it was reactivated as a training division at Fort Riley, Kansas. In January 1954, 10th Division became a standard infantry division and was sent to West Germany. It was inactivated on 14 June 1958 at Fort Benning, GA.
During this era the Army reorganized its combat forces, abandoning three tactical infantry regiments per division for five battle groups of five companies each, known as the Pentomic organization. Effective 1 July 1957 the lineage of Company A, 87th Infantry Regiment was reorganized and redesignated as HHC, 1st Battle Group, 87th Infantry and remained assigned to the 10th Infantry Division. It was relieved effective 14 June 1958 from the 10th and reassigned to the 2d Infantry Division. The unit was reorganized and redesignated on 15 February 1963 as the 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry and relieved on 4 September 1963 from assignment to the 2d Infantry Division and assigned to the 8th Infantry Division. It remained there until it the lineage was inactivated 1 October 1983 in Germany and relieved from assignment to the 8th Infantry Division when the unit was reflagged with a different regimental designation. On 2 May 1987 the battalion was assigned to the 10th Mountain Division and activated at Fort Drum, New York.
The lineage of Company B was inactivated effective 1 July 1957 in Germany, redesignated as HHC, 2d Battle Group, 87th Infantry and relieved from assignment to the 10th Infantry Division. It was redesignated on 25 January 1963 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2d Battalion, 87th Infantry, and assigned to the 2d Infantry Division (organic elements concurrently constituted) and activated on 15 February 1963 at Fort Benning, Georgia. That same year it was relieve from assignment to the 2d Infantry Division and assigned to the 8th Infantry Division, then in Germany, where it was inactivated on 1 May 1966. It was reactivated on 31 August 1973 when the division's 1st Brigade (Airborne) in Mainz-Gonsenheim was taken off jump status and the 2d Battalion (Airborne), 509th Infantry was reorganized and reflagged as the 2d Battalion, (Mechanized) 87th Infantry. On 16 June 1986 the battalion colors were again inactivated when the unit was reflagged as a battalion of the 8th Infantry, pairing it with CONUS-based elements of the 8th Infantry under the 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson, Colorado. On 2 May 1988 the battalion was assigned to the 10th Mountain Division and activated at Fort Drum, New York.
Vietnam War
Two companies of 87th Infantry were in Vietnam during the war, both as Rifle Security units. The first was Company C, 87th Infantry, which was attached to the 92d Military Police Battalion guarding Tan Son Nhut Air Base. It was later assigned to Long Binh Post under the U.S. Army Support Command, Saigon. Coming from Fort Lewis, WA, it was in Vietnam from 29 November 1966 to 26 November 1972.