Introduction and article extracted from https://www.historynet.com/red-ball-express/?r INTRODUCTION During WW II, advances toward the enemy often ran allied troops painfully short of supplies. Armies without food to feed the soldiers or medical supplies to mend the injured as well as guns without bullets would soon bring the best trained Army to its knees. To ensure that […]
1st Lt. Don L. Thrapp, Q.M.C.The Quartermaster Review May-June 1946 MOST people think a Quartermaster has about; as much business in a combat outfit as a steer in a breeding corral, but the QMC is a diversified outfit and its members sometimes find themselves dodging articles other than the proverbial bale of hay. You take […]
Major Howard McCyostFebruary 1920Quartermaster Service News Reprinted in the Quartermaster Professional Bulletin – March 1988 Water purification during and after World War I Wholesome drinking water has become recognized as one of the important elements entering into the conduct of warfare. Water is used for such a variety of purposes that it is absolutely necessary […]
General Doriot was born on September 24, 1899 in Paris, France and died June 2, 1987. He served as an Artillery Officer with the French Army in World War I, then graduated from the University of Paris in 1920. He came to the United States in 1921 and attended the Harvard Business School. In 1926 […]
The intent of this webpage is to provide a short overview of significant historical events in Army Quartermaster history. Because this page is a work in progress, there are sure to be some omissions and errors. Send your comments to [email protected]. 1775-83The Quartermaster Department of the Revolutionary War was a small organization responsible for supply […]
Quartermaster Review-May/June 1946 Graves Registration search and recovery operations after World War II Note: At the time this article was written the term Graves Registration was used for what is now call Mortuary Affairs. The most intensive search in history is being conducted on the far-flung battlefields of World War II. Identification and proper burial […]
by LT Nick Overby Quartermaster Professional Bulletin-Winter 1992 “War is Hell” – the famous quote attributed to Major General William T. Sherman – was an understatement for the time and a reality for the soldiers of the Civil War. Unfortunately, historians and others have primarily highlighted the tactics of war without considering the logistics. In […]
Major General Robert M. Littlejohn–Chief Quartermaster in the ETO Dr. Steven E. Anders Quartermaster Professional Bulletin – Autumn 1993 Logistics-once defined simply as “gitten stuff” –entails what many perceive as the unglamorous side of war. Its successes are often taken for granted, while even the slightest failure is deemed unpardonable. General Brehon B. Somervell, head […]
Edward Steere Quartermaster Review, March-April 1953 Congress provided the legal sanction for creation of a national cemeterial system by authorizing President Lincoln in the Act of July 17, 1862, “to purchase cemetery grounds … to be used as a national cemetery for soldiers who shall have died in the service of the country.” In accordance […]
The first Parachute badge was designed during World War II by Captain (later Lieutenant General) William P. Yarborough of the 501st Parachute Battalion. A memorandum of record written by Captain Yarborough on April 22, 1941, tells the story of the birth of the parachute badge. “On March 3, 1941, I was ordered to Washington to […]
Captain Robert O. Zinnen, Jr. Quartermaster Professional Bulletin – Spring 1991 A person standing on the banks overlooking this harbor and the massive facilities surrounding it would have been amazed at the sights and sounds. A vast fleet of ships stretched as far as the eye could see. The harbor’s port facilities consisted of eight […]
Colonel John D. Martz, Jr. Army Information Digest – July 1959 The design of the 49 and 50 star flags by the US Army Quartermaster Corps. Quartermaster General MG Andrew T. McNamara and President Eisenhower examine new 49 star flag For the first time since 1912, the United States will officially unfurl a new flag […]
Colonel Ralph R. Burr Army Information Digest – August 1961 A mistake in identification by a general early in the Civil War started the system of shoulder patches that now is common in the U. S. Army. The use of these distinctive unit emblems to identify soldiers as members of organizations with proud traditions all […]
David L. Bruen Quartermaster Professional Bulletin – Spring 1994 Overview on the transition of the Water Operations mission and training from the Engineer to the Quartermaster Corps in 1981 The Petroleum and Water Department at the U.S. Army Quartermaster Center and School, Fort Lee, VA, serves as focal point for all proponent and training issues. […]
