50th Armored Division (United States)

On 13 October 1945 the War Department published a postwar policy statement for the entire Army, calling for a 27-division Army National Guard structure with 25 infantry divisions and two armored divisions. Once the process of negotiation was complete, among the new formations formed, the 49th and 50th Armored Divisions were created, the first armored divisions in the Army National Guard. The 50th Armored Division replaced the 44th Infantry Division within the New Jersey Army National Guard, with the 50th Armored assuming the 44th Infantry's "Jersey Blues" nickname. Most 50th Armored Division units were legacy units of the 44th Infantry and 'inherited' the lineage and history of those units.

With the creation of the 50th Armored Division, in 1946, the 44th Infantry Division was reactivated as a unit of the Illinois Army National Guard in 1946. It was inducted into federal service in early 1952 during the Korean War and inactivated after its release from federal service on October 10, 1954.

In a 1968 reorganization, the 50th Armored was joined by the 27th Armored Brigade from New York, the legacy units left after the inactivation of the 27th Armored Division. Since the 50th Armored Division was no longer completely within New Jersey, it retired the "Jersey Blues" nickname. In 1968, the 50th Armored Division was reorganized as from units in New Jersey and Vermont. Armor battalions in New Jersey and Vermont were upgraded to M48A1 and M48A3 medium tanks.

The bi-state organization comprised:[1]

• Headquarters, 50th Armored Division (Somerset, New Jersey)
  • 104th Engineer Battalion HQ & HQ, Co.A, Co.B, Co.C, Co.E (bridge) Teaneck, New Jersey. Co.D, Vermont
  • 5th Squadron, 117th Cavalry Regiment
  • 150th Aviation Battalion (UH-1 & AH-1 Hueys) (later 1st Battalion, 150th Aviation Regiment)
• 1st Brigade (Woodbridge, New Jersey)
• 2nd Brigade (Cherry Hill, New Jersey)
• 86th Brigade (Montpelier, Vermont)
• Division Artillery (Trenton, New Jersey)
• Division Support Command

Between 1975-76 Vermont and New Jersey armor battalions started turning in their M48A3 tanks and began receiving the M48A5 which had the same 105mm gun and fire control system as the M60A1 in use by the active Army. During this time, many Vermont tank crews competed in gunnery exercises held in West Germany and consistently brought back awards. Training within the 50th was rigorous during the Soviet threat peak years of the late 1970s to mid 1980s. Germany was the primary Area of Operations for the 50th Armored if it were to be activated.

The Center of Military History notes that reorganizing the Army National Guard to meet the new 'Division 86' structures in the mid-1980s was a challenging process, and most Guard divisions expanded their recruiting areas. The 50th Armored Division did not, and instead had the allotment for one of its brigades moved to the Texas Army National Guard, making the future of the division within the force structure 'uncertain'. During this time, both battalions of Vermont's 172nd Armor 86th Brigade began doing their annual training at Fort Hood, Texas, a change from their former armor deployment base of Fort Drum, New York. By October 1986, Vermont's 86th Brigade left the 50th Armor Division and became part of the 26th Infantry Division. A few years later the 86th went to the 42nd ID and got M60A3 medium tanks.

On 1 September 1993, the 50th Armored Division was inactivated and its remaining brigades joined other divisions.[2] New Jersey's 50th Infantry Brigade, which took the Division's lineage, was made part of the 42nd Infantry Division. The 36th Infantry Brigade from Texas was reabsorbed into the 49th Armored Division. In the early 1990s further consolidation followed the fall of the Soviet Union, and the 26th Infantry Division disbanded, causing Vermont's 86th Brigade to join the 42nd Infantry Division and soon receive M1A2 Abrams main battle tanks. While under the 50th Armor Division, Vermont's 1-172nd and 2-172nd Armored Battalions of the 86th Brigade excelled at tank gunnery and field exercises, making the 86th Brigade the only Army National Guard unit to ever consistently accomplish Tank Table XIII, an honor it continued to earn even after the 50th AD disbanded. Due to further military consolidations, the 86th Brigade turned in its Abrams tanks in 2006 and ended its Armor designation just short of 40 years.

Notes

Bibliography

• "Chapter XIII The Total Army". Manoeuvre and Firepower: The Evolution of Divisions and Separate Brigades. United States Army Center of Military History. 1998. CMH Pub 60-14. Archived from the original on 26 December 2012.
• http://www.geocities.com/armored50th/50th_Armored.html (Archived 2009-10-23)