By Maj. William Carraway
Historian, Georgia National Guard
Soldiers of the 265th Chemical Battalion at Fort Stewart, Ga. following annual training in April 2022.
The organization
of Headquarters Company of the 265th Chemical Battalion began in August 2018
with the unit based on Dobbins Air Force Reserve Base.[1]
The Army federally recognized the unit September 1, 2020.[2]
In addition
to a headquarters element, the 265th has six attached units which provide the
265th with unique mission sets and capabilities for its state and federal
mission. Among these units, many of whom served under Joint Task Force 781, are
the Marietta-based 138th Chemical Company and 248th Medical Company. The remaining
units are strategically located across the state with the 202nd Ordnance Company
in Waynesboro, the Swainsboro-based 810th Engineer Company, and the 1177th and
1160th Transportation Companies based in LaGrange and Rome respectively.
While
relatively new as a battalion structure, the subordinate units of the 265th
Chemical Battalion have a long and diverse history.
The 810th
Engineer Company was organized and federally recognized December 18, 1947 in
Swainsboro, Ga. as Battery C, 101st Antiaircraft Automatic Weapons Battalion.[3]
Over the decades, the unit has served as an antiaircraft artillery, infantry
and engineer company. Throughout its history, the 810th has mobilized overseas
to Iraq and Afghanistan and provided crucial response capabilities for domestic
emergencies such as Hurricane Matthew in 2016. In 2017, Engineers of the 810th
mobilized to the country of Georgia for exercise Noble Partner.[4]
The 1177th
Transportation Company was organized and federally recognized April 27, 1948 in
LaGrange, Ga. as the 48th Mechanized Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop, an element
of the 48th Infantry Division.[5]
In addition to its original reconnaissance mission, the unit served for a time
as an engineer unit before receiving its current designation as the 1177th
Transportation Company in 1996.[6]
Troops and trucks of the 1177th TC participated in Exercise Golden
Cargo in May and June 1999. The 1177th TC was ordered into active federal
service January 30, 2003 in support of Operation Noble Eagle. In 2011, the 1177th
TC was again ordered into federal service in support of Operation New Dawn. The
unit deployed to Qatar in October 2010, and returned in November the following
year.[7]
Federally
recognized in 1977, the 248th Medical Company has deployed multiple times to
Iraq and the Sinai, most recently in support of Operation Inherent Resolve in
2020. Personnel of the 248th Medical Company provided crucial support to
hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic.
With a 2012 Afghanistan
deployment and 2021 mobilization in support of Operation Spartan Shield, The
202nd Ordnance Company is also well traveled. Federally recognized in 1987 and
based in Waynesboro, the 202nd conducted an overseas training mission in Panama
in 1999 and mobilized in 2002 as part of Operation Noble Eagle.[8]
In addition to maintaining proficiency in their core mission tasks, Soldiers of
the 202nd were recognized for marksmanship, capturing first place in the team
category of the 2019 Andrew Sullens Marksmanship Competition.[9]
The 138th
Chemical Company provides chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear
surveillance and decontamination for the 265th Chemical Battalion. Authorized
September 1, 2006 in Decatur, Ga., the unit relocated to Kennesaw where it was
federally recognized January 18, 2008. [10],
[11]
In 2014, the 138th was established in its present location on Dobbins ARB.[12]
Later that year, the138th received the Maj. Gen. William L. Sibert Award which
recognizes the best Chemical Company in the National Guard.[13]
Members of the 138th played a prominent role during Georgia’s coordinated
response to the COVID-19 pandemic with Soldiers staffing the first infection
control team. From this initial team’s experience, ICTs composed of units from
across the state disinfected nearly 2,500 facilities and exported the training protocols
to other states. Soldiers of the 138th were also among the first Georgia
Guardsmen mobilized to protect public safety in Atlanta following civil unrest
in May 2020.[14] The
unit deployed to Korea in July 2021 and returned from overseas duty in May
2022.
Federally
recognized in 2012 and based in Rome, Ga., the 1160th Transportation Company is
perennially in high demand for its response capabilities following natural
disasters. Additionally, the 1160th has supported military training missions,
notably at the Joint Readiness Training Center in 2019. Soldiers of the 1160th
also supported Georgia’s COVID-19 response with logistics support and staffing
and healthcare facilities.
[1] Georgia
National Guard, Permanent Order 242-001, Marietta, Georgia, August 30,
2018.
[2]
National Guard Bureau, Organizational Authority 180-20, Washington DC,
September 20, 2020.
[3] Department
of the Army, AGAO-I 325, Washington DC January 23, 1951.
[4] William
Carraway, “Operation Noble Partner,” Georgia Guardsman Magazine, 3rd
Quarter 2017, 9.
[5] U.S.
Army Center of Military History, Lineage and Honors, 1177th
Transportation Company, Washington DC.
[6] National
Guard Bureau, Organizational Authority 57-96, Washington DC, April 2,
1996.
[7] Alert
Order 1A-10-244-001 (A1
[8] “EOD
is an Explosive Business,” Georgia Guardsman, Summer 1999, 8.
[9]
Tori Miller, “Andrew Sullens Marksmanship Competition 2019,” Georgia
Guardsman, Q1 2019, 6-7.
[10]
National Guard Bureau, OA 128-04, Washington DC, June 9, 2004.
[11]
National Guard Bureau, OA 59-08, Washington DC, April 3, 2008.
[12]
National Guard Bureau, OA 232-14, Washington DC, April 29, 2014.
[13] Will
Cox. “138th Chemical Company Receives Sibert Award,” The Georgia Guardsman, July
2014, 10.
[14]
William Carraway, “The Georgia National Guard’s 138th Chemical Company: A Brief
History,” Georgianationalguardhistory.com January 18, 2022, http://www.georgiaguardhistory.com/2022/01/the-georgia-national-guards-138th.html