NMAR Virtual Tour
Although the Army Reserve has existed only since 1908, the concept of non-state affiliated Federal citizen-soldiers serving this nation goes back much further. The National Museum of the Army Reserve’s exhibits tell both the story of the Army Reserve and its antecedents.
Part I: The Army Reserve Family Tree 1756-1908
French and Indian War, 1756-1763
The heritage of the Army Reserve pre-dates the founding of the United States. During the French and Indian War the British Crown directly raised militia organizations for service in the colonies. This militia was not affiliated with any colony and was organized directly by the central government, serving in every respect as today’s Army Reserve. The most famous of these organizations was Rogers’ Rangers, which served in New England against hostile Indians.
The museum’s display includes the red regimental coat issued to all British soldiers of the time (including the Rangers), and the hunter green coat that replaced the Rangers’ conspicuous red uniforms. The green uniform was more practical in the unconventional warfare against the Indians. Also displayed are the typical Ranger weapons to include a French Model 1728 .69 caliber Charleville musket, hatchet and knife. Gunpowder was carried in a powder horn to keep it safe and dry.
War for Independence, 1775-1783
During the War for Independence most units in General George Washington’s Continental Army were affiliated with the states. However the Continental Line stood out as a non-state affiliated force that fought for the infant United States. Impressed by the capabilities of his citizen-soldiers, General Washington in 1783 became among the first to suggest the use of a federal militia with allegiance to the national government, and not a particular state. He pointed out that national defense depended heavily on the citizen-soldier and that a “well-regulated” federal militia eliminated the need for a large peacetime regular force. While Congress rejected the idea on budgetary grounds, it did not go away and would eventually lead to the formation of the Army Reserve.
The uniform exhibited here is an exact replica of the one Washington wore during the War for Independence. Early in the war, American officers displayed their rank by wearing a silk sash across their chest. In Washington’s case, he wore the light blue sash of a general. Later in the war, shoulder epaulettes were adopted to show rank. This exhibit depicts Washington’s traditional blue sash and his epaulettes worn together, which was not an uncommon practice.
Early Citizen-Soldiers
The figure on the right is a Prussian Kruemper soldier. The first Reserve system in the Western world was created in Prussia by General Gerhard Johan von Scharnhorst in 1807. The Prussian reserve system (the Kruemper system) served as the model that was adopted by all of Europe and eventually the United States. Many American leaders, such as Secretary of War John C. Calhoun, advocated the adoption of the Prussian system as early as 1820. Opponents, however, felt the state militias filled the role of a reserve force. The system’s viability was tested when the Prussians went to war against Napoleon in 1813; Kruemper soldiers helped the Prussian Army field numerous high-quality units quickly. This Prussian Kruemper wears the uniform of the 12th Silesian Regiment.
The figure on the left is a U.S. infantry soldier circa 1814. While the popular image of the War of 1812 soldier is of one in a blue uniform, most soldiers wore the Army's gray fatigue uniform. This was especially the case for volunteer militiamen. The War of 1812 saw the country's first use of nationally-raised volunteer regiments, the forerunners of today's Army Reserves. This figure imparts the look of the typical volunteer infantryman on campaign during the war.
Early Republic Period, 1800-1842
During this period the United States coalesced from 13 British colonies into one nation. The young country fought Britain again during the War of 1812 (1812-1815). During the conflict the U.S. Army expanded with the addition of several regiments, but shrank again after peace was declared. Soon thereafter several officers (most notably Captain Alden Partridge) realized a need for college students at private institutions to receive officer training without having to attend one of the service academies or go on active duty. Captain Partridge began a program of military education at the American Literary, Scientific and Military Academy (later called Norwich University) in 1819. The curriculum spread to other private colleges in the 1820s, thereby training thousands of students as officers for their local militia units. Partridge laid the groundwork for an officer reserve that would one day be commissioned directly by the federal government. This officer cadet curriculum later developed into the Reserve Officer’s Training Corps, or ROTC.
The display shows Partridge in full dress summer uniform circa 1842. Next to him is a cadet in a winter uniform of the same period. Cadets wore expensive tailored uniforms of the finest cloth and leather shakos. They drilled with the U.S. Model 1816 .69 caliber musket and bayonet.
The Civil War, 1861-1865
The Civil War was the bloodiest conflict in U.S. history. The U.S. Army entered the conflict in April of 1861 with 16,000 men under arms. By 1865 over 2 million men had fought for the United States and the Army was one of the best fighting forces in the world. Two branches of the Army Reserve’s family tree came out of the Civil War: the Veteran’s Reserve Corps (VRC) and U.S. Colored Troops (USCT). VRC units were created in 1863 from men who had been wounded or transferred off active service. VRC members provided combat support and service support, much like today’s Reserves. The USCT units were non-state affiliated volunteers, made up mostly of former slaves literally fighting for their freedom.
The display shows typical VRC and USCT soldiers. Both carry Model 1861 Springfield Rifles, one of the standard infantry weapons of the war. The VRC wore a light-blue uniform to set them apart from other Army units.
War with Spain and Beyond, 1898-1908
In 1898 the United States went to war with Spain over the sinking of the USS Maine in Havana Harbor. U.S. forces were dispatched to capture Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and some less Spanish possessions. After a few months of fighting the Spaniards ceded their empire to U.S. dominion and oversight. The Filipinos fought for their independence but were put down by the Army in 1902. During the War with Spain much of the fighting was led by Regular Army units – most volunteers and militia outfits failed to get into action. The war demonstrated that the Army could no longer function in war with primarily volunteer officers with little military training. Warfare had grown so complex that a peacetime cadre of officers and enlisted leaders needed to be maintained for the Army to call upon in wartime. This realization led directly to the foundation of the Army Reserve in 1908.
NMAR's display features uniforms from the War with Spain and Philippine Insurrection periods. The shift to khaki was the first effort to try and camouflage soldiers in the field, and also was cooler in the tropical climates. The case also showcases accoutrements from the time, a Krag-Jorgensen rifle, a "Trapdoor" Springfield rifle, and a captured Spanish signal flag.
Part II: The Army Reserve 1908-present
The Army Reserve’s Foundation
On April 23, 1908, the Army Reserve was founded as a permanent institution. In the beginning only officers of the medical corps were included, and the organization was known as the Medical Reserve Corps. In 1912 the Reserves expanded to include combat arms with the creation of the Officers Reserve Corps and the Enlisted Reserve Corps. They were later combined as the Organized Reserve. Since then the Army Reserve has been an important part of the nation’s defense.
The uniforms seen in this display are the Model 1902 summer and winter uniforms. They show the further progression of the Army uniforms to a modern, inconspicuous shade of khaki or olive drab. The M1902 uniform would have been worn by the first Army Reserve officers at its foundation in 1908.
The Mexican Border, 1916
In March 1916 the ongoing revolution in Mexico spilled over into the United States when Pancho Villa's guerrillas sacked and burned Columbus, New Mexico. Within days, President Woodrow Wilson dispatched General John J. Pershing with 10,000 troops on a Punitive Expedition into Mexico to capture Pancho Villa. Pershing spent ten months in Mexico tracking Villa, but was never able to find him. In early 1917 Pershing returned home empty-handed. Further attempts to find Villa were overtaken by American entry into World War I in April of 1917. Three thousand Army Reserve soldiers supported the Punitive Expedition and the accompanying National Guard deployment to the border – the first call-up in the Army Reserve’s history.
This display depicts an Army Reserve infantryman of this period. He wears an M1912 summer field uniform, and carries an M1903 .30 caliber US rifle.
World War I, 1917-1918
The United States entered the First World War (1914-1918) on April 6, 1917. The Army set about equipping, shipping and deploying its largest force since the Civil War to France. The Enlisted and Officer Reserve Corps provided cadres for all National Army Divisions (those numbered 70 and up). The first U.S. units saw action in late 1917, but most of the American divisions came to France in 1918. National Army Divisions like the 77th, 78th, 80th, 82d, and 89th distinguished themselves on the Western Front during the 1918 battles at St. Mihiel and the Argonne. Captain Eddie Rickenbacker, an Army Reserve Officer, became the leading American fighter ace of the war. By the time of the Armistice on November 11, 1918, over 80,000 Enlisted Reserve Corps soldiers and 89,476 Officer Reserve Corps leaders served on active duty in every division of the United States Army.
This figure is from the 77th Division, a National Army division from the New York City area. He wears an M1917 helmet, an exact copy of the British helmet. The M1917 wool uniform has the rank insignia of crossed rifles for Private First Class sewn on the right sleeve. The left sleeve insignia includes a 77th Infantry Division patch, red discharge stripe and one gold chevron denoting six months of overseas service. The leather jerkin was a very popular item which allowed better freedom of movement than the bulky overcoat. The M1910 cartridge belt had ten pockets which held two 5-round charger clips of 30.06 caliber ammunition.
World War II, 1941-1945
The Second World War (1939-1945) was the largest and bloodiest conflict in world history. The Army Reserve provided an important source of junior leadership for the Army before U.S. entry into the war in 1941. As the Army grew in response to wartime demands, the Organized Reserve provided 26 infantry divisions and an estimated 25% of all Army officers during the war. Organized Reserve Divisions served all over the world during the war. Most went to Europe or Italy, while four divisions served against Japan in the Pacific Theater.
World War II – Europe
Most of the Organized Reserve divisions served in Europe. Almost all of them supported the campaign from Normandy into Central Germany, many with distinction. Four Reserve divisions (85th, 88th, 91st, and 92d) served in the Italian Campaign. The 88th was the first Reserve division to see combat in the war, and liberated Rome on June 4, 1944.
Four museum displays discuss the Army Reserve's role in defeating Nazi Germany. One case explains the Army Reserve in Italy, while two other displays show the history of the 90th and 94th Infantry Divisions in France and Germany. One case shows German war trophies captured by the 94th in 1945.
World War II – Pacific
Four Organized Reserve divisions (77th, 81st, 96th, and 98th) served in the Pacific Theater during World War II, three of which saw action. The 98th served as the Hawaii garrison during the latter years of the war. The 77th was the first Reserve division to fight in the Pacific when it landed at Guam in July 1944. It later fought with the 96th on Leyte and Okinawa. The 81st served in the Palau Islands and on Leyte.
This figure represents a soldier of the 81st “Wildcat” Infantry Division in the 1944 Battle of Peleliu. The herringbone twill uniform, adopted in 1943, was the most common uniform worn by American soldiers in the Pacific Theater. This lightweight cotton uniform was a welcome substitute for the standard army wool uniform in the heat and humidity of the South Pacific. On his back, this soldier of the 81st Infantry Division carries the cumbersome and unpopular M1928 Haversack. He wears the “flesh-out” finish service shoe with the M1938 leggings.
Korea, 1950-1953
After World War II ended in 1945 the United States Army shrank from a wartime peak of 8,000,000 soldiers and 89 divisions to 591,000 soldiers and only ten ill-equipped divisions. When the North Koreans attacked across the 38th Parallel on June 25, 1950 the Army proved barely able to hold onto Korea’s southeast corner. By the end of 1951 the U.S. and its allies had managed to recapture and hold about half of the peninsula. The war caused a massive buildup, and by the end of 1951 over 200,000 Reserve soldiers had been mobilized. Many ROTC graduates and individual Reservists provided leadership to U.S. formations in Korea, while 54 separate Organized Reserve Corps battalions or companies deployed to Korea as supporting units.
The Korean War displays focus on the Organized Reserve’s contributions to the United Nations war effort. The figure represents the 930th Ordnance (Ammunition) Company, which was a Reserve unit based in Parsons, Kansas and made up mostly of African-American soldiers. He wears the M1951 winter uniform and accessories.
Vietnam, 1965-1973
Relatively few members of the Army Reserve were mobilized for service during the Vietnam War. Budgetary constraints, plus concern about a possible war in Europe, limited the reserve mobilization. ROTC programs provided junior leaders to all Army units in country during the war. In 1968 5,000 Army Reserve soldiers were called up and 3,500 were sent to Vietnam. The units mobilized represented 42 units, including one infantry battalion of 782 men, several military police detachments, medical, finance, quartermaster, transportation, and ordnance units.
The Vietnam exhibits discuss Army Reserve actions in country, especially the activities of ROTC junior officers. One display pays tribute to 1st Lt. Sharon Lane of Ohio, an Army Reserve nurse who was the only woman killed in action by direct enemy fire during the war.
Persian Gulf, 1991
The Persian Gulf War was the first test of the U.S. Army’s Total Force concept whereby the Active Army was composed primarily of combat units, the Army Reserve of combat support and combat service support, and the Army National Guard of reserve combat units. Each was dependent upon the others. Army Reserve Terminal Transfer Units loaded dozens of ships at various seaports with the equipment and personnel of the 1st Cavalry Division, the 2nd Armored Division, III Corps Artillery and many other Regular Army units deploying to the Gulf. Other Army Reserve logisticians kept the armies moving and fighting and enabled victory to be attained after a 100-hour ground war.
This Army Reserve soldier from the 316th Quartermaster Company wears the 6-color Desert Camouflage uniform, often referred to as the “chocolate chip.” The field, or “boonie,” hat provided protection from the intense desert sun for soldiers in the rear areas. The “rough-out” desert boots were the Army’s first departure from four decades of shined black boots. With the constant threat of Iraqi chemical attack, soldiers were never without their gas masks.
Operation Iraqi Freedom, 2003-Present
Over 55,000 Reserve soldiers were mobilized as part of the 200,000-strong ground force in place for Operation Iraqi Freedom. These Reserve soldiers represented both units and individuals assigned to Regular Army outfits. From the start of the war in 2003, Army Reserve Transportation units have kept the Army supplied with food, fuel and ammunition. Army Reserve military police units handled Enemy Prisoner of War (EPW) and detainee functions. Army Reserve Civil Affairs units have worked to counteract enemy propaganda and to rebuild the country. The Army Reserve proved it could work alongside the Regular Army and accomplish the mission.
This Army Reserve Military Policeman, representing the 800th MP Brigade, wears the early-war Desert Combat Uniform (DCU) with a flak vest and associated equipment. This was a typical appearance for a U.S. soldier in 2003 and 2004.
