The 103rd Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) initially formed as the 103rd Infantry Division, organized as a reserve division on September 9th, 1921, in Denver, Colorado. It was ordered into active service on November 15th, 1942 at Camp Claiborne, Louisiana.
103rd troops boarded vessels at Camp Shanks, New York, on October 5th, 1944. Fifteen days after the ships left New York, the men of the 103rd saw the destruction of the war for the first time. The Cactus Division was the first Allied Division to land in Marseille, France. On November 11th, 1944, the Division was committed to combat in the Vosges Mountains of Southern France as part of the Sixth Corps, Seventh U.S. Army. Early in December of 1944, the division crossed the Siegfried Line into Germany. It spent the remainder of the winter fighting defensively during the German counteroffensive, then went into Austria and later into Northern Italy. The division returned to the United States for inactivation in September of 1945.
Individual Cactus Soldiers distinguished themselves earning 12 Distinguished Service Crosses, 1 Distinguished Service Medal, 299 Silver Stars, 3 Legion of Merit Medals, 14 Soldiers Medals, 2,699 Bronze Stars, and 92 Air Medals. One of the more well known commanders of the Cactus Division was Major General Anthony McAuliffe.
The 103rd Infantry Division was activated as a reserve division on May 7th, 1947 in Des Moines, Iowa. In February 1963, its combat elements were redesignated and reorganized as the 205th Infantry Brigade and the 103rd Operational Headquarters. In June of that year, that headquarters was redesignated 103rd Command Headquarters (Divisional). In December 1965, it was reorganized as the 103rd Support Brigade.
The 103rd Support Brigade was redesignated and reorganized as the 103rd Corps Support Command (COSCOM) in September of 1977. The 103rd COSCOM was the first Corps Support Command in the U.S. Army Reserve.
On September 15th, 1993 the 103rd COSCOM inactivated. Out of the inactivation of the 103d COSCOM was the birth of two new reserve units: 19th Theater Army Area Command (CONUS) and 3d COSCOM (CONUS).
On February 14, 2006, the 103rd was redesignated as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 103rd Sustainment Command. The 103rd Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) activated as a reserve command, effective September 16, 2006.
Although the division officially relocated to the areas surrounding Iowa and Minnesota in 1947, its Cactus Patch still reflects the unit’s original geographic locations. The 103rd has transformed from an Infantry Division, to a Support Brigade, to a Corps Support Command, and now to an Expeditionary Sustainment Command, demonstrating the critical role the Army Reserve plays in the defense of our country.
