Nickname; Mountaineer Division. . Shoulder Patch: White-bordered, blue powder-keg with superimposed two, crossed, red bayonets making Roman numeral “X” for the 10th, the bayonets indicating Infantry. Above is white-lettered “Mountain” on blue background tab. . History: Organized August 1918, at Camp Funston, Kansas, too late to go overseas. Demobilized: Feb., 1919. . Training: Reactivated: July 15, 1943, at Camp Hale, Colorado. Assigned to AGF and XI Corps, Second Army as 10th Division (L). Redesignated: 10th Mountain Division, Nov. 6, 1944. Maneuvers: Hunter Liggett Military Reservation. Other station in U. S.: Camp Swift, Texas; The 10th gathered expert woodsmen, skiiers, mountaineers and experimented with new mountain equipment. Overseas: Dec., 1944. (Italy). . Commanding Generals: Maj. Gen. Lloyd E. Jones, July, 1943, to Nov., 1944; Maj. Gen. George P. Hays, Nov., 1944, to present. . Component Units: (As of Dec., 1944) 85th, 86th and 87th Mt. Inf. Regiments.; 604th, 605th and 616th (Pack Howitzer) FA Battalions. Higher Command: Fifth Army. . Combat Highlights: The 10th first went into action in January 1945 (Italy). Prior to that the 87th Inf. Regt. had spearheaded the landing at Kiska (1943), but no enemy opposition developed. There was plenty of opposition in Italy. Division patrols swooped down on enemy outposts, wiped them out and sped away. In mid-February, the 10th began its effort to dislodge the enemy on Mt. Belvedere overlooking Highway 65 toward Bologna, a peak lost and won several times. The 10th conquered Belvedere and nearby peaks in three days of bitter fighting against a strongly entrenched enemy on higher ground, capturing more than a thousand prisoners. The Division struck again in early March and took a dozen more peaks in the heaviest fighting on Europe’s most difficult battleground, advancing to within 15 miles of Bologna. Jumping off again, April 14, to spearhead the Fifth Army’s northern Appennines offensive, the 10th helped in the final drive which broke the back of German resistance in Italy. A week later, units of the 10th had entered the Po Valley, first of Allied troops to reach these vital flatlands. Verona and Bussolinga fell and the 10th went on to cut the main route to the Brenner Pass, on April 26. The Division was fighting against fanatical opposition during the last days of April. Torbole and Nago were strongly defended by the Germans. Both towns were taken and resistance in Northern Italy ended May 2.