112th Cavalry Regiment
The 112th Cavalry Regiment is a Texas National Guard regiment that served in several Pacific campaigns during World War II. Early history The 112th Cavalry was first organized in 1918 as the 5th Texas Cavalry Regiment before being disbanded in 1920. In December 1920 the Texas National Guard was reorganized as the 36th Infantry Division and the 1st Texas Cavalry Brigade less one regiment. On 20 July 1921 the 1st Texas Cavalry Regiment became the 112th Cavalry. In March 1929 the 2nd Squadron and the Machine Gun Squadron of the 112th were reorganized into the 124th Cavalry Regiment. The 112th and 124th Cavalry were brigaded into the 56th Cavalry Brigade in 1940. World War II On 10 November 1940 President Roosevelt federalized the National Guard, and on 18 November 1940 the 112th was posted to Fort Bliss. The 112th's sister regiment in the brigade, the 124th Cavalry was the last of the cavalry regiments to give up their horses and was later sent to Burma. The regiment patrolled the Mexican border until being shipped to New Caledonia on 8 July 1942 arriving on 11 August 1942. They were assigned to the Americal Division under General Alexander Patch. The 112th Cavalry were assigned Australian Waler horses, and ordered to New Caledonia to serve as a horse mounted security force. General Patch initially thought horse mounted cavalry could be used in jungle warfare, but the torrential Pacific rains and the mud that followed damaged the horses' hooves, changing the general's mind. The Australian horses were shipped to Burma and assigned to Chinese forces who mistreated them. In 1944 the Walers rejoined the American Army being assigned to Merrill's Marauders. During the heavy fighting on Guadalcanal, General Alexander Vandegrift of the 1st Marine Division sent an urgent request for machetes for his Marines. General Patch took the sabers of the regiment, cut them down and sent them to the Marines for jungle warfare use. After extensive training the 112th made its first amphibious landing at Woodlark Island as part of Operation Chronicle on 30 June 1943. The landing was unopposed, and the cavalrymen established a defensible perimeter to protect Seabees building an airstrip on the island. The regiment was sent to Goodenough Island for training and became part of Task Force Director in preparation for its first action, Operation Director the Battle of Arawe. The 112th set sail on , and the high speed transports and . On 15 December 1943 the regiment landed in three separate amphibious operations on New Britain. One of these landings involved Troop A of the 2nd Squadron landing in rubber boats off Sands against fierce defense that sank all but three of the boats. The destroyer sailed close as possible to the enemy defenders to shell them and rescue the survivors of A Troop. Troop B landed at Pilelo Island from Humphreys in 15 rubber boats on the same day. When meeting resistance from Japanese troops in caves, Troop B destroyed one with a bazooka and one