31st Infantry Division (United States)
The 31st Infantry Division, nicknamed the Dixie Division, was a United States Army National Guard division formed in 1917 from units in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and Mississippi. It fought in World War I, but most of its men were used as replacements for other units in France. The division returned to the United States and was demobilized in January 1919.
In 1923 the 31st was reorganized with guards from Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi. During the interwar years it trained but seldom as a single, integrated division, with units in the four states conducting joint activities occasionally.
When World War II began, the division was mobilized in 1940 and trained in the United States before being sent to the Pacific. It fought in New Guinea (including the Battle of Driniumor River), Morotai, and Mindanao as part of the liberation of the Philippines. The division was demobilized in December 1945 after the war ended.
After the war, the 31st was reactivated in Alabama and Mississippi in 1946. During the Korean War, it was mobilized again in 1951, with many soldiers serving as replacements at units overseas. In 1954 the division moved to Fort Carson, Colorado, and was inactivated; its Alabama and Mississippi National Guard units continued to exist as a National Guard division (NGUS), with headquarters at Mobile and later Birmingham.
In 1968 the division as a distinct entity was eliminated, and its units were absorbed into the 30th Armored Division. The 31st’s lineage continued through a series of reorganizations: it became the 31st Brigade of the 30th Armored Division in 1973, later the 31st Armored Brigade, and in 2002 began transitioning to a chemical brigade. Since then it has served as the 31st Chemical Brigade, preserving the division’s lineage within the Army National Guard.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 23:13 (CET).