A unit in the West Virginia National Guard, the 111th Engineer Brigade was originally formed as Company D, 2nd Infantry in 1908. After some reorganizations and redesignations, the unit became Company C, 150th Infantry, one of two Infantry regiments in the 75th Brigade, 38th Division. It was not until 1 July 1974 that it received the 111th Engineer Group Designation, and in November of that year a Distinctive Unit Insignia was approved for it. On 13 November 2006, the insignia was redesignated (with symbolism updated) as the 111th Engineer Brigade Distinctive Unit Insignia (DUI), or unit crest.
“Minutemen For Freedom,” the unit motto, is inscribed in gold at the top of a red scroll; red is the primary color of the Corps of Engineers. A black diamond framing the powder horn is an allusion to the rich coal fields found in West Virginia. The white powder horn is a symbol of the early pioneers who formed the Greenbrier Long Rifles and the constant readiness of the Brigade to respond to the call of both its state and country.
And the Brigade’s capability to answer both state and Federal calls for service was recently enhanced by the addition of personnel from three Military Police Battalions—the 863rd, 156th, and 157th—to the 771st Troop Command Battalion, a subordinate unit of the 111th Engineer Brigade. On 20 October 2019, the personnel were repatched to reflect their new assignments.
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Headquartered in Eleanor, West Virginia, the 111th Engineer Brigade is the largest brigade in the West Virginia Army National Guard and has command control of three battalions: the 771st Troop Command Battalion, 1092nd Engineer Battalion, and the 772nd Aviation Troop Command Battalion.
Its most recent overseas service came in February 2021 when it was deployed to Camp Buehring, Kuwait to provide personnel and subject-matter expertise in support of four named operations in the U.S. Central Command Area of Operations: Operation Spartan Shield, Operation Inherent Resolve, Operation Freedom Sentinel and Operation Allies Refuge. On 13 December 2021, one-hundred twenty of the Brigade's Soldiers arrived in Charleston, West Virginia after completing more than 500 missions and providing base hardening and force protection support to forward operating bases, base camps, and other sites in Kuwait, Iraq, Afghanistan, Bahrain, Jordan, Saudia Arabai, Qatar, Syria, and the United Arab Emirates.Related Items111th Engineer Brigade Patch (SSI)
111th Engineer Brigade Combat Service ID Badge (CSIB)