Infantry timelines · Infantry numbers 1–200

38th Infantry Regiment

A century of division assignments

1916–2026 · Regimental service, battle groups, battalions and deployments.

38th Infantry Regiment unit graphic
38th Infantry Regiment
First division shown3d Infantry Division1 Oct 1917
Separate unit histories1 documented elementsDated lineages and service notes below
Page cutoff8 September 2026Last-documented status is explicitly marked

One regiment, separate assignments

The common row follows the regiment. After its reorganization, battle groups and battalions could hold different assignments at the same time. A deployment or temporary attachment does not by itself change the assigned division. The common row closes on 8 Nov 1957; later service belongs to the separate element rows. Battalion rows follow headquarters lineages, often descended from lettered companies, rather than assuming that the old regimental battalions continued unchanged.

The prewar 1st Battalion was inactive from 1 October 1933 to 1 May 1939 even while the regiment remained assigned to the 3d Division.

Division patches

3d Infantry Division2d Infantry Division4th Infantry Division

Representative division patches. Patterns could change over time; an image does not imply that the exact version was worn throughout every period. Divisions without a verified asset remain identified by name.

The dated record

Division timeline

Battalion overview →

Deployments, operations and credited campaign service appear inside assignment cards. Award years establish credited service, not exact tour dates. Some service notes identify only company-sized elements. This is a sourced selection, not a complete movement log.

Assignment ends are exclusive: the next period starts on that date. *Striped final bars mean last documented, with later status unverified through the page cutoff. Unknown intervals are not treated as inactive.

  1. 1 Jan 1916 – 15 May 1917

    38th Infantry Regiment

    Not yet constituted / organized

    This timeline begins in 1916. The cited organization had not yet been constituted or organized during this interval; its formation follows.

    Source

  2. 15 May 1917 – 1 Oct 1917

    38th Infantry Regiment

    Assignment not established

    The available record does not establish a precise assignment throughout this interval. No division is inferred.

    Source

  3. 1 Oct 1917 – 16 Oct 1939

    38th Infantry Regiment

    3d Infantry Division

    Division names are normalized across historical redesignations. This entry follows the cited unit lineage.

    Source

    Deployments & overseas operations

    1. 1918

      France

      38th Infantry Regiment · Campaign service

      Campaign participation is recorded in the cited history. The year label summarizes campaign service, not an exact overseas tour.

      Source
  4. 16 Oct 1939 – 8 Nov 1957

    38th Infantry Regiment

    2d Infantry Division

    Division names are normalized across historical redesignations. This entry follows the cited unit lineage.

    Source

    Deployments & overseas operations

    1. 1944-1945

      Western Europe

      38th Infantry Regiment · Campaign service

      Campaign participation is recorded in the cited history. The year label summarizes campaign service, not an exact overseas tour.

      Source

    2. 1950-1953

      Korean War

      38th Infantry Regiment · Campaign service

      Campaign participation is recorded in the cited history. The year label summarizes campaign service, not an exact overseas tour.

      Source
  5. 8 Nov 1957 – 4 Mar 1958

    1st Battle Group / Battalion lineage

    No assigned division

    The cited record establishes service outside an assigned division. Higher headquarters and temporary operational attachments could still direct the unit.

    Source

  6. 4 Mar 1958 – 19 Feb 1962

    1st Battle Group / Battalion lineage

    Inactive

    The unit or its headquarters lineage was inactive. This status does not imply that every inherited honor or divisional affiliation was erased.

    Source

  7. 19 Feb 1962 – 16 Dec 1986

    1st Battle Group / Battalion lineage

    2d Infantry Division

    Division names are normalized across historical redesignations. This entry follows the cited unit lineage.

    Source

  8. 16 Dec 1986 – 28 Aug 1987

    1st Battle Group / Battalion lineage

    Inactive

    The unit or its headquarters lineage was inactive. This status does not imply that every inherited honor or divisional affiliation was erased.

    Source

  9. 28 Aug 1987 – 27 Apr 2006

    1st Battle Group / Battalion lineage

    TRADOC · Training

    Institutional or training service. This is a command relationship, not a maneuver-division assignment.

    Source

  10. 27 Apr 2006 – 1 Jun 2006

    1st Battle Group / Battalion lineage

    Inactive

    The unit or its headquarters lineage was inactive. This status does not imply that every inherited honor or divisional affiliation was erased.

    Source

  11. 1 Jun 2006 – 16 Mar 2014

    1st Battle Group / Battalion lineage

    2d Infantry Division

    Division names are normalized across historical redesignations. This entry follows the cited unit lineage.

    Source

    Deployments & overseas operations

    1. 2007-2008

      Iraq

      1st Battle Group / Battalion lineage · Credited overseas service

      The Army lineage lists a unit decoration for service in these years. These are credited service years, not exact deployment and return dates.

      Source

    2. 2009-2010

      Iraq

      1st Battle Group / Battalion lineage · Credited overseas service

      The Army lineage lists a unit decoration for service in these years. These are credited service years, not exact deployment and return dates.

      Source

    3. 2012-2013

      Afghanistan

      1st Battle Group / Battalion lineage · Credited overseas service

      The Army lineage lists a unit decoration for service in these years. These are credited service years, not exact deployment and return dates.

      Source
  12. 16 Mar 2014 – page cutoff*

    1st Battle Group / Battalion lineage

    Last documented: 4th Infantry Division

    Division names are normalized across historical redesignations. This entry follows the cited unit lineage. The source establishes this last recorded status, not uninterrupted service through 2026. The striped bar extends to the page cutoff to keep the later research gap visible.

    Source

Sources and scope

Army Center of Military History lineage certificates provide the dated backbone. Regimental associations and secondary histories supplement individual operations and battalions. Where the evidence stops, the page says so. A page cutoff is not a claim that every unit directory was current on that date.

Earlier battalions are covered by common regimental service; separately dated lineages and substantiated later battalions receive their own rows or notes. A unit graphic alone is not evidence of a battalion assignment. Reserve, training and inactive organizations are distinguished from active combat units.

  1. Army Center of Military History: 38th Infantry Regiment
  2. Army Center of Military History: 1st Battalion 38th Infantry Regiment

Patch artwork

Unmodified artwork from Wikimedia Commons; individual file pages identify the artist and license. Insignia represent the divisions, not regimental affiliation badges.