By Elizabeth Ervin
History Of Fort Drum, New York
In 1809, the United States stationed a company of infantry soldiers at what was then called Sackett’s Harbor to control smuggling between northern New York and Canada. Following the outbreak of the War of 1812, Sacketts Harbor became the center of United States naval and military activity for the Upper St. Lawrence River valley and Lake Ontario. In 1908, Major General Frederick Dent Grant was sent to the Pine Camp region to train with 2,000 regulars and 8,000 militia. Grant, the son of Ulysses S. Grant, former United States president and Civil War general, found Pine Plains to be ideal for military exercises. With the outbreak of World War II in Europe, Pine Camp was selected by the Army for a major expansion. On Labor Day 1941, 100 parcels of land were taken over at a cost of $20 million. An entire city was built to house the divisions scheduled to train at Pine Camp. The three divisions (at the time) training at Pine Camp included the 4th Armored Division, the 45th Infantry Division , and the 5th Armored Division. During the war, the post also served as a prisoner of war camp for captured Italian and German troops.
Pine Camp was renamed Camp Drum in 1951. It was named after Lieutenant General Hugh A. Drum, who was chief of staff of the First United States Army during World War I and First Army commander at the start of World War II. In 1974, a permanent garrison was assigned and Camp Drum was renamed Fort Drum. On September 11, 1984, the announcement was made that Fort Drum would be the new home of the 10th Light Infantry Division. Its mission is to be manned and trained to deploy rapidly by air, sea, and land anywhere in the world, prepared to fight upon arrival and win. The first of the division’s troops arrived at Fort Drum on December 3, 1984, and the unit was officially activated on February 13, 1985. The name was changed to the 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) at that time. The division reached full strength in 1989.
Citations:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Drum
10th Mountain Division Light Infantry
The 10th Mountain Division has participated in the Operation Desert Shield/Storm (Southeast Asia), Operation Restore Hope (Somalia), War on Terrorism (Afghanistan and Iraq). There are currently more than thirty active units on Fort Drum.
The 10th mountain Division Light Infantry did not deploy as a unit, but approximately 1,200 soldiers deployed in support of the 548th Supply and Services Battalion. They distributed food, clothing, medical necessities, and construction supplies. The Division’s mission during Operation Restore Hope was to secure major areas and pathways to provide safe passage for relief supplies to the starving Somali population. In 2001, the 10th Mountain Division (LI) provided the first conventional combat forces to deploy in response to the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States. In July 2004, only six months after returning from Afghanistan, the 2nd Brigade Combat Team deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The brigade secured the contested areas of western Baghdad for the Jan. 31 national elections, preventing enemy attacks from disrupting Iraq’s first democratic election. In August 2005, the 1st Brigade Combat Team deployed to western Baghdad, Iraq. The brigade was responsible for security during the Oct. 15 constitutional referendum and the Dec. 15 national election.
As the U.S. Army Fort Drum website explains:
In the spring of 2011, the 3rd Brigade Combat Team deployed back to Regional Command South to quell the rising tension in the Zhari and Maiwand districts of Kandahar Province. The brigade faced some of the most deeply rooted enemy forces that 10th Mountain Soldiers had seen in more than seven years. Through multiple combat operations south of Highway 1, the brigade successfully attacked through the “green zone” to the Arghandab River, forcing a wedge between insurgents and the Afghan population, which increased security and stability for the Kandahar region. As the brigade combat teams began to redeploy, the 10th Sustainment Brigade assumed forward operations from October 2011 to October 2012. This would be the last of the major brigades that would deploy under a 12-month cycle, as the Army transitioned to a nine-month deployment cycle.
10th Mountain Division Song
“Climb To Glory”
“WE ARE THE 10TH MOUNTAIN INFANTRY,
WITH A GLORIOUS HISTORY
ON OUR OWN TWO FEET,
ALL OUR FOES WE’LL DEFEAT,
LIGHT FIGHTERS MARCHING ON TO VICTORY.
WE GO WHERE OTHERS DARE NOT GO,
THROUGH THE HEAT OR COLD OR SNOW,
WE ARE PROUD TO BE IN THE ARMY OF THE FREE.
CLIMB TO GLORY, MOUNTAIN INFANTRY.
CLIMB TO GLORY, THE LIGHT INFANTRY.”
Major General Milford H. Beagle
Milford Beagle Jr. is the great-grandson of a World War I veteran Walter Beagles. Private Walter Beagles arrived at Camp Jackson, South Carolina, in 1918, an African American draftee in a segregated Army that relegated black soldiers to labor battalions out of a prejudiced notion that they couldn’t fight. More than 100 years later, his great-grandson now serves as Drum’s 51st commanding general, Milford Beagle Jr. The family dropped the “s” from the end of its name during his grandfather’s lifetime. He says he felt compelled to enter the infantry as a young man at least partly because African Americans once were largely shunted aside — considered inferior and unsuited to combat. “That was one thing I did reflect on. Somebody at some point in time said your particular race can’t do that,” Beagle said. “At some point our ancestors fought so we could be in those front-line units and those combat units.” However, the mistreatment of African American soldiers during World War I was not a story Gen. Beagle heard from his great-grandfather. Instead, he spoke of hard work, courage, strength and integrity—values that his great-grandson says are woven into his family’s history.
Brigade General Milford Beagle is also an author. His book, The Rock: Motivational Leadership: a Leader’s Perspective on Inspiring Others While Finding the Motivator in You, highlights the importance of and demonstrates the impact of inspiration and motivation on leadership. Milford H. Beagle Jr. earned a bachelor’s degree from South Carolina State University and master’s degrees from Kansas State University and the Command and General Staff College.
Milford Beagle Jr. assumed command of the 10th Mountain Division Light Infantry from Maj. Gen. Mennes at Fort Drum for his second time. Beagle has served in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, among his many postings. In his remarks, Beagle said that the 10th Mountain Division (LI) will continue to provide ready forces whenever and wherever they are required to deploy.
“Our great garrison team, our partners in excellence on this installation and our community will enable us to maintain our relevance,” he said. “We will laser focus on our people, on our Soldiers, our leaders, our families, our community and our civilians. After all, we recruit Soldiers, but we retain families and quality leaders. By taking care of this priority, everything else will fall into place.”
Beagle is married to Pamela Beagle and has two sons. You can follow him on Twitter at @Beags_Beagle and on Instagram at @10th_mountain_cg.
Citations
Special Troops Battalion, 10th Mountain Division Wikipedia page
