The 40th Infantry Division ("Sunburst Division") is a modular division of the California Army National Guard. Following the Army's modularization in the mid-2000s, the division has become a modular unit consisting of three brigade combat teams, with National Guardsmen from throughout the Pacific and Western United States and Oceania. Its division headquarters is located at Los Alamitos Joint Forces Training Base in Los Alamitos, California.

After seeing service in World War I as a depot division, it was reorganized as the National Guard division for California, Nevada, and Utah, before seeing service in the Pacific Theatre of World War II. Later, the division served in Korea and some of its units were designated for Vietnam. The division was later reorganized redesigned as a National Guard unit completely within California. Later reorganizations included units from other states. The division was called up to quell civil disturbances and rioting that occurred during the Watts Riots in 1965, rioting during the Long, Hot Summer of 1967 and during the LA riots in 1992. Most recently, the division has been deployed overseas as part of the ongoing Global War on Terrorism, seeing service in Iraq and Afghanistan. As currently configured, the 40th Infantry Division has oversight and responsibility for the training and readiness of units in California, Oregon, Hawaii, Arizona, Washington, Alaska, New Mexico, Indiana, Nebraska, Nevada, Utah, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

History

Constituted on 18 July 1917 following the American entry into World War I, the 40th Infantry Division was organized at Camp Kearny, near San Diego, California, on 16 September, originally designated as the 19th Division. It was composed of National Guard units from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.

World War I It was sent overseas on 3 August 1918 and redesignated as the 6th Depot Division; received, equipped, trained, and forwarded replacements. Major General Frederick S. Strong was assigned as commander on 25 August 1917, but was replaced less than a month later by Brigadier General G. H. Cameron on 18 September 1917.

The division then saw a rapid turnover of leaders – Brigadier General L. S. Lyon (19 November 1917), Brigadier General G. H. Cameron (23 November 1917), Brigadier General L. S. Lyon (6 December 1917) and then Major General F. S. Strong again on 8 December 1917.

Order of battle Headquarters, 40th Division 79th Infantry Brigade 157th Infantry Regiment (former 1st Colorado Infantry, and 1st Colorado Cavalry less band and Troop E) 158th Infantry Regiment (former 1st Arizona Infantry) 144th Machine Gun Battalion (former 3rd Battalion and Machine Gun Company, 1st New Mexico Infantry) 80th Infantry Brigade 159th Infantry Regiment (former 5th California Infantry, and 2nd California Infantry less band, 2nd Battalion, and Companies L and M) 160th Infantry Regiment (former 7th California Infantry, and 2nd Battalion and Companies L and M, 2nd California Infantry) 145th Machine Gun Battalion (former Troops A, B, and C and Machine Gun Troop, 1st Separate Squadron California Cavalry) 65th Field Artillery Brigade 143rd Field Artillery Regiment (75 mm) (former 1st California Field Artillery) 144th Field Artillery Regiment (155 mm) (former 2nd California Field Artillery) 145th Field Artillery Regiment (4.7") (former 1st Utah Field Artillery) 115th Trench Mortar Battery (former Machine Gun Company, 2nd Colorado Infantry) 143rd Machine Gun Battalion (former 1st and 2nd Battalions, 1st New Mexico Infantry) 115th Engineer Regiment (former 1st Battalion, Colorado Engineers, and Troop E, 1st Colorado Cavalry) 115th Field Signal Battalion (former Company B, California Signal Corps and Company B, Colorado Signal Corps) Headquarters Troop, 40th Division (former Troop D, 1st California Cavalry) 115th Train Headquarters and Military Police (former Headquarters, Headquarters Company less band, and Supply Company, 1st New Mexico Infantry) 115th Ammunition Train (former Headquarters, Headquarters Company less band, and 2nd and 3rd Battalions, 1st Colorado Infantry) 115th Supply Train (former Supply Company and 1st Battalion, 1st Colorado Infantry) 115th Engineer Train (former 1st Colorado Engineer Train) 115th Sanitary Train 157th, 158th, 159th, and 160th Ambulance Companies and Field Hospitals (former California Ambulance Companies No. 1 and 2 and Field Hospital Companies No. 1 and 2, and Utah Field Hospital No. 1)

When the division arrived in France in August 1918, the Imperial German Army had just completed a series of offensives that started on 21 March and ended on 15 July 1918. It was decided that the new divisions would be used as depot divisions, supplying fresh troops to the more experienced combat divisions. By the time the war was over in November 1918, due to the Armistice with Germany, the 40th Division had provided over 27,000 replacements to the 26th, 28th, 32nd, 77th, 80th, 81st, 82nd, and 89th Divisions. Thus the division as a whole did not serve in combat, but many division personnel fought, notably Captain Nelson Miles Holderman, who received the Medal of Honor for his actions in the Meuse–Argonne offensive while serving with the Lost Battalion of the 77th Division. The division returned to the United States on 30 June 1919 where it was deactivated.

World War I Memorial

In Sacramento, the entrance to the Library & Courts Building (home to the California State Library houses the Memorial Entrance Vestibule, a memorial for the California veterans who served in World War I. In addition to the use of the 40th Infantry Division's sunburst insignia (symbolizing the division's connection to California) both inside and outside the building, the two major features are the sixteen black Italian marble pillars and a large mural titled "War Through the Ages" by painter Frank Van Sloan. The memorial opened to the public in 1928.

Interwar period

The 40th Division headquarters arrived at the port of New York aboard the USS Artemis on 13 March 1919 after 6 months of overseas service and was demobilized on 20 April 1919 at Camp Kearny, California. In accordance with the National Defense Act of 1920, the division was allotted to the states of California, Utah, and Nevada, and assigned to the IX Corps. The division headquarters was reorganized and federally recognized on 18 June 1926 at Berkeley, California. The division headquarters was relocated on 1 October 1937 to Los Angeles, California. The designated mobilization training center for the “Sunburst” Division was Camp San Luis Obispo, where much of the division’s training activities occurred between the wars. The units of the 40th Division were called up by their state governors for various state emergencies and duties. The largest of these was a virtually statewide strike in California in May and June 1934 by longshoremen and other labor unions. Most of the division was called up to perform strike duty and crowd control. The division staff, composed of personnel from all three states, came together to conduct joint training for several summers before World War II. The staff conducted their training at numerous locations over the period to include the Presidio of San Francisco, Camp San Luis Obispo, and at the Presidio of Monterey.

The division conducted summer camp every year at San Luis Obispo, 1923-1939, minus the Utah elements, which held their training at Camp W.G. Williams, Utah. Additionally, the division staff participated in the Fourth Army CPXs held at Fort Lewis, Washington, in 1935 and 1936, and at the Presidio of San Francisco in 1939. For the 1937 camp, the division participated in the Ninth Corps Area phase of the Fourth Army maneuvers at San Luis Obispo held 2–12 August. During that maneuver, the 40th Division operated against the 6th Infantry Brigade of the Regular Army's 3rd Division. In April 1940, the 40th Division commanding general and his staff participated in the 3rd Division’s maneuver in the vicinity of Fort Ord, California. For the final phase of the exercise, the division commander and staff assumed control of the simulated combat actions of the 3rd Division. In August 1940, the “Sunburst” Division again participated in the Fourth Army Maneuvers, this time at Fort Lewis as part of the provisional IX Corps. The division was relieved from the IX Corps on 30 December 1940 and assigned to the III Corps. In early 1941, the personnel from Nevada’s 40th Military Police Company and 2nd Battalion, 115th Engineer Regiment were used to form the 121st Coast Artillery Battalion (Separate) (Antiaircraft), and the military police and engineer units were subsequently reorganized in California, removing Nevada from allocation to the division.

World War II WWII division organization Square division On 3 March 1941, the 40th Division was inducted into federal service at home stations and then assembled at Fort Lewis in Washington. At the time the division still retained its World War I square organization and consisted of the following units.

40th Division, in Los Angeles (CA)National Guard Register for 1939, pp. 52-53 40th Division Headquarters 79th Infantry Brigade, in Sacramento, California (CA) Headquarters and Headquarters Company, in Sacramento (CA) 159th Infantry Regiment, in Oakland (CA) Headquarters and Headquarters Company 3× Infantry battalions each battalion consists of: 1× Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 3× Rifle companies, 1× Weapons Company Anti-Tank Company (M3 37mm Anti-Tank guns) Service Company 184th Infantry Regiment, in Sacramento (CA) same organization as 159th Infantry Regiment 80th Infantry Brigade, in Los Angeles (CA) Headquarters and Headquarters Company, in Los Angeles (CA) 160th Infantry Regiment, in Los Angeles (CA) same organization as 159th Infantry Regiment 185th Infantry Regiment, in Fresno (CA) same organization as 159th Infantry Regiment 65th Field Artillery Brigade, in Salt Lake City (UT) Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, in Payson (UT) 143rd Field Artillery Regiment, in Stockton (CA) Headquarters and Headquarters Battery 2× Light Field Artillery battalions Headquarters and Headquarters Battery 3× Howitzer batteries (M1897 75mm field guns), replaced by M2 105mm towed howitzers in 1941) Service Battery 145th Field Artillery Regiment, in Salt Lake City (UT) same organization as 143rd Field Artillery Regiment 222nd Field Artillery Regiment, in Salt Lake City (UT) Headquarters and Headquarters Battery 2× Medium Field Artillery battalions Headquarters and Headquarters Battery 3× Howitzer batteries (M1918 155mm towed howitzers, replaced by M1 155mm towed howitzers in 1941) Anti-Tank Battery (M1897 75mm anti-tank guns) Service Battery 115th Engineer Regiment, in Salt Lake City (UT) Headquarters and Headquarters and Service Company 2× Engineer battalions each battalion consists of: 1× Headquarters, 3× Engineer companies 115th Medical Regiment, in Los Angeles (CA) Headquarters and Headquarters and Service Company Collecting Battalion battalion consists of: 1× Headquarters, 3× Collecting companies Ambulance Battalion battalion consists of: 1× Headquarters, 3× Ambulance companies Clearing Battalion battalion consists of: 1× Headquarters, 3× Clearing companies 115th Quartermaster Regiment, in Berkeley (CA) Headquarters and Headquarters Company 2× Truck battalions each battalion consists of: 1× Headquarters, 2× Truck companies Light Maintenance and Car Battalion battalion consists of: 1× Headquarters, 1× Light Maintenance Company, 1× Car Company Service Company Headquarters, Special Troops, in Berkeley (CA) Headquarters Company, 40th Division, in Los Angeles (CA) 40th Signal Company, in San Francisco (CA) 115th Ordnance Company, in Ogden (UT) 40th Military Police Company, in California

Triangular division