United States Army 104th Infantry Division (Timberwolves)

U. S. ARMY 104TH INFANTRY (TIMBERWOLVES DIVISION) -  The 104th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the United States Army.  Today, it is known as the 104th Division (Leader Training) and based at Fort Lewis, Washington, as a training unit of the United States Army Reserve.

Activated in 1921, the division was created as an infantry unit with a focus on nighttime combat operations.  Deployed during World War II, the division saw almost 200 days of fighting in northwestern Europe as it fought through France, Belgium, and western Germany, fighting back several fierce German counterattacks as it advanced through the theater throughout late 1944 and 1945.  This was the only combat duty that the 104th Infantry Division has served during its history.  At the end of the fighting on May 7, 1945 (V-E Day), this division was in central Germany opposite the troops of its allies from the Soviet Army.

After World War II, this division was reorganized primarily as a training division for Reserve forces. After several decades, the division then expanded its role to conducting entry-level training for soldiers of all branches of the Army in the northwestern United States. Its role and size have expanded over that time due to consolidation of other training commands, and the division subsequently took charge of a number of brigades specializing in various entry-level training for soldiers of all types.

WWII Casualties

• Total battle casualties: 4,961
• Killed in action: 971
• Wounded in action: 3,657
• Missing in action: 96
• Prisoner of war: 237

Several people who served with the 104th Infantry Division later went on to achieve notability for various reasons.  Among these people are rabbi Gunther Plaut, paleontologist Charles Repenning, Governor of Iowa Leo Hoegh,  New York City mayor Ed Koch,  New York governor Hugh L. Carey, and generals John R. Deane, Jr. and Bryant Moore.  In addition, actor James G. Snitzer was a member of the 104th and died in combat in 1945.   NFL Player Bob Shaw also served with the 104th and was awarded the Bronze Star during World War II.

In addition, two soldiers from this division were awarded the Medal of Honor for their service in combat.  They are Willy F. James, Jr., for scouting German positions while being pinned down by machine gun fire, and Cecil H. Bolton, who led a company of men on the attack despite wounds from a mortar shell.