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Lineage

The U.S. Army Center of Military History summarizes the regiment's lineage as follows:

• Constituted 19 May 1846 in the Regular Army as the Regiment of Mounted Riflemen.
• Organized 12 October 1846 at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri. Redesignated 3 August 1861 as 3d United States Cavalry.
• Inactivated 15 July 1942 at Fort Benning, Georgia; personnel and equipment transferred to 3d Armored Regiment.
• Redesignated 18 January 1943 as 3d Cavalry, Mechanized.
• Activated 15 March 1943 at Camp Gordon, Georgia.
• Regiment broken up 3 November 1943 and its elements reorganized and redesignated as Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 3d Cavalry Group, Mechanized and the 3d and 43d Reconnaissance Squadrons, Mechanized.
• Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 3d Cavalry Group, Mechanized, inactivated 22 December 1945 at Camp Kilmer, New Jersey.
• Activated 26 February 1946 at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland.
• Redesignated 5 November 1948 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3d Armored Cavalry; organization of the remainder of 3d Armored Cavalry completed 3 November 1948 by redefinition of elements of 3d and 43d Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadrons, Mechanized and by reconstruction, redefinition, and activation of certain other elements of the 3d Cavalry which had been inactivated or demobilized 1921-1928.
• 3d, 777th, and 21st Tank Battalions consolidated with 3d Armored Cavalry 8 January 1951. (Battalions and Companies redesignated Squadrons and Troops, 1 June 1960).
   

Active 1846 – Present

Country - USA

Branch - Regular Army

Type - Armored Cavalry

Part of - III Corps

Nickname - Brave Rifles

Motto - "Brave Rifles! Veterans! You have been baptized in fire and blood and have come out steel."

Colors - Yellow

Twenty-three of the Regiment’s troopers received the Medal of Honor, all awarded for gallantry in action between 1871 and 1898. The list includes William "Buffalo Bill" Cody, whose award was rescinded in 1916 for not being a member of the military. Cody's medal was reinstated in 1989.

BLOOD AND STEEL! - THE HISTORY, CUSTOMS, AND TRADITIONS OF
THE 3d ARMORED CAVALRY REGIMENT
(pdf  download published by Mr. Hamric - Director of the Ft. Carson
Historical Programs Office, the 3d Cavalry Museum)

•  Part I

•  Part II

•  Part III

Letter written  in Recognition of the Third Armored Cavalry Regiment read to Congress

        The last image is a certificate from the Third Iraqi Infantry Division Headquarters.

The 3d ACR did a fantastic job out in Tall'Afar and the mayor there wrote the attached letters about it. When the Regiment had its homecoming celebration, they brought him to Ft. Carson and he was given a little tour of the museum. He is a great guy.

The 3d ACR was awarded the Valorous Unit Award for its actions during OIF I, and was recommended for the Presidential Unit Citation.

During the Regiment's OIF I deployment, they published a weekly newsletter titled "Desert Rifles". There is a gap in them due to their movement from one base to another. The captions below are for the leading story of each newsletter. Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to open these files.

Desert Rifles 01    May 9, 2003          Tiger Squadron Patrols Iraq-Syria Border

Desert Rifles 02    May 16, 2003        Assessing the Situation in Ar Ramadi

Desert Rifles 03    May 23, 2003        RCO and Sheiks Meet at Palace, Discuss Future

Desert Rifles 04    May 30, 2003        2-5 FA Secures, Reopens Al Anbar University

Desert Rifles 05    June 6, 2003          Bringin' Down the House

Desert Rifles 06    June 13th, 2003    Water Cannons

Desert Rifles 07    June 20th, 2003    'Killer" Walks Streets of Hit, Iraq

Desert Rifles 08    June 27th, 2003    3d ACR Gives Supplies to Baghdadi Hospital

Desert Rifles 09    July 4th, 2003       3d ACR Brings Food to Ar Ramadi

Desert Rifles 10    July 11th, 2003    Jordanian Branch of Brown & Root Delivers Hot Chow to Ar Ramadi

Desert Rifles 11    July 18th, 2003    Defining the Future of Rifles Base

Desert Rifles 12    July 25th, 2003    Iraqis Given Freedom of Speech

Desert Rifles 13    Aug. 1st, 2003    Interim Governorate Council Members take Solemn Oath

Desert Rifles 14    Aug. 8th, 2003    Engineers Score Goal with Ar Ramadi Youth

Desert Rifles 15    Aug. 15th, 2003    PSYOP Begins Broadcast in Al Fallujah

Desert Rifles 16    Aug. 22nd 2003    Prisoners Target of Recent Attack

Desert Rifles 17    Sep 1st, 2003        Smugglers Tried Before the Iraqi Central Criminal Court System

LINKS

        3d ACR Stetson Pins

Military.com's 3d ACR page

The Regiment's official home page is http://www.hood.army.mil/3d_acr/

The 3d Cavalry Association's home page is http://www.3dacr.org/. This site is still under development.

Shop for Museums website - http://www.shopformuseums.com/MuseumInfo.aspx?MuseumID=443&aId=&oId=&pId
(This last link is for a non-profit outfit that helps small museums raise money.)

The Mounted Rifleman, an official publication of the 3d ACR

3d ACR Casualties from OIF I and OIF III

The Third Cavalry Association has established the James H. Polk Memorial Scholarship Fund for the children of our fallen Troopers. James H. Polk was our 26th Colonel who commanded through most of WWII. He retired as a CINCUSAEUR in 1971 and was a great guy. As a fund raiser, they are giving away copies of a really great OIF III video, narrated by Joe Galloway, for a $15 dollar donation. The link to the page on their website is http://www.biznizsource.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=Calvary&Category_Code=dvd

        More 3d ACR art in photos and clipart.