World War I Remembered

[Buckeye Dale]

On July 23, 1918, Pvt. Brock Hill of Attalla, Ala., is believed to be the first U.S. soldier to shoot down an airplane with a Browning automatic rifle. A member the 42nd “Rainbow” Division, Hill reportedly misses on his first shot at the Boche flyer that was strafing the battlefield but hit the pilot with his second shot.

[Deleted]

Jul 24, 2018 6:28:12 GMT -5 Buckeye Dale said:

On July 23, 1918, Pvt. Brock Hill of Attalla, Ala., is believed to be the first U.S. soldier to shoot down an airplane with a Browning automatic rifle. A member the 42nd “Rainbow” Division, Hill reportedly misses on his first shot at the Boche flyer that was strafing the battlefield but hit the pilot with his second shot.

Don't mess with us Southern country boys.  WE know how to shoot!

Alvin York (TN) and Carlos Hathcock (AR) are other great examples.  Throw in Audie Murphy (TX), too.

[AlaCowboy]

Jul 24, 2018 6:28:12 GMT -5 Buckeye Dale said:

On July 23, 1918, Pvt. Brock Hill of Attalla, Ala., is believed to be the first U.S. soldier to shoot down an airplane with a Browning automatic rifle. A member the 42nd “Rainbow” Division, Hill reportedly misses on his first shot at the Boche flyer that was strafing the battlefield but hit the pilot with his second shot.

The 42nd Infantry Division came to be known as the "Rainbow Division". When the United States declared war on Germany in 1917, it federalized National Guard divisions to quickly build up an Army. In addition, Douglas MacArthur, then a major, suggested to William A. Mann, the head of the Militia Bureau, that he form another division from the non-divisional units of several states. Secretary of War Newton D. Baker approved the proposal, and recalled Douglas MacArthur saying that such an organization would "stretch over the whole country like a rainbow." The division was created using units from 26 states and the District of Columbia. The name stuck, and MacArthur was promoted to colonel as the division chief of staff.
The 42nd Division adopted a shoulder patch and unit crests acknowledging the nickname. The original version of the patch symbolized a half arc rainbow and contained thin bands in multiple colors. During the latter part of World War I and post war occupation duty in Germany, Rainbow Division soldiers modified the patch to a quarter arc, removing half the symbol to memorialize the half of the division's soldiers who became casualties (killed or wounded) during the war. They also reduced the number of colors to just red, gold and blue bordered in green, in order to standardize the design and make the patch easier to reproduce.

Not long after WW1, a section of Hwy 411 south of Gadsden, Al., was named Rainbow Drive to honor and remember the Alabama soldiers in the 42nd Division. In 1950, a small community along that road was incorporated as Rainbow City. The late Pvt. Brock Hill lived about 10 miles from this community.

[Buckeye Dale]

Jul 24, 2018 8:48:50 GMT -5 AlaCowboy said:

Jul 24, 2018 6:28:12 GMT -5 Buckeye Dale said:

On July 23, 1918, Pvt. Brock Hill of Attalla, Ala., is believed to be the first U.S. soldier to shoot down an airplane with a Browning automatic rifle. A member the 42nd “Rainbow” Division, Hill reportedly misses on his first shot at the Boche flyer that was strafing the battlefield but hit the pilot with his second shot.

The 42nd Infantry Division came to be known as the "Rainbow Division". When the United States declared war on Germany in 1917, it federalized National Guard divisions to quickly build up an Army. In addition, Douglas MacArthur, then a major, suggested to William A. Mann, the head of the Militia Bureau, that he form another division from the non-divisional units of several states. Secretary of War Newton D. Baker approved the proposal, and recalled Douglas MacArthur saying that such an organization would "stretch over the whole country like a rainbow." The division was created using units from 26 states and the District of Columbia. The name stuck, and MacArthur was promoted to colonel as the division chief of staff.
The 42nd Division adopted a shoulder patch and unit crests acknowledging the nickname. The original version of the patch symbolized a half arc rainbow and contained thin bands in multiple colors. During the latter part of World War I and post war occupation duty in Germany, Rainbow Division soldiers modified the patch to a quarter arc, removing half the symbol to memorialize the half of the division's soldiers who became casualties (killed or wounded) during the war. They also reduced the number of colors to just red, gold and blue bordered in green, in order to standardize the design and make the patch easier to reproduce.

Not long after WW1, a section of Hwy 411 south of Gadsden, Al., was named Rainbow Drive to honor and remember the Alabama soldiers in the 42nd Division. In 1950, a small community along that road was incorporated as Rainbow City. The late Pvt. Brock Hill lived about 10 miles from this community.

Thanks for the update...I first saw that patch up at Ft Drum, then in my AC/RC jobs, I saw it a lot more.  I sat thru many briefings up in Troy, NY...