Draft:13th Engineer Battalion

• Comment: You’ve made a good start to this article, unfortunately as yet it lacks sufficient sources which prove notability. It requires 2-3 sources which are reliable, independent, secondary sources, which talk at length about the topic of the article. I removed one source which led to a site which threw up a ton of spam redirects, information harvesting pop ups, and general malware. Please do NOT link to that one again, or sites that do the same thing. As for the other two links, one is from a source which is non-independent, being linked directly to the battalion, and the other talks about an individual, not the battalion itself. As such, neither count towards determining notability. Hopefully you can find sufficient quality sources, and we can revisit this again when you do. Good luck 👍 Absurdum4242 (talk) 00:18, 26 September 2025 (UTC)

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13th Engineer Battalion
Active	1917–1994
Country	United States
Branch	United States Army
Type	Combat engineers
Size	Battalion
Part of	U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Motto	In Omnia Paratus ("In All Things Prepared")
Engagements	World War II Korean War Operation Just Cause Operation Desert Storm
Decorations	Presidential Unit Citation (Company A, Leyte 1944) Navy Presidential Unit Citation (Company B, Inchon 1950)
Commanders
Command Sergeant Major	1st Sgt. Arthur (1960–61, Delta Company)
Notable commanders	Capt. Chuck Millward (1960–61)
Insignia
7th Infantry Division CSIB

The 13th Engineer Battalion was a combat engineer unit in the United States Army Corps of Engineers that served in World War II, the Korean War, Panama, and Southwest Asia.

Historically attached to the 7th Infantry Division, the battalion executed mobility, counter-mobility, survivability, and general engineering missions, and occasionally engaged in direct infantry combat.

History

The unit traces its lineage to the 3rd Engineers, which was redesignated the 13th Engineer (Railway) Regiment on 13 July 1917. In 1921, the 13th Engineer (General Service) Regiment was created from elements of the 5th Engineers and served as the engineer school regiment at Fort Belvoir, Virginia until 1936.

World War II

The 13th Engineer Battalion was activated on July 8, 1940, at Fort Ord, California. In 1943, it deployed to the Aleutian Islands, participating in the Battle of Attu and repelling a Japanese banzai charge on "Engineer Hill." The battalion later engaged in the campaigns of Kwajalein, Leyte, and Okinawa.

On October 20, 1944, Company A received a Presidential Unit Citation for maintaining supply routes under fire on Leyte. The battalion also assisted infantry units during the Okinawa invasion in April 1945, destroying Japanese cave positions and fortifications.

Korean War

With the onset of the Korean War, the 13th Engineer Battalion deployed from Japan to Korea with the 7th Infantry Division. On September 15, 1950, Company B participated in the Battle of Inchon alongside the 1st Marine Division, earning a Navy Presidential Unit Citation. The battalion later engaged in the capture of Seoul, the landing at Iwon, and combat at Heartbreak Ridge, Old Baldy, the Punch Bowl, and Pork Chop Hill.

Corporal Danny D. Schoonover of Company A was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions on Pork Chop Hill in July 1953, where he led infantry assaults on enemy bunkers while serving with a demolition squad.

Lineage and honors

• Constituted as the 3rd Engineers; redesignated 13th Engineer Railroad Regiment on 13 July 1917.
• Served in World War I (including participation in the Meuse-Argonne campaign).
• Post-WWI, in 1921, reorganized as the 13th Engineer General Service Regiment, drawn from elements of the 5th Engineers. It functioned as the engineer school regiment at Fort Belvoir, Virginia until about February 1936.
• Activated 8 July 1940 at Fort Ord, California.
• Deployed to the Pacific Theater during World War II, taking part in several campaigns.
• After WWII, served occupation duties (including in Japan), then with onset of the Korean War deployed with the 7th Infantry Division.
• Later reactivated in the Cold War era (e.g. mid-1970s) at Fort Ord as the divisional engineer battalion for the 7th Infantry Division.
• Participated in operations such as Operation Just Cause (1989, Panama) and had element deployment to Operation Desert Storm (1991).
• Inactivated in April 1994 at Fort Ord, California.

Campaign Participation

• World War I: Meuse-Argonne

• World War II: Aleutian Islands; Eastern Mandates; Leyte; Ryukyus
• Korean War: All ten named campaigns of the conflict (which would include e.g., UN Defensive; UN Offensive; Chinese Communist Forces Intervention; First UN Counteroffensive; etc.)
• Panama: Operation Just Cause, 1989
• Southwest Asia: Deployment during Operation Desert Storm, 1991 (partial element deployment)

Honors / Decorations

• Presidential Unit Citation: Awarded to Company A for actions during the Leyte campaign, 1944.
• Navy Presidential Unit Citation: Awarded to Company B for its role in the Inchon landing during the Korean War, 1950.
• Medal of Honor: Corporal Danny D. Schoonover, Company A, received the Medal of Honor for actions at Pork Chop Hill, July 1953.

Awards of the 13th Engineer Battalion

• Distinguished Unit Citation (later renamed Presidential Unit Citation) awarded to Company A for actions on Leyte, 20 October 1944, for keeping the main supply route open under fire.
• Navy Presidential Unit Citation awarded to Company B for its role during the Inchon landing (Korean War).

Individual Awards:

• Medal of Honor awarded to Corporal Daniel D. Schoonover of Company A for valor in the Second Battle of Pork Chop Hill, July 1953.

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Army Center of Military History