The 160th Infantry Regiment (Seventh California) is an infantry regiment of the United States Army. The 1st Battalion, 160th Infantry is a light infantry component of the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT). Originally designated the 7th California, the 160th Infantry Regiment traces their lineage back to the early days of California statehood when the call went out and 17,000 men volunteered for service in the Civil War under the 7th Regiment California Volunteer Infantry. The 1st Battalion, 160th Infantry, is headquartered in the Inglewood Armory, which houses a Regimental room dedicated to preserving the rich history of the 160th Infantry Regiment.

History

The regiment traces its history to the 7th Infantry Battalion, formed 1885, and became the 7th Infantry Regiment three years later. The regiment was formed during the Spanish–American War in 1898. Its initial training took place at the Presidio of San Francisco. It later served under General John J. Pershing during the Mexican Border Campaign of 1914. During World War I, the regiment participated in the French Meuse-Argonne Offensive in 1918 and the Battle of St. Mihiel. During the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, units of the 160th Regiment along with units of the 307th Infantry Regiment became known as the "Lost Battalion." Captain Nelson Holderman, a member of the 160th Regiment, was awarded the Medal of Honor during the Lost Battalion action.

Interwar period

The 160th Infantry arrived at the port of New York on 24 March 1919 on the troopship USS Matsonia and was demobilized on 7 May 1919 at Camp Kearny, California. Per the National Defense Act of 1920, the 160th Infantry was reconstituted in the National Guard in 1921, assigned to the 40th Division, and allotted to the state of California. It was reorganized 23 August–6 October 1921 in southern California. The regimental headquarters was organized 31 January 1922 and federally recognized at Los Angeles, California. The 1st Battalion was involved in a train collision on 19 July 1925 near Santa Barbara, California, on its way back from summer training. The regiment, or elements thereof, called up to perform the following state duties: entire regiment to perform earthquake relief operations 14–22 March 1933 in the Los Angeles area; entire regiment to perform riot control during the San Francisco street car workers’ strike, 5–21 July 1934. The regiment conducted annual summer training at Del Monte, California, and Camp San Luis Obispo, California. The regiment's armory in Los Angeles hosted the fencing competition at the 1932 Summer Olympics as well as the fencing part of the modern pentathlon.

World War II

As part of the United States mobilization during World War II, the 160th was federalized at Los Angeles, California, on 3 March 1941 and moved to Camp San Luis Obispo, California, within two weeks. The regiment trained there for over a year as part of the 40th Division before relocating to Fort Lewis, Washington, on 29 April 1942. From there, the regiment went to San Francisco, on 1 September 1942, and was shipped to Hawaii the following month. The regiment trained in jungle warfare there for over a year before being moved forward during January 1944 to the Solomon Islands. From April through December the regiment fought on New Britain Island during the New Britain campaign. The regiment redeployed through New Guinea and they invaded the Japanese-held Philippines on 9 January 1945. The regiment participated in various actions in the Philippines' Campaign (1944 to 1945) during the rest of the war. Lt. Col. Ryoichi Tozuka, the commander of the Imperial Japanese Army in Panay Island, signed the document of surrender at Cabatuan Airfield, located in Cabatuan, Iloilo, Panay Island, Philippines, on September 2, 1945, the same day as the surrender signing in Japan aboard the U.S.S. Missouri. This was accepted by Col. Raymond G. Stanton, comdg the 160th U.S. Infantry regiment, and was attended by Rear Admiral Ralph O. Davis, comdg the U.S. Navy's 13th Amphibious Group, and by Brig. Gen. Donald J. Myers, comdg the 40th Infantry Division. The 13th Amphibious Group was tasked to transport the 40th U.S. Infantry Division to Korea. The regiment returned to San Francisco on 5 April 1946 and was inactivated the next day. For actions in the Zambales Mountains, Company I was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation.

Korea

The 160th Regiment was called up for active duty in September 1950 a couple months after the Korean War began. The regiment deployed to Japan with the 40th Infantry Division in March 1951 where it engaged in several months of training before shipping out to South Korea in February 1952 as part of the 40th Infantry Division. The 160th served for the last fifteen months of combat in Korea and then returned to California with the 40th in June 1954 and was released from Federal service.

Post–Korea to present

As part of the United States National Guard, the unit was not mobilized for Vietnam, but engaged in suppressing civil disturbances. During the 1965 Watts Riots in Los Angeles, the 160th Regiment was among the first units deployed. They were also activated during the 1992 Los Angeles riots in the wake of the Rodney King trial. Following the 1994 Northridge earthquake, the regiment provided humanitarian aid and security to the area affected by the earthquake. Company B of 1st Battalion was awarded a Meritorious Unit Commendation for their service in Iraq in 2004 and 2005, and the remainder of 1st Battalion was awarded an Army Superior Unit Award for service in Kosovo during a similar period. The regiment served in Kuwait and Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom from 15 February 2007 through 8 August 2008; during this period Company C of 3d battalion was awarded a Meritorious Unit Commendation, and two soldiers from the regiment were killed. During the George Floyd Protests, the unit was one of the first to be mobilized among the California National Guard on 29 May 2020.

Timeline

Distinctive unit insignia