275^th Infantry Regiment

The 275th Infantry Regiment was activated at Camp Adair, Oregon, on June 15, 1943, assigned to the 70th Infantry Division, and moved to Fort Leonard Wood in July 1944. It staged at Camp Myles Standish, departed Boston on December 6, 1944, and arrived in France on December 15. Because the infantry regiments reached Europe before the rest of the division, the 275th entered combat as part of Task Force Herren, the provisional command built around the 70th Division's infantry.

Task Force Herren first took defensive positions along the west bank of the Rhine near Bischwiller on December 28, 1944. When the German Nordwind offensive threatened the Bitche salient and the Vosges exits, the 275th and the other Herren regiments were rushed into the 45th Division's sector. Elements of the 274th and 275th helped hold the eastern exits from the Vosges while the 276th fought in the Wingen area. These assignments put the 275th into winter defensive combat as an inexperienced regiment before its parent division was fully assembled.

In mid-January Task Force Herren relieved the 103rd Infantry Division south of Saarbruecken and improved defensive positions. After the full 70th Division arrived and the task force dissolved, the 275th continued operations in the Saarbruecken-Forbach sector. With the 274th, it cleared the heights commanding Saarbruecken and Stiring-Wendel by February 24. In March the regiment joined the division's attack beyond the Forbach-Saarbruecken road and the push toward Saar River crossings. The 70th occupied Saarbruecken on March 20 and was soon withdrawn to army reserve. The 275th later served in security and Saar Basin reduction duties along the cleared frontier before returning to the United States in October 1945.