291^st Infantry Regiment

The 291st Infantry Regiment was activated with the 75th Infantry Division at Fort Leonard Wood on April 15, 1943, trained in Missouri, Louisiana, Kentucky, and New York, and sailed from New York on October 22, 1944. It reached England in early November, landed in France on December 13, and moved rapidly through Holland into Belgium as the Ardennes offensive reshaped Allied plans. Like the other 75th Division regiments, the 291st was attached to the 3rd Armored Division during December 24-29, adding infantry strength to the armored screen along the northern shoulder of the German salient. The division then took positions along the Ourthe, Aisne, and Salm sectors, relieved elements of the 82nd Airborne Division, crossed the Salm on January 15, and cleared Grand Bois and Aldringen before leaving the Ardennes front.

At the end of January the 291st moved with the 75th Division to Alsace for the reduction of the Colmar Pocket. The division crossed the Colmar Canal near Andolsheim on February 1, fought through the Foret Domaniale and canal defenses, entered Colmar, and reached the Rhine near Neuf-Brisach before withdrawal to the Luneville area. In late February the regiment reentered Belgium and Holland. Its most distinct later action came during the Battle of Ossenberg, March 7-9, while the division was operating in the Maas-Rhine sector before entering Germany on March 10.

The 291st helped hold and extend the division sector along the Rhine from Wesel to Homburg, then followed the Rhine crossing and Ruhr advance. In April the 75th Division crossed the Dortmund-Ems Canal at Waltrop, cleared approaches to Dortmund, reached the Ruhr at Witten, and accepted surrenders in the Ruhr pocket. The regiment closed the war on military-government duty in Westphalia after service in the Ardennes, Colmar, Rhine, and Ruhr phases.