United States Armed Forces Sources

World War II Armed Forces – Orders of Battle and Organizations

Last Updated 21.07.2005

United States of America Armed Forces

Sources and Research Assistance


Army Air Force
	David Aiken Director, Pearl Harbor History Associates, Inc. Thank you for your help with the USAAF order of battle for December 1941.
	*Mark Boland (See his comments below )** Oxon Hill, Maryland Many thanks for researching and providing the entire USAAF order of battle.
	Susan R. Cross Yucca Valley, California Thank you for providing the Philippine Army data.
	Jack McKillop New Jersey, N.J. Many thanks for your help with the USAAF order of battle for December 1941, and providing the articles about the United States military aircraft designations.
	Leatrice Arakaki and John Kuborn "7 December 1941: The USAF Story" GPO, Washington, DC, 1992
	Lief Hellstrom "The Philippine Army Air Corps" Small Air Forces Observer, Vol. 20/No. 4, December 1996
	Maurer Maurer (Ed) "Air Force Combat Units of World War II" Office of Air Force History, Washington, DC, 1983
	– "Combat Squadrons of of the Air Force, World War II" Office of Air Force History, Washington, DC, 1969
	Wesley F. Craven and James L. Cate (Eds) "Plans and Early Operations" The Army Air Forces in World War II - Vol. 1 Office of Air Force History, Washington, DC, 1983
	– "Men and Planes" The Army Air Forces in World War II - Vol. 6 Office of Air Force History, Washington, DC, 1983
	– "Services Around the World" The Army Air Forces in World War II - Vol. 7 Office of Air Force History, Washington, DC, 1983

Army Ground Forces
	Mark Boland * Thanks for helping with the USA order of battle for December 1941.
	K.R. Greenfield, R,R. Palmer, B.I. Wiley "The Organization of Ground Combat Troops" United States Army in World War II Historical Division, US Army, Washington, DC, 1975
	J.J. Hays "The Infantry Division 1940 – 1945" Tables of Organization and Equipment United States Army Ground Forces Vols. 1/I - 1/III Military Press, Milton Keynes, 2002
	J.J. Hays "The Armored Division 1940 – 1945" Tables of Organization and Equipment United States Army Ground Forces Vols. 2/I - 2/II Military Press, Milton Keynes, 2003
	J.J. Hays "The Airborne Division 1942 – 1945" Tables of Organization and Equipment United States Army Ground Forces Vols. 3/I - 3/II Military Press, Milton Keynes, 2003
	J.J. Hays "The Cavalry Division 1940 – 1945" Tables of Organization and Equipment United States Army Ground Forces Vols. 4/I - 4/III Military Press, Milton Keynes, 2004
	J.J. Hays "The Mechanized Cavalry 1940 – 1945" Tables of Organization and Equipment United States Army Ground Forces Vol. 6 Military Press, Milton Keynes, 2005
	G.F. Howe "Northwest Africa: Seizing the Initiative in the West" The Mediterranean Theater of Operations United States Army in World War II Historical Division, Department of the Army, Washington, DC, 1957 (reprinted 1978)
	Shelby L. Stanton "Order of Battle, U.S. Army, World War II" Presidio, Novato, CA, 1984
	Louis Morton "Strategy and Command - The First Two Years" The War in the Pacific United States Army in World War II Center of Military History, US Army, Washington, DC, 1962
	Louis Morton "The Fall of the Philippines" The War in the Pacific United States Army in World War II Center of Military History, US Army, Washington, DC, 1985
	Mark Skinner Watson "Chief of Staff: Prewar Plans and Preparations" The War Department United States Army in World War II Center of Military History, US Army, Washington, DC, 1950 (reprinted 1991)
	John B. Wilson "Armies, Corps, Divisions, and Separate Brigades" Army Lineage Series Center of Military History, US Army, Washington, DC, 1987

US Navy
	Don Bowen Thank you for corrections and ammendments to the US Navy order of battle for December 1941, as well as providing many of the names of the commanders and other helpful bits and pieces.
	Robert McArthur San Diego, California, USA Thanks for providing the US Navy submarines data for December 1941.
	Gene Oleson Pensacola, Florida, USA Many thanks for your expert help Gene. See also his site Blue Jacket - United States Sea Service History and Graphics
	Bev L. Saylor Raleigh, North Carolina, USA Many thanks for the continuing help with the US Navy order of battle for December 1941.
	Christian Strachan Copenhagen, Denmark Thank you for your painstaking errata listing.
	Celedonia A Ancheta "Triumph in the Philippines" Manila, 1978
	Robert E. Johnson "Guardians of the Sea" USNI, Annapolis, 1989
	James L. Mooney [ editor ] "Dictionary of American Fighting Ships" History of the US Naval Operations in World War II Department of the Navy, Washington, DC, various dates
	Samuel E. Morison "The Rising Sun in the Pacific" History of the US Naval Operations in World War II Little, Brown and Co., Boston, 1988
	Robert L. Scheina "US Coast Guard Cutters and Craft of World War II" USNI, Annapolis, 1982
	Stefen Terzibaschitsch "Kreuzer der U.S. Navy" Koehler, Herford, 1984
	– "Zerstörer der U.S. Navy" Koehler, Herford, 1986
	Walter G. Winslow "The Fleet the Gods Forgot - The U.S. Asiatic Fleet in World War II" Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD, 1982

US Marine Corps
	Don Bowen Also thanks for corrections and ammendments to the USMC order of battle for December 1941.
	Charles L. Updegraph "USMC Special Units of World War II" History and Museums Division, USMC, Washington, DC, 1972
	Robert Sherrod "History of the Marine Corps Aviation in World War II" Nautical and Aviation, Baltimore, MD, 1980

Geographical and Background Data
	"The 1997 World Factbook" Military Maritime Command and Control System (Developed and maintained for members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
	Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection at the University of Texas at Austin site.

Philippine Army
	Don Bowen For corrections and ammendments to the Philippine Army order of battle for December 1941.
	Susan R. Cross Yucca Valley, California Thank you for providing Philippine Army data.
	Ricrado Trota Jose "The Philippine Army 1935-1942" ADMU, Manila, 1998 ISBN 971-550-081-0

* Mark Boland has this to say about his sources:
The National Archives, downtown - here is where I started researching back in 1974, after moving to Washington. I worked with one or two archivists on a weekly basis, who got to know me by name. Most of the War Department's textual records from 1940 onward are kept in the stacks (as they're called) in the Modern Military Branch of the Archives. In those musty old boxes are the records of the Adjutant General of the Army, who handled all correspondence within the War Department. I started out looking for a station list of the Army on 12/7/41, but got interested in many other documents along the way, like Strength lists, unit activation lists, station plans, authorized strength, tables of organization, aircraft allocations, and so on. From here they suggest I visit the National Archive Record Center.

The National Archives Record Center, Suitland, Md. - here is where I research individual unit histories of both large and small units, but only Army Ground and Service units. If I wanted to research the Army Air Forces, I had go to either Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama or Bolling Air Force Base in Washington. For obvious reasons I chose Bolling. Bolling had copies of Air Force unit histories (from Maxwell) on microfilm. Note: NARC has since moved to College Park, Maryland.

The Air Force History Support Center, Bolling AFB, D.C. - here I poured through microfilm of unit histories from the Headquarters of AAF to smallest detachments. They also have unit histories of Arms and Services with the AAF, such as Chemical, Engineer, Medical, Ordnance, Quartermaster and Signal.

The Office of Military History, at various locations around D.C. - This place moved four times during the time I was doing research from 1974 to 1991. First it was in Fort McNair, then downtown in the Forestal Building, then to Massachusetts Ave, and finally in the Washington Navy Yard. I'm not sure but I think it's still there. They had the most complete set of Army Station Lists you ever saw. The first ones were listed in the Army Directory published by the Adjutant General from the 1880's to 1940. The Army Directory also listed all regular Army officers and their location. In 1941, they took the Station List out of the Directory and made it a separate book. This may be due the size of the army or the need to keep it secret. The army continue to publish station lists about every 6 months. The station list closest to 12/7/41 was dated 11/1/41, but it only contained units in the continental U. S. It turned out that the overseas station list for 11/1/41 was on microfilm. The OMH also had Army Registers dating back to 1784, which listed army officers and their promotion dates.

The Army Library, at the Pentagon - I visited here on several occasions where I got information on War Dept General and Special Orders.

The Library of Congress, near the Capitol - another place I visited for a source of any book ever published since it was built.