FORT A.P. HILL, Va. - Many changes have taken place within the Army National Guard over the last few years as units transition to the Army's modular force structure.
As those transitions have taken place, some units have been inactivated and others reflagged. One of the units affected is the Maryland Army National Guard's 2nd Battalion, 110th Field Artillery Regiment based in Pikesville, Md.
Currently part of the 58th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, the unit's batteries will be inactivated. A military police company and a chemical decontamination company will take the place of Battery A and B, respectively, as the 58th IBCT transitions to a battlefield surveillance brigade in 2009.
On Nov. 1, here at Fort A.P. Hill, Va., members of the unit closed out the regiment's history not with a whimper, but with a characteristic bang.
They conducted their last live fire of the regiment's M102 105mm howitzers, and for many the day brought out a variety of emotions.
"No one here today, even among this large and august group, can rightfully speak to the regiment's glorious history," said Lt. Col. Matthew Packard, the battalion commander, as six 105mm guns roared simultaneously during a ceremony commemorating the milestone. "Rather, it is best that the regiment's accomplishments be allowed to speak for themselves."
The final live fire of the battalion was a tribute to the accomplishments and history of the unit. Former members were in attendance, as well as the current commander of the 29th Infantry Division and Army Brig. Gen. James Adkins, the adjutant general of the Maryland National Guard.
The event was a chance for the unit to showcase their significant accomplishments as the unit closes the book on more than 90 years of history.
First organized in 1915, Soldiers with the unit deployed during World War I and the current operation in Iraq.
It also participated in one of the most famous battles in American history. "(The) 2-110th landed at Normandy on D-Day," said 1st Sgt. Michael Adams, first sergeant for Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, who has been with the unit for 14 years. "Supposedly there's still a dispute as to whether the first round was fired by Alpha Battery or Charlie Battery."
Many former members of the unit came to see the shoot. Some sported unit hats and shirts emblazoned with artillery red, and for many it served as a reunion.
"I feel very proud that so many alumni have come to join us at the final shoot," said Packard. "I think it speaks very well to the esprit de corps that the unit has always enjoyed, and the professionalism of the Soldiers right now in the battalion and the Soldiers that have served over the years."
Many of those alumni were glad to come. "You couldn't have a better opportunity to get together with a bunch of good old guys that I've known for a long, long time," said retired 1st Sgt. Robert Ward, who left the battalion in 1972. "These young guys (currently in the unit) are really terrific Soldiers."
But for many, the occasion was also a sad one. The unit is close-knit, with many likening the experience of serving in the unit to being in a family.
"There's some kind of, I don't know whether you want to call it chemistry or whatever, that bonds these guys together to keep in contact even off drill weekends," said Adams.
Change, however, is necessary. "It's a sad day to see the artillery leave, but it's also a step forward for our Soldiers as we move into the new type of units to better support our intent on the battlefield," Adkins said.
For some of the younger Soldiers, they plan to join the new units that will replace the 110th. Spc. Justin Hadden, an artilleryman who has been with the unit for three years, is studying criminal justice in preparation for the transition of Battery A to a military police company.
"I'll get a little more influence and a little more experience and get the classes that I need," Hadden said of his education preparation.
Though during the event, many had the chance to be part of the artillery one more time. Ward and other former artillerymen were invited to fire the howitzers with the gun crews close at hand.
"It was great," said Ward. "It was just like old times. And when you're an old guy like me, old times are good."
After the initial barrage that began the ceremony, a shot was fired for each of the major campaigns in which unit members participated. With a shout of "Redleg," the nickname for those in the artillery, the last round was fired by Sgt. 1st Class Walter Sick, a Soldier with more than 37 years of continuous service in the unit.
"I'll remember it," Sick said of the ceremony and firing the last round. "It's history. It's my history."