US Marine Corps Recruit Depot - Yearbook (Parris Island, SC)

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MARINES LAND AT PAFIRIS ISLAND United States Marines were first connected with the is- land as early as 1861, when with a band of seamen, they took possession of it and nearby Forts Beauregard and Walker during the War Between the States. The first Marine Corps activity was established on Parris Island on june 26, 1891, when a small detachment arrived with First Sergeant Richard Donovan, USM C, in charge, for duty in connection with the U. S. Naval Station, Port Royal. South Carolina. which was located on Parris Island. The detachment was highly commended for its service in pre- serving life and property during the hurricane and tidal wave which swept over the island in 1893. In 1909, a school for Marine officers was established here, and, in 1911, two recruit companies were established. One was transferred to Charleston, C., and the other Norfolk, Va., during the latter part of the same year, and the build- ings were used as Navy disciplinary barracks. On November 1, 1915, the area was again turned over to the Marine Corps, and recruit training reestablished. Parris Island has since become famous as a training base of U. S. Marines. During World Wlar I, some 41,000 recruits were trained here. Prior to 1929, all transportation to and from the island was by small boats operating between the Post Docks and Port Royal, South Carolina. In 1929, the Hwater eral, came to an end with the completion of the Horse Island bridge and causeway. PARRIS ISLAND AT WARTIME LEVELS In August, 1940, recruit training was first organized on a battalion basis. With the coming of World War II, a flood of recruits, as well as new permanent personnel to train them arrived aboard the island. The Base,,,wvas enlarged to handle 13 recruit battalions, and, between 1941 and 1945, almost 205,000 recruits were trained at Parris Island. At the time of the japanese surren- der, there were more than 20,000 fledgling Marines in train- ing at Parris Island. At the end of the war, the island was reduced to a popula- tion low by the rapid demobilization. Prior to the outbreak of the crisis in Korea, there were only two recruit battalions in training. At the start of the Korean Campaign, Parris Islandls rc- cniit population was barely 2,350 That figure swelled to a peak load of 24,424 recruits undergoing training in March of 1952. From the outset of the Korean Campaign to the with- drawal of the First Marine Division from Korea, more than 138,000 Marines received their recruit training at Parris Island. In September 1946, it was decided at Headquarters Ma- rine Corps to reorganize the post at Parris Island in the in- terests of greater efficiency and economy of personnel and to give it a designation that would reflect its primary mis- sion. At the direction of the Commandant, the Commanding General at Parris Island prepared plans and tables of organi- zation to carry out the change, and after a preparatory tran- sitional period the approved reorganization officially went into effect. On December 1, 1946, the Marine Barracks, Par- ris Island, became the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island. 1 IN 'IYIILILIQDICI 'GY . itil, f,IlI'NfOE ilfNl1HIVISL-ING' QIIVITN Q IN IHE-Ef.L7I'l.I3 NKA9 Q -eww IRON MIKE Headquarters and Service Battalion ,I 'fflwttl '

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Depot Theater On May 4, 1956, the Recruit Training Command was orga- nized under the direction of Brigadier General Wallace M. Greene, Jr. In April, 1958, this unit was re-designated the Recruit Training Regiment. It controls all activities dealing with the training of male recruits. COMMANDS The Recruit Training Regiment is composed of the First, Second and Third Recruit Training Battalions, and Weapons Training Battalion. On February 15, 1949, a separate battalion was activated for the sole purpose of training Women Marine recruits. This battalion has since been designated Women Marine Recruit Training Battalion and is the only such battalion in existence. All support units and schools come under the command of Headquarters and Service Battalion. In addition to recruit training Parris Island has a Drill Instructors School and Field Music School. Parris Island's progress has been chiefly along military lines but, in keeping pace with advances in the art of training recruits, the island has grown from a desolate stretch of waste- land to one of the most efficient and picturesque military reservations in the world. Today the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, South Carolina, stands proud of its heritage, pleased with its accomplishments and responsive to the challenges of the fu- ture. Displays in the War Memorial Building