339th Infantry Regiment

The 339th Infantry Regiment was an American Regiment that was featured in the Polar Bear Expedition. The 339th Infantry Regiment was a part of the larger 85th Infantry Division.

Before Combat
The Regiment was formed in June 1918 featured 4,487 men majoritarily from Michigan while some 500 from Wisconsin. Due to this they earned the nickname Detroit's Own. On July 17th American Wartime President Woodrow Wilson agreed to American participation in the British Intervention in Northern Russia. When the 85th Infantry Division received the orders they sent the 339th with the 1st Battalion of the 310th Engineers, the 337th Field Hospital, and the 337th Ambulance Company as the Murmansk Expedition. They were assembled and equipped at Cowshott Camp in Surrey, England. On August 9th one Lieutenant Colonel George Evans Steward was assigned to lead the expedition. The begun their trip to Arkhangelsk on August 27th 1918 from New Castle upon Tyne with 143 officers and 4,344 enlisted soldiers. They arrived two days after the Battle of Arkhangelsk on August 4th falling under British authority.

Polar Bear Expedition
They were positioned at the front lines to face combat. On September 30th they received reinforcements of 17 officers and 486 enlisted soldiers. On April 9th 1919 the expedition was renamed the American Expeditionary Force, North Russia and Brigadier General Wilds P. Richardson gained control of the regiment from George Steward. In April the Detroit dominated Company A mutinied. This was attributed to Bolshevik Propaganda at a press conference on the 12th of April. From June 3rd to the 29th the American troops left for Brest and later the United States. On the journey 72 soldiers would die due to the Spanish Flu and Pneumonia.