General
- Nickname: Wildcat Division.
- Slogan: Wildcats Never Quit.
- Shoulder patch: A black wildcat on a black bordered olive drab disk.
The first division unit patch ever used by the Army was for the 81st Infantry Division. This unit trained at Fort Jackson, S.C., near Wildcat Creek. They created patches so they could identify each other quickly in combat. When the Wildcats went overseas in August 1918 to join the Allied Expeditionary Force in France, they wore this unusual, and then unauthorized, patch. Other units protested the shoulder patch idea and the dispute finally came to the attention of General John J. Pershing. General Pershing, however, approved the Wildcat Trademark and the esprit de corps of the division and suggested the other army divisions adopt patches. "History of the 81st United States Army Reserve Command 1917–1975" prepared by 317th Military History Detachment.
Read more about this topic: 81st Infantry Division (United States)
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