Existing comment:
Formation of the Black Armored Units:
The office of the Chief of the Army Ground Forces had been debating the question of including Negro soldiers in the Armored Forces. The staunchest supporter was LTG Leslie J. McNair, the Chief of the Army Ground Forces. Although met with opposition from everywhere, McNair won out. In March 1941, a group of 98 Negro soldiers arrived at Fort Knox, Kentucky for armor training.
The War Department had considered creating an Armored Division, but McNair limited his acceptance to separate Negro battalions for attachments to other units of similar types. In June 1941, after additional personnel arrived, the first tank battalion in the Army with Negro enlisted personnel was officially designated as the 78th Tank Battalion (Light).
In December 1941, the Army began redesignating antitank battalions as tank destroyer battalions to which two Negro battalions were activated, the 846th and the 795th. On April 1st 1942, the 761st Tank Battalion (Light) was formed at Camp Claiborne, LA. One year later, the 784th Tank Battalion was formed. All three were assigned to the 5th Armored Group with the 78th Tank Battalion being redesignated as 758th. By the end of 1943, there were 14 battalions of Negro soldiers operating complex armored war machines (3 Tank and 11 Tank Destroyer Battalions). |