F Company, 116th Engineer Regiment
The Historic F Company
The story of F Company is surprisingly complicated to research and in some cases has to be tracked on the individual level. As such no study of the history of F Company would be complete without an examination of several other organizations of the US Army to include the 2nd Engineer Rgt, 1st Gas Rgt, Co. D 29th Engrs and the 99th Aero Squadron. The unit served during a period of significant transition in the US military and its members found themselves involved in a number of historic events.
​
According to the Lewiston Tribune the company was formed as F Company, 2nd Idaho Infantry Regiment N.G. in 1913 (although an earlier date may be correct as the regimental history list the unit as formed in 1904) with its armory located at the corner of 9th and Idaho Street in Lewiston, Idaho. The company was principally recruited in the Lewiston, ID/Clarkston, WA area with an additional 17 men enlisted from Moscow, Idaho.
​
On June 19, 1916 Company F was mustered at its home armory to participate in the Punitive Campain in response to the raids conducted by Villa's forces along the southwest border. A week later they were on a train to the Boise Barracks for mobilization activities before again being entrained. For the duration of the campaign National Guard troops would perform security duties on the US side of the border while Regular Army units would cross the border into Mexico to pursue the forces of Francisco "Poncho" Villa.
On July 11, 1916 the company arrived at Nogales, Arizona. At approximately the same time the 2nd Engineer Regiment was being formed in Mexico, they will appear again later in this story. Company F would spend 28 days in squad tents at Nogales. On August 8 the company conducted a six day foot march to Fort Hauchuca, Arizona a distance of approximately 60 miles. At Ft. Hauchuca the company spent 10 days in pup tents and conducting rifle ranges before performing another six day foot march back to Nogales. The company spent a further 28 days in squad tents at Nogales. On September 27 the company conducted a four day mounted march to Arivaca, Arizona, an aproximate distance of 43 miles. There the company lived in squad tents for a further 20 days. While camped at Arivaca the company sent out a daily mounted patrol of 50 men to protect grazing cattle from cross border raids from Mexico. On October 21, the company conducted a mounted march back to Nogales, this time covering the same distance in two days. The company would spend a further 57 days in squad tents bore being returned to Idaho. The company arrived at the Boise baracks December 23 where they would remain untill returned hom on January 29, 1917 having been mobilized for 224 days.
The men of Company F had hardly an opportunity to settle back into the comforts of civil life before they were again mustered at their Armory March 26, 1917. The company had been called up to protect infrastructure throughout the Northwest in response to concerns about sabotage. Again after a week at home station the company was entrained to the Boise Barracks. On April 3, 1917 14 men enlisted at Rupert, Idaho joined the company. On April 6th, the day that Congress declared war on Germany, Company F was entrained to Pasco, Washington for guard duty. Detachments are documented at Farrington, WA (a railway stop along the Snake River 37 miles Northeast of Pasco, WA), Riparia, WA (a railstop 81 miles Northeast of Pasco, WA on the north bank of the Snake River, the site is now a ghost town). Company F would remain on guard duty until October 16, 1917.
41st National Guard Division, General Order No. 2 issued on September 19, 1917 at Camp Greene, N.C. redesignated the 2nd Bn. 2nd Idaho Inf. (Companies D, E & F) and the Oregon Bn. Engineers (Companies A, B & C) as the 116th Engineer Regiment. The First Separate Batalion, Oregon Engineers was mustered into Federal Service at Camp Withycombe, Oregon on August 20, 1917 following their organization the previous month. Co. A was ordered to Camp Fremont, CA and Companies B, C and Headquarters to Camp Lewis, WA for the construction of training camps. The Oregon Engineers recieved orders to assemble at Camp Greene, NC beteen September 3-12,1917. The 2nd Idaho, less Companies F and H (retained on guard duty) recieved similar orders on September 26, 1917. F and H companies joined joined the regiment at Camp Mills, Long Island, NY on October 29, 1917. Company G was redesignated as Company D. The Supply Train and Band of the Second North Dakota Infantry were incorporated into the 116th on October 1, 1917.
​
The company would spend 14 days on the U.S.A.C.T. Tenadores. Pursuant to Troop Headquarters U.S.A.C.T. Tenadores Special Order No. 1 Dated November 27th, 1917, part #3 Captain H.M. Jones was detailed as lookout officer and Company F stood all watches on deck and aloft during the crossing. The same order apointed Lt. J.W. Newman as mess officer. Other elements of the 116th Engineer Regiment sailed aboard the accompanying USAT Henry R. Mallory. Both vessels formed part of the 12th convoy accompanied by the transports USS Aeolus(ID-3005, formerly SS/USS Grosser Kurfurst), USAT Calamares (ID-3662), USAT San Jacinto (ID-1531), USAT Julia Luckenbach (ID-2407) and escorted by the St. Louis-class USS Charleston (C-22).
The Company arrived at St. Nazaire, France on December 10, 1917 where the were quartered in US Barracks. It was there that the regiment received news of the great disappointment. The 41st Division, despite having arrived fairly early on, fully trained and at combat strength was designated as a replacement division (1st Depot Div). The division would be skeletonised with much of the combat power siphoned off to reinforce other units in France not currently at full strength. Regimental Order No. 20 dated Dec. 15th, 1917 directed the disassembly of the regiment. Company F was ordered to transfer 1Lt W. Hague, 4 noncommissioned officers and 142 privates to the 2nd Regiment Engineers. Those who remained with Company F would form the training cadre of a military academy (1st Corp School) for US and Allied officers, officer candidates and basic training for newly arrived engineers before being forwarded to combat units. It is from this point that tracking the men of Company F becomes complicated.
​
Company F would next be moved to La Courtine, France by "40&8". For the uninitiated that is 40 hommes et 8 chevaux. A narrow gauge French boxcar rated for 40 men or 8 horses. The entire regiment now numbered approximately 275 men with 8 permanent officers and 24 officers attached for instruction. As would be the case in their next two moves the 116th Engineers would be the first Americans assigned to the area. The regiment was assigned to the French Barracks La Courtine. The facilities were in a very poor state as it was the site where the Russian Expeditionary Force in France mutinied. The mutiny had been suppressed in mid September and the last Russian troops had just vacated prior to the arrival of the Americans. The regimental history comments on the unsatisfactory conditions and lack of fire wood. The Engineers were tasked with cleaning up the site and making repairs to the site.
After a month of cleaning up for mutineers, Company F again entrained, this time arriving in the village of Sells-sur-Cher, France on January 12, 1918. The Company was billeted throughout the town and had the privilege of being the first American soldiers the villagers had met.
After sixteen days that probably passed too fast for the men of Company F, the Company again entrained. This time for the duration. The Regiment moved to the French barracks at Angers were they would establish the 1st Corps School. The Regiment places the approximate number of soldiers received, trained and deployed to Engineer organizations in France as 900 officers and 29,000 men.
Demobilization! With hostilities now at an end and the work in the hands of diplomats the time to go home had arrived. The Regiment entrained fro Brest, France arriving on January 31st, 1919. The Company made the return trip on the pre-dreadnought USS Kansas (BB-21) setting sail on February 4, 1919. They passed the Azores February 10, Bermuda on February 19, and disembarked at New York on February 23. The Company would pend the next three weeks hoping trains to Camp Dix, NJ, Ft. Logan, CO, and finally arriving home in Lewiston, ID on March 15, 1919. This time Company had been away from home for 719 days.
That's a total of 943 days mobilized 1916-1919. The Company F odyssey covered the approximate minimum distances of:
9,850 miles by train.
123 miles by foot.
109 miles by horse.
6,830 nautical miles by ship.
2nd Engineers, 2nd Division
We will be adding more information on the 2nd Engineers and the large number of Company F soldiers who served with them in the future. For now we will refer you to the 2nd Division website. The site is well researched resource and can be found
1st Gas Regiment
[UNDER CONSTRUCTION] Constituted in the Regular Army August 15, 1917 as 30th Engineer Regiment (Gas and Flame). Converted and redesignated July 13, 1918 1st Gas Regiment. This was the first unit of what is now the US Army Chemical Corps. Campaign Participation Credit: Lys, Aisne-Marn, St. Mihel, Meuse-Argonne, Flanders 1918, Lorraine 1918. Two Company F men were assigned to this organization.
Co. D 29th Engineers
[UNDER CONSTRUCTION] Constituted May 18, 1917 in the National Army. Designated as a Topographic unit with survey and map reproduction duties [Still conducting research]. Three Company F men were assigned to this organization.
99th Aero Squadron
[UNDER CONSTRUCTION] Organized August 21, 1917 at Kelly Field, Texas. October 13, 1917 ordered to Aviation Concentration Center, Garden City, New York for overseas service. Embarked on RMS Cedric. Tours Aerodrome, France December 12, 1917. Redesignated 99th Aero Squadron (Corps Observation) on March 11, 1918, moved to Haussiment Aerodrome, France.Amandty Aerodrome, France May 31, 1918. Luxeuil-les-Bains Aerodrome, France July 1, 1918. Flight operated from Corcieux Aerodrome July 19-24, 1918; Dogneville Aerodrome July 24-August 26, 1918. Souilly Aerodrome, France September 7, 1918. Foucaucourt Aerodrome, France September 20, 1918. Parois Aerodrome, France November 4, 1918. Belrain Aerodrome, France November 30, 1918. Chaumont-sur-Aire Aerodrome, France December 13, 1918. Chaumont Aerodrome, France December 25, 1918 (aprox); Flights operated from Prauthoy Aerodrome, Bourbonne-les-Bains Aerodrome, and Montigney-le-Roi Aerodrome, France, until about February 1, 1919. Colombey-les-Belles Airdrome, France February 19, 1919. Sadirac, France, Mar 8 to May 8, 1919. Mitchel Field, New York May 24, 1919. Hazelhurst Field, New York, May 25 - Jun 9, 1919. Mitchel Field, New York, Jul 2, 1919. Camp Alfred Vail, New Jersey, July, 1919. Bolling Field, DC, Aug 17, 1919. Unit presently in service as the United States Air Force's 99th Reconnaissance Squadron.
​
Aircraft operated. Fighter: Sopwith 1 1/2 Strutter (1918). Reconnaissance: Salmson 2A2 (1918-1919).
​
417 sorties flown. Losses 3 killed, 5 wounded, 5 aircraft. 3 enemy aircraft shot down. Losses include Lt. Hill a Company F man from Moscow, ID.