Ohio Guard call-up said to be largest since WW II

COLUMBUS - The U.S. military is giving the Ohio National Guard its biggest call-up since World War II this week, sending about 1,600 troops to Kuwait, with some of them going on to Iraq.

With their departure, the guard is doing more to help members' families.

The 37th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is spread throughout Ohio and includes another 1,100 soldiers from Michigan.

Members of the unit have been deployed in individual companies or battalions since the terrorist attacks of 2001, but it's more than 60 years since so many left as one unit, Guard spokesman Maj. Nicole Gabriel said.

The Army National Guard is part of the United States Army, comprising approximately one half of its available combat forces and approximately one third of its support organization. The Air National Guard is part of the United States Air Force.

The National Defense Act, 1916

This act abandoned the idea of an expandable Regular Army and firmly established the traditional concept of the citizens' army as the keystone of the United States defense forces. It established the concept of merging the National Guard, the Army Reserve, and the Regular Army into the Army of the United States in time of war. The act further expanded the National Guard's role, and guaranteed the State militias' status as the Army's primary reserve force. The law mandated use of the term "National Guard" for that force, and the President was given authority, in case of war or national emergency, to mobilize the National Guard for the duration of the emergency. The number of yearly drills increased from 24 to 48 and annual training from five to 15 days. Drill pay was authorized for the first time.


The National Guard Mobilization Act, 1933

Made the National Guard a component of the Army.