1945 World War II Route Map of the 186th Field Artillery Battalion in Europe

Follow the 186th from Omaha Beach to Czechoslovakia.

This is a 1945 World War II route map of the 186th Field Artillery Battalion in Europe. A striking visual summary of the battalion's war in Europe, this map follows the 186th from landing on Omaha Beach to Pilsen, Czechoslovakia, where they were when the war ended.  It also chronicles the battalion's support of 12 divisions while fighting across Europe and notes its five battle stars.

A Closer Look

Coverage embraces from Liverpool, England, to eastern Europe, including all or part of France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, and Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic). Intriguingly, none of the countries are identified, and international borders are illustrated using dotted and dashed lines. The only locations labeled are just over 30 cities (including London, Bayeux, St. Lo, Paris, Reims, Brussels, Coblenz, Leipzig, Munich, and Berlin) and Omaha Beach. A red line traces the battalion's advance from Omaha Beach to Pilsen, Czechoslovakia. The battalion's assault on Omaha Beach and its five battle stars are displayed at the top, with important locations or actions from each battle listed underneath. The battalion's patch appears at the top center. The divisions to which the battalion was attached during its time in Europe are listed to the left and right of the map, using each division's corresponding patch. These include the 1st Infantry Division, 2nd Infantry Division, 5th Infantry Division, 28th Infantry Division, 35th Infantry Division, and 90th Infantry Division.

The 186th Field Artillery Battalion

The 186th Field Artillery Battalion was converted and redesignated as the 186th Field Artillery Regiment out of elements of the 106th Infantry Regiment of the New York National Guard on September 1, 1940. The 186th Field Artillery Regiment was inducted into Federal service on January 27, 1941. On February 8, 1943, the 186th Field Artillery Regiment was broken up into several units, one of which was the 186th Field Artillery Battalion. The 186th Field Artillery Battalion was inactivated at Camp Patrick Henry, Virginia, on December 14, 1945.

World War II Route Maps

Maps tracing unit movements during World War II were created by both American and British forces during and after the war. As a genre, these maps represent a broad range of aesthetics, from the purely functional, which labels places and provides dates, to the artistic and even comic. Many combine the three and provide a visually striking but historically informative summary of the unit's peregrinations.

Publication History and Census

This map was drawn by an unknown artist and published in 1945. Two examples are cataloged in OCLC and are part of the collections at the New York Public Library and Texas A and M University. An example is also part of the collection at the Library of Congress. We have encountered two other examples in private hands.

Condition

Average. Surface scuffing that has erased some text. Some soiling.

References

Library of Congress G5833.N7S7 1944.U5. OCLC 1458670903.

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