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Show 316 During this period, while then' attempt invasion of the West an was fear that the .In pa nc sc would Coast, the 40th Division performed the defense tactics of patrolling with foot soldiers and motor units along the coast, estab firing positions for the artillery and crew served weapons to guard the beach, and constructed dummy positions to mislead possible enemy a ttack lished , The beaches and harbor areas were provided with engineer obs tac le s to pre vent access to the impor-tant harbor and beach sites. At first the engineers began placing barbed wire emplacements all a long the beaches, but this turned out to be too extensive of a task and was soon dropped. The entire area was alert and 24 hour guard duty W:1S carried out by the outfits. The reality of war seemed eminent, but the commitment of the 40th Division to put on battle not was al weeks. These kind of activities continued in this yet. The onlv manner for sever of tension and monotony came when several false incidents of Japanese invasion caused some stir, and when the Division partici pated change in the movement of to the interior cam Japanese-American citizens from the coastal ps under the War Relocation Center program. areas The units also continued training with small arms and as unit teams at the local areas assignments. This training, because of the locations near populated regions, precluded for the most part the actual firing of the weapons. 43 of On February 18, 1942 the 40th Division was reorganized under the triangularization concept. This process had been going on for some time in the Regular Army divisions and was just now being effected by the National Gua rd divisions. Under the triangular or ganizn tions the brigades were dis banded and the new complement clustered around the regimental combat teams headed by the Infantry regiments. The triangulari zation of the 40th Division had the following format: Co. B, 115th Med. Bn., Santa Barbara 115th Q. M. , Van Nuys 40th Division Finance, Van 40th Division Nuys Exposition Park, Los Angeles 640th Tank Destroyer Bn., Griffith Park, Los Angeles Signal Co. , 43 40th Infantry Division: The Years of World War II, pp. 82-90. Major Grant L. Valentine "Training History of the 225th Field Artillery Battalion, (Typewritten Manuscript located in Na tional Archi vcs Modern Military Records Division in Suitland, Maryland), p. 1. Ruel M. Eskelsen, History of the 213th Field Artillery Battalion, (Typewritten Manusc ript no date), p 1. "History of the 115th Engineers, "p. 1. "Unit History of the 213th Field Artillery Lattali on;' Chapter I, pp. 3, 4. " , II II , |
