Marine Corps League - Black Hills Detachment 484

10/09/2026

On this day in 1940, the Marine Corps had about 1,500 officers. With war approaching, the Commandant ordered a class to add hundreds more.

Major General Thomas Holcomb ordered Marine Corps Schools to "organize a class of not more than four hundred candidates for appointment for commissions." At full size, the class would be a quarter the size of the officer corps itself.

The Corps was growing fast. President Roosevelt had declared a limited national emergency, and a week after Holcomb's order, the Corps mobilized all 23 of its Organized Reserve battalions.

Brigadier General Philip H. Torrey, Commandant of the Schools, stood up a special detachment on October 21 to run the Candidates for Commission Class. The first Officer Candidates Class, OCC-1, had 230 graduates. Over their careers, they earned:

- 7 Navy Crosses
- 1 Navy Distinguished Service Medal
- 18 Silver Stars
- 11 Legions of Merit
- 4 Distinguished Flying Crosses
- 6 Bronze Stars

The growth that followed dwarfed the original order. The officer corps doubled to 3,320 within a year and stood at 37,664 when Japan surrendered in August 1945.

Officer Candidates School still trains at Quantico. Its motto is Ductus Exemplo: lead by example.

Explore Marine Corps history at bloodline.historyofthemarinecorps.com

10/07/2026

Twenty-six days after September 11, the United States struck back. Cruise missiles and aircraft hit al-Qaeda and Taliban targets across Afghanistan, and President Bush announced the start of Operation Enduring Freedom from the White House that afternoon.

Marines were moving the same day.

The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, afloat with the Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group off Karachi, was ordered to secure an airfield in Pakistan for Air Force combat search and rescue teams.

The airfield was Shahbaz Air Base at Jacobabad, more than 300 nautical miles from the ships. Four CH-53E Super Stallions of HMM-163 carried the assault force of Battalion Landing Team 1/1 straight in. To get the rest there, the Marines pushed Peleliu as close to the coast as they could, stripped weight from the CH-46s, and loaded them with as much fuel as they could carry. Follow-on forces staged through the port of Pasni and finished the trip in KC-130s.

By the end of the first day, the rescue force was able to fly missions into Afghanistan from Jacobabad.

The Marines had been told to expect three to five days ashore. They stayed 43. They lived in fighting holes in 90-degree heat, with blowing dust, bad water, and mosquitoes breeding in the old rice fields around the runway. Marine KC-130 crews flew two seven-hour runs from Bahrain every night to keep them in food, water, and fuel.

The MEU's operations officer later said the lessons of Jacobabad, moving over long distances and staging fuel and supplies ahead, set the unit up for what came next. Weeks later, the same Marines went into Afghanistan.

Photo: Marines of the 15th MEU arrive at Shahbaz Air Base by CH-53E, October 22, 2001. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Scott Reed.

Explore Marine Corps history at bloodline.historyofthemarinecorps.com

10/07/2026

10/04/2026

On this day in 1966, the Marines of 3d Battalion, 4th Marines assaulted the last hill on Nui Cay Tre.

They had been fighting toward it since September 22, cutting through jungle so thick the lead element moved in single file behind machetes. Lieutenant Colonel William Masterpool compared his method to a ballpoint pen: probe with the tip, and when it touched the enemy, pull back and let supporting fire and na**lm do the work. It was slow. Hill 400 alone took three days and cost more than a dozen Marines killed.

Hill 484 was the final objective. At 0930 on October 4, Captain Robert Handrahan's Company M started up. The 1st Platoon assaulted head-on and was thrown back by fire from well-concealed bunkers. The 2d Platoon tried to swing around the enemy's left, and the North Vietnamese answered with grenades from the upper slope. The ground was too steep to call in supporting fire without hitting his own men, so the company pulled back and let air and artillery work the hill.

They went up again at 1000 the next morning. The 2d Platoon reached the crest at noon, and by 1330 the North Vietnamese were gone.

Marine tank shells meant for 484 fell on Hill 400 and killed three Marines, including Captain James J. Carroll of Company K, who had called the fight for that hill the high point of his career. He received the Navy Cross, and the artillery base west of Cam Lo became Camp Carroll.

The fight cost the battalion at least 20 dead. Marines have called it Mutter Ridge ever since, after 3/4's radio call sign.

See Mutter Ridge on the map at bloodline.historyofthemarinecorps.com

09/26/2026

Happy birthday Camp Pendleton.

⭐️⭐️Celebrating 84 Years 🪖

Today commemorates the 84th anniversary of the founding of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. Established on September 25, 1942, to train U.S. Marines for World War II and named after Maj. Gen. Joseph H. Pendleton, MCB Camp Pendleton continues the mission 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

MCB Camp Pendleton is home to the I Marine Expeditionary Force, 1st Marine Division, 1st Marine Logistics Group, and many tenant units, including Wounded Warrior Battalion-West, Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton, Marine Aircraft Group 39, Marine Corps Tactical Systems Support Activity, Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego's Weapons & Field Training Battalion, Marine Corps and Army Reserve Forces, the Navy's Assault Craft Unit 5, a Naval Hospital, and 1st Dental Battalion.

MCB Camp Pendleton supports today’s fight and prepares for tomorrow’s future. We will be a superior Marine Corps training base by expanding training opportunities, maximizing allocated resources, modernizing base infrastructure, and providing superior service and support.

(U.S. Marine Corps 🖋️ by Sgt. Kevin Brookins)

09/21/2026

On this day in 1950, the 7th Marines under Colonel Homer Litzenberg landed at Inchon, six days after the assault. Their arrival put all three of the 1st Marine Division's infantry regiments ashore in Korea: Chesty Puller's 1st Marines, Murray's 5th Marines, and the 7th, activated at Camp Pendleton just five weeks earlier and filled out with combat-ready reservists, about half the regiment.

Its 3d Battalion took the long way in, sailing from the Mediterranean through the Suez Canal to join the regiment in Japan. Three regiments, one division, and the drive on Seoul ahead.

See Inchon on the map at bloodline.historyofthemarinecorps.com

09/20/2026

Marines—we want YOU!

The mission didn’t end when you hung up the uniform. The Marine Corps League offers the opportunity to continue serving alongside fellow Marines, support veterans and their families, strengthen our communities, and preserve the traditions of our beloved Corps.

The camaraderie is still here. The mission continues. Your place among the ranks is waiting.

For more information, contact your local Marine Corps League Detachment.

Once a Marine, Always a Marine.

09/11/2026

🇺🇸 Remembering September 11, 2001 🇺🇸

Today, the Marine Corps League pauses to remember the innocent lives lost, the families forever changed, and the courageous first responders, service members, and everyday Americans who answered the call.

Twenty-five years later, we remain united in remembrance and committed to honoring their legacy through service.

We will never forget.

Semper Fidelis.