US Army in Northern Ireland, 1941-1945

This collection of documents was compiled by the Historical Resources Branch, US Army Center of Military History, during the period March-May 1996, in conjunction with the Ulster Historical Society from Northern Ireland. It is intended to serve as an example of the types of information which can be extracted from unique resources held by the Center, and was undertaken only as a demonstration project. The Center does not have the personnel nor the mission to compile other such works, but researchers are free to conduct such projects by visiting the Center.

The collection consists of compilations of raw data assembled from materials on hand at the Center, and has not been verified against the original World War II-era records transferred from Army custody to the National Archives and Records Administration. The principal sources of information housed at the Center that were used to compile the documents are the manuscript historical monographs in the collections of the Historical Resources Branch; the Unit Data Cards and European Theater of Operations Station Cards in the collections of the Organizational History Branch; and the published histories in the Center's library. Researchers should treat these documents as preliminary surveys and use them as guides to conduct further research into the operational records in the custody of the National Archives and Records Administration's Archives II facility in College Park, Maryland, and especially in the definitive Morning Reports submitted down to the company level on a daily basis by each of the units. The Morning Reports are housed at the National Personnel Records Center, 9700 Page Boulevard, St. Louis, Missouri 63132-5000.

The US Army in Northern Ireland, 1941-1945 project consists of the following individual documents:

• Order of Battle (a numerical listing of the US Army, to include Army Air Force, units stationed in Northern Ireland).

• Station List (arranged alphabetically by locale, this document provides the most complete data available on which units were at which towns or camps and the dates of arrival and departure from each; it is heavily footnoted to provide possible alternative information).

• Army Air Force Unit Information (arranged numerically, this tabulation is less reliable than the documents addressing the ground forces because primary historical responsibility for the Army Air Forces lies with the United States Air Force historical program).

• Chronology (a chronological listing of key pacing events with primary focus on the initial MAGNET Force occupation).

• List of Key Personnel (preliminary in nature and focused on the overall commanders and staff officers at the higher headquarters, rather than in the units).

• List of Army Post Offices (a simple table of all Army Post Office numbers which were tied to Northern Ireland).

The Center's other holding of significance related to this subject is the Army Art Collection which includes a number of paintings made in Northern Ireland by artists assigned to or covering United States Army forces stationed there. Researchers should be aware of the potential value of such works to supplement documents and contemporary photographs now in the custody of the National Archives and Records Administration.