The United States Army Quartermaster Corps, formerly the Quartermaster Department, is a sustainment and former

combat service support The term combat service support (or CSS) is utilized by numerous military organizations throughout the world to describe entities that provide direct and indirect sustainment services to the groups that engage (or are potentially to be engaged) ...

(CSS) branch of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

. It is also one of three U.S. Army logistics branches, the others being the

Transportation Corps The Transportation Corps is a combat service support branch of the U.S. Army. It is responsible for the movement of personnel and material by truck, rail, air, and sea. It is one of three U.S. Army logistics branches, the others being the Qu ...

and the Ordnance Corps. The U.S. Army Quartermaster Corps mission is to support the development, production, acquisition, and sustainment of general supply,

Mortuary Affairs Mortuary Affairs is a service within the United States Army Quartermaster Corps tasked with the recovery, identification, transportation, and preparation for burial of deceased American and American-allied military personnel. The human remains o ...

, subsistence, petroleum and water, and material and distribution management during peace and war to provide combat power to the U.S. Army. The officer in charge of the branch for doctrine, training, and professional development purposes is the Quartermaster General. The current Quartermaster General is

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

Erin C. Miller.

History

The Quartermaster Corps is the U.S. Army's oldest logistics branch, established 16 June 1775. On that date, the

Second Continental Congress The Second Continental Congress (1775–1781) was the meetings of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that united in support of the American Revolution and American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War, which established American independence ...

passed a resolution providing for "one Quartermaster General of the grand army and a deputy, under him, for the separate army". In 1802 under President Thomas Jefferson the size of the US Army was reduced with the Quartermaster Department being disbanded. In its place the nation was divided into three departments, each with its own agent and subordinates who were responsible for quartermaster functions within each Department The Quartermaster Corps was re-established in 1812. From 1775 to 1912, this organization was known as the Quartermaster Department. In 1912, Congress consolidated the former Subsistence, Pay, and Quartermaster Departments to create the Quartermaster Corps.

Quartermaster Quartermaster is a military term, the meaning of which depends on the country and service. In land army, armies, a quartermaster is an officer who supervises military logistics, logistics and requisitions, manages stores or barracks, and distri ...

units Unit may refer to: General measurement * Unit of measurement, a definite magnitude of a physical quantity, defined and adopted by convention or by law **International System of Units (SI), modern form of the metric system **English units, histo ...

and soldiers have served in every U.S. military operation from the Revolutionary War to recent operations in Iraq (

Operation Iraqi Freedom The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with the invasion by a United States-led coalition, which resulted in the overthrow of the Ba'athist governm ...

) and Afghanistan (

Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used by the U.S. government for both the first stage (2001–2014) of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response ...

Insignia

* The Regimental Insignia was authorized in 1986 and revised in 1994 to the current insignia. The insignia is described as a gold color metal and enamel device 1 inch in height consisting of a gold eagle with wings spread and head lowered looking to his right and standing upon a wheel with a blue felloe set with thirteen gold stars, having thirteen gold spokes and the hub white with a red center; superimposed on the wheel a gold sword and key crossed diagonally hilt and bow up, all on a black background and resting upon a wreath of green laurel terminating at either side below the eagle's wings at the upper end of the sword and key. Attached below the device is a gold scroll inscribed ''SUPPORTING VICTORY'' in black. The original regimental insignia was all gold and approved on 31 March 1986. The design was changed on 7 June 1994 to add color to the insignia. The Regimental DUI is worn on the Soldier's right side above the name tag and any unit awards on the

Army Service Uniform The Army Service Uniform (ASU) is a military uniform for wear by United States Army personnel in garrison posts and at most public functions where the Army Combat Uniform is inappropriate. As of 2021, the Army has two service uniforms for use by ...

. * The Branch Insignia was approved in its present form in 1913. The sword is characteristic of military forces and symbolized the Quartermaster Corps control of military supplies. The key is representative of the Corps traditional storekeeping function. The wheel is styled after a six-mule-wagon wheel and represents transportation and delivery of supplies. The wheel has thirteen spokes, a red and white hub, and a blue felloe (the outer edge of the wheel) embedded with thirteen gilt (gold) stars. The thirteen stars and spokes of the wheel represent the original colonies and the origin of the Corps which occurred during the Revolutionary War. The gilt (gold) eagle is the national bird and is symbolic of our nation. The colors red, white, and blue are the national colors. The Branch Insignia is worn on the lapel of the

, singly on a brass disk for Enlisted personnel and in pairs for Officers. US Army Quartermaster Regimental DUI

Functions

The function of the Quartermaster Corps is to provide the following support to the Army: * general supply (except for ammunition and medical supplies) *

(formerly graves registration) * subsistence (food service) * petroleum and water * field services ** aerial delivery (parachute packing, air item maintenance, heavy and light equipment parachute drop, rigging and sling loading) ** shower, laundry, fabric/light textile repair * material and distribution management

Former functions

Former functions and missions of the Quartermaster Corps were: * military transportation (given to the newly established

Army Transport Service The United States Army Transport Service (ATS) was established as a sea-going transport service that was independent of the Navy Department. ATS operated army transport ships for both troop transport and cargo service between United States ports ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

and to the

in 194

* military construction (given to the United States Army Corps of Engineers, Corps of Engineers in the early 1940s

*

U.S. Army Remount Service A part of the Quartermaster Corps, the U.S. Army Remount Service provided horses (and later mules and dogs) as remounts to U.S. Army units. Evolving from both the Remount Service of the Quartermaster Corps and a general horse-breeding program und ...

horses/war dogs (military dog training given to Corps of Military Police in 1951

* military heraldry (given to the United States Army Adjutant General's Corps, Adjutant General's Corps in 1962

Units

Quartermaster detachments, companies and battalions are normally assigned to

corps Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was formally introduced March 1, 1800, when Napoleon ordered Gener ...

or higher level commands. Divisions and smaller units have multifunctional support battalions which combine functional areas from the Army Transportation Corps, Army Quartermaster Corps, Army Ordnance Corps, and the Army Medical Service Corps. Quartermaster organizations include field service, general supply, petroleum supply and petroleum pipeline, aerial delivery (rigger), water, and mortuary affairs units. Most are company level except petroleum and water, which has battalion and group level units. There is one Bulk petroleum Company on Active Duty. * 59th Quartermaster Company * 102nd Quartermaster Company * 126th Quartermaster Company * 132th Quartermaster Company * 133rd Quartermaster Company * 148th Quartermaster Company * Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 165th Quartermaster Group * 165th Quartermaster Group * 226th Quartermaster Company * Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 240th Quartermaster Battalion * 295th Quartermaster Company * 311th Quartermaster Company * 356th Quartermaster Company * Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 383rd Quartermaster Battalion * 464th Quartermaster Company * 473rd Quartermaster Company * 488th Quartermaster Company * 490th Quartermaster Company * 549th Quartermaster Company * 574th Quartermaster Company * 581st Quartermaster Company * 590th Quartermaster Company * 610th Quartermaster Company * 623rd Quartermaster Company * 673rd Quartermaster Company * 725th Quartermaster Company * 877th Quartermaster Company * 887th Quartermaster Company * 960th Quartermaster Company * Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment 61st Quartermaster Battalion * Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment 154th Quartermaster Battalion * Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 247th Quartermaster Battalion * Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 319th Quartermaster Battalion * Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 418th Quartermaster Battalion * Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 423rd Quartermaster Battalion * 640th Quartermaster Detachment * 690th Quartermaster Detachment * 801st Quartermaster Detachment

Military Occupational Specialities

The nine Quartermaster Enlisted

Military Occupational Specialties A United States military occupation code, or a military occupational specialty code (MOS code), is a nine-character code used in the United States Army and United States Marine Corps to identify a specific job. In the United States Air Force, a sy ...

(MOSs) are: * 92A – Automated Logistical Specialist * 92F – Petroleum Supply Specialist * 92G – Culinary Specialist * 92L – Petroleum Laboratory Specialist * 92M – Mortuary Affairs Specialist * 92R – Parachute Rigger * 92S – Shower/Laundry and Clothing Repair Specialist * 92W – Water Treatment Specialist * 92Y – Unit Supply Specialist The five Quartermaster Warrant Officer Military Occupational Specialties (MOSs) are: * 920A – Property Accounting Technician * 920B – Supply Systems Technician * 921A – Airdrop Systems Technician * 922A – Food Service Technician * 923A – Petroleum Systems Technician The three Quartermaster Officer Areas of Concentration (AOCs) have been merged into 92A as Additional Skill Identifiers (ASIs) * 92A – Quartermaster, General * R9 – Aerial Delivery and Materiel (formerly 92D) * R8 – Petroleum and Water (formerly 92F)

Leadership / School

The officer in charge of the branch for doctrine, training, and professional development purposes is the Quartermaster General. The current Quartermaster General is Brigadier General Michelle Donahue. The Quartermaster General does not have command authority over Quartermaster units, but instead commands the United States Army

Quartermaster Center and School The Quartermaster Center and School is a subordinate command of the United States Army's Combined Arms Support Command and is located at Fort Gregg-Adams, Virginia Fort Lee (formerly Fort Gregg-Adams), in Prince George County, Virginia is a ...

, located at

Fort Gregg-Adams, Virginia Fort Lee (formerly Fort Gregg-Adams), in Prince George County, Virginia is a United States Army post and headquarters of the United States Army Combined Arms Support Command (CASCOM)/ Sustainment Center of Excellence (SCoE), the U.S. Army Qua ...

, near Petersburg. This school provides enlisted advanced individual training (AIT) and leader training for Quartermaster

officers An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

warrant officers Warrant officer (WO) is a Military rank, rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ...

and

non-commissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is an enlisted rank, enlisted leader, petty officer, or in some cases warrant officer, who does not hold a Commission (document), commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority b ...

s. For a list of US Army Quartermasters General, see

Quartermaster General (United States) The Quartermaster General of the United States Army is a general officer who is responsible for the Quartermaster Corps (United States Army), Quartermaster Corps, the Quartermaster branch of the United States Army, U.S. Army. The Quartermaster G ...

Notable casualties

* The

14th Quartermaster Detachment The 14th Quartermaster Detachment, is a United States Army Reserve water purification unit stationed in Greensburg, Pennsylvania. During Operation Desert Storm, the detachment lost 13 soldiers and 43 would be wounded in an Iraqi Al Hussein balli ...

, a U.S. Army Reserve unit from

Greensburg, Pennsylvania Greensburg is a city in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. The population was 14,976 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located southeast of Pittsburgh, Greensburg is a part of the Greater Pittsbu ...

, suffered the greatest number of casualties of any allied unit in the

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

from a

Scud missile A Scud missile is one of a series of tactical ballistic missiles developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. It was exported widely to both Second and Third World countries. The term comes from the NATO reporting name attached to the m ...

attack on 25 February 1991 * Maj. Steve V. Long, a Quartermaster Officer who was serving as Secretary of the General Staff Office of the Commanding General U.S. Total Army Personnel Command, was one of the casualties of the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

when

American Airlines Flight 77 American Airlines Flight 77 was a scheduled domestic transcontinental passenger flight from Dulles International Airport in Northern Virginia to Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles. The Boeing 757-200 aircraft serving the flig ...

struck the Pentagon. * Several members of the

507th Maintenance Company The 507th Maintenance Company was a United States Army unit which was ambushed during the Battle of Nasiriyah in the rapid advance towards Baghdad during 2003 invasion of Iraq on 23 March 2003. The most well known member of the unit was Private ...

were captured or killed in an ambush on 23 March 2003 during the

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

: **

Sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

Donald Walters, killed in action –

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

recipient **

Specialist A specialist is someone who is an expert in, or devoted to, some specific branch of study or research. Specialist may also refer to: Occupations * Specialist (rank), military rank ** Specialist (Singapore) * Specialist officer, military rank in ...

Edgar Hernandez, captured ** Specialist

Shoshana Johnson Shoshana "Shana" Nyree Johnson (born January 18, 1973) is a Panamanian-born former United States soldier, and the first black female prisoner of war in the military history of the United States. Johnson was a Specialist of the U.S. Army 507th M ...

, captured ** Private First Class Howard Johnson II, killed in action ** Private First Class

Jessica Lynch Jessica Dawn Lynch (born April 26, 1983) is an American teacher, actress, and former United States Army soldier who served in the 2003 invasion of Iraq as a private first class. On March 23, 2003, she was serving as a unit supply specialist ...

, captured ** Private First Class

Lori Piestewa Lori Ann Piestewa ( ; December 14, 1979 – March 23, 2003) was a United States Army soldier killed during the Iraq War. A member of the Quartermaster Corps, she died in the same Iraqi attack in which fellow soldiers Shoshana Johnson and Piestewa ...

, killed in action **

Private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

Brandon Sloan, killed in action ** Private Ruben Estrella-Soto, Jr, killed in action

Quartermaster Creed

Military Order of Saint Martin

The Quartermaster Corps established this private order on 7 February 1997. The emblematic figure is of

Saint Martin of Tours Martin of Tours (; 316/3368 November 397) was the third bishop of Tours. He is the patron saint of many communities and organizations across Europe, including France's Third Republic. A native of Pannonia (present-day Hungary), he converted to ...

.The Order of Saint Martin
The medal, for Quartermasters either on Active Duty, in the Reserves, or Civilian status, is awarded in three grades: * Ancient Order of Saint Martin (gold medallion) * Distinguished Order of Saint Martin (silver medallion) * Honorable Order of Saint Martin (bronze medallion) An updated list of recipients is maintained on th
Association of Quartermasters website
The Military Order of Saint Martin is awarded by the Association of Quartermasters and not the United States Army.

Quartermaster Unit Insignia

File:23 QM Bde DUI.jpg, 23rd Quartermaster Brigade
"The Corps Starts Here" 2 QM Group DUI.jpg, 2nd Quartermaster Group
"Fuel Line to Victory" File:49 QM GRP DUI.png, 49th Quartermaster Group
"Fueling the Force" 16th Quartermaster Squadron.jpg, 16th Quartermaster Squadron File:56th QM Bn crest.jpg, 56th Quartermaster Battalion
"Meet the Need" 61 QM Bn DUI.jpg, 61st Quartermaster Battalion
"Foundation for Victory" File:95th SupServ Bn crest.jpg, 95th Supply and Services Battalion
"Supply the Line" File:244 QM Bn DUI.png, 244th Quartermaster Battalion
"Si Non Potestis Possumus" File:262 QM Bn DUI.png, 262nd Quartermaster Battalion
"Lifeline to Victory" File:266 QM Bn DUI.png, 266th Quartermaster Battalion
"The Providers" File:505 QM Bn DUI.png, 505th Quartermaster Battalion
"Proud to Pump" File:554 QM Bn DUI.png, 554th Quartermaster Battalion
"Liberte et Droit"

Notes

External links

Official web site
* {{US Army navbox Branches of the United States Army Quartermasters