The 3rd Infantry Division was activated in November 1917 during World War I at Camp Greene, North Carolina. Eighteen months later it saw combat for the first time in France. At midnight on July 14, 1918, the Division earned lasting distinction. Engaged in the Aisne-Marne Offensive as a member of the American Expeditionary Force to Europe, the Division was protecting Paris with a position on the banks of the Marne River.
The 7th Machine Gun Battalion of the 3rd Division rushed to Chateau-Thierry amid retreating French troops and held the Germans back at the Marne River. While surrounding units retreated, the 3rd Infantry Division including the 30th and 38th Infantry Regiments remained rock solid and earned its reputation as the "Rock of the Marne".
