Tank Corps of the American Expeditionary Forces

[5] Captain George S. Patton, the first officer assigned to the unit, set up a light tank school at Bourg, France, starting on 10 November 1917.

The small French Renault FT tanks they were equipped with found the going hard and many were lost or ran out of fuel crossing the battlefield – the Germans, forewarned, had largely retreated from the salient.

[5][6][9] Major Brett assumed command of the 304th after Patton was injured on 26 September, the first day of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive near Cheppy, France.

[10] During the war, two members of the Tank Corps (both from the 344th Battalion) were awarded the Medal of Honor; Donald M. Call and Harold W.

This unit was again reorganized and redesignated as the 66th Infantry Regiment (Light Tanks) on 25 October 1932, and remains in active service as of 2024.

World War I-era poster shows a black cat with outstretched claws soaring over the tanks below. Poster urges Americans to join the United States Tank Corps. Artist: August William Hutaf, ca. 1917–1919.
A 1917 Tank Corps recruitment poster, illustrated by August William Hutaf .
301st Tank Battalion going into action with Mark Vs at Saint-Souplet, France in October 1918 (Selle battle)
Men and tanks of the 326th Battalion, Tank Corps move forward, Varennes , Meuse , France, October 1, 1918.