It was nicknamed the "Old Hickory" brigade, in honor of Andrew Jackson, due to the original division being composed of National Guard units from areas where he lived.

From 2000 to 2001 a few select units from 30th Brigade were chosen to conduct a six-month peacekeeping mission in war torn Bosnia and Herzegovina.

[citation needed] In July 2002 the brigade conducted "Operation Hickory Sting '02" at Ft. Riley, Kansas in preparation for the unit's upcoming National Training Center rotation the next year.

[citation needed] In 2004, one member of the Brigade, SPC Frederico Mérida was convicted of murdering an Iraqi National Guardsmen (ING) at FOB Mackenzie in Salh-Ad-Din Province near the village of Ad-Dawr and sentenced to 25 years in prison at his subsequent court martial.

The battle began at approximately 5:30 am 24 June 2004 local time as insurgents from the group Al-Tawhid Wal-Jihad (aka Al-Qaeda in Iraq) attempted to ambush 3rd Platoon, Company A, 1st Battalion, 120th Infantry (Mechanized) with small arms, heavy machine guns, IEDs and RPG fire.

[12] As the reinforcements advanced on 3rd Platoon, an RPG struck one of the Bradleys, hitting SPC Daniel Desens and wounding several others.

The platoon sergeant, SFC Chad Stephens, moved under fire without body armor or a weapon from his Bradley to SPC Desens' to retrieve the wounded Specialist.

Ultimately, Coalition forces were able to root out enemy hiding spots and strong points with UAVs as attack aircraft bombed them.

[11] Zarqawi claimed victory over the Americans in the battle, although it may have been a Pyrrhic victory as the insurgent death toll was much higher than the Coalition one and the attack neither forced the Americans from the city nor stopped the planned transfer of authority for the city from the Coalition Provisional Authority to the Iraqi Interim Government at the end of the month.

With the transformation, the brigade disbanded the 119th Infantry Regiment whose lineage in the North Carolina National Guard can be traced back to before the American Civil War.

In October 2007, the brigade was alerted for deployment once again, to include both the North Carolina and West Virginia Army National Guard assets.

While making their way to a meeting with local officials in the Doura Market, three soldiers from 1st Battalion, 252nd Armor Regiment's civil-military liaison team were killed by a suicide vest improvised explosive device (SVIED) in the Al Rashid district in the southwestern part of Baghdad along with multiple civilians.

Their swift response to the incident resulted in the timely treatment and ground evacuation of the remaining coalition casualties to the 10th CSH IBN Sina Hospital and their efforts undoubtedly saved many lives that day.

Sergeant Roger Adams Jr., 36, from Jacksonville, North Carolina had recently joined the National Guard and had previously served in the Marine Corps.

[27] SGT Juan C. Baldeosingh is listed in the Arlington National Cemetery database as being laid to rest in Section 60, Grave 8847.

In 2019, the 30th ABCT mobilized from Fort Bliss, Texas and deployed to Camp Buehring, Kuwait, replacing the 4th Infantry Division (United States) in command of Operation Spartan Shield.

The insignia was redesignated effective 1 September 2004, with description updated, for the 30th Brigade Combat Team, North Carolina Army National Guard.

[28] Symbolism: The hornet's nest, adapted from the crest of the North Carolina ARNG, is a reference to the unit's home area.

The insignia was redesignated effective 1 September 2004, with the description updated, for the 30th Brigade Combat Team, North Carolina Army National Guard.