The Engineer Special Brigades were brigade-sized amphibious forces of the United States Army developed during World War II and active from 1942 to 1955.

At the onset of direct American involvement in World War II, it became apparent that the United States would need a large strategic and tactical amphibious warfare capability.

[1] In April 1942, the United States and United Kingdom agreed on plans for an emergency invasion of Northwest Europe in the late northern summer of 1942 (Operation Sledgehammer) that would be conducted in the event of signs that the Soviet Union was on the brink of collapse, or that the Germans were withdrawing from Western Europe, possibly due to an internal coup or collapse.

The US Navy's policy at this time of only taking volunteers meant that it was short of manpower, and those personnel it had available were mainly allocated warships and the amphibious ships required for ship-to-shore operations.

[4] The Joint Staff hoped to have twelve Army divisions (eleven infantry and one armored) trained in amphibious warfare by 1 February 1943.

[4] The Army activated its Amphibious Training Center at Camp Edwards on 22 May 1942, with Colonel Frank A. Keating, the chief of staff of the 2nd Infantry Division, assigned to command it.

A consequence was the amphibian engineers' adoption of the British Combined Operations shoulder patch, but with the colors switched to gold on blue.

The War Department also authorized the wearing of a pocket patch showing a scarlet seahorse on a white background, these being the colors of the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

The beach south of Buzzards Bay was selected for shore facilities, and Washburn Island was leased as a training site.

Since combat engineers were not specifically trained for the task, and would in any case have their hands full dealing with obstacles and fortifications, they felt that a permanent organization was required.

[17] The Engineer Amphibian Command estimated that it required 1,000 36-foot (11 m) landing craft and 225 50-foot (15 m) tank lighters, but it was soon discovered that this exceeded the number available.

The LCT was powered by the same Gray marine diesel engine as the LCVP and LCM, so no special training was required to operate or maintain it.

This came as a blow to the Engineer Amphibian Command, as it meant that it was dependent on the Navy to transport its larger pieces of equipment like the D8 bulldozer.

In the wake of the US victory in the Battle of Midway in June 1942, plans were advanced for offensive operations in the Pacific, particularly in the Solomon Islands.

After it departed for Australia in December 1943, the Engineer Amphibian Command provided instruction to replacement crews before being disbanded in April 1944.

[37] During Exercise Tiger, a rehearsal for the Normandy operation on 28 April, German E-Boats attacked a convoy of landing ships, tank (LSTs) of the XI Amphibious Force carrying troops of the brigade.

[31] Under the command of Colonel Benjamin B. Talley, the brigade headquarters returned to England, and embarked for the United States on 23 December.

[42] Colonel William F. Heavey, who was appointed its commander on 6 August 1942, and was promoted to brigadier general on 10 September, led the brigade for the rest of the war.

On 7 November, the brigade moved to Fort Ord, California, where it was joined by the 542nd Engineer Amphibian Regiment the following day.

The brigade helped the 411th Base Shop Battalion establish a landing craft construction facility, which produced its first finished LCVP on 7 April.

A detachment of ten LCMs of the 592nd Engineer Amphibian Regiment went to Port Moresby, where it moved supplies to the Lakekamu River.

The 532nd Engineer Boat and Shore Regiment then moved to New Guinea, and landed part of the 9th Division at Red Beach near Lae on 4 September.

They were defeated by men of the 532nd Engineer Boat and Shore Regiment, including Private Junior Van Noy, who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

[50] Over the next few months, units of the 2nd Engineer Special Brigade participated in the landings at Arawe, Long Island, Saidor, Sio, Los Negros, Talasea, Hollandia, Wakde and Biak.

[52] The 2nd Engineer Special Brigade arrived back in San Francisco on 16 December 1945, and returned to Fort Ord.

The brigade became widely scattered, and never operated as a single unit, but Ogden retained control using a special radio net.

It participated in the assaults on Morotai in the Netherlands East Indies on 15 September 1944,[65] and Lingayen Gulf on Luzon in the Philippines on 9 January 1945.

[78] The group moved to Fort Pierce, Florida, for amphibious training on 16 August, and then to Camp Pickett, Virginia, on 10 October.

[84][85] The 540th Engineer Shore Regiment was activated at Camp Edwards on 11 September 1942, and was rushed to Europe to participate in Operation Torch.

It subsequently participated in the assault landings at Licata, Sicily, on 9 July 1943, at Salerno and Anzio in Italy on 9 September 1943 and 22 January 1944 respectively, and the invasion of Southern France on 15 August 1944.