They joined a force of Army Regulars and militia to defeat the Sauk and Fox Indians in the Black Hawk War in Wisconsin, effectively ending Native American resistance in the Great Lakes region.
Exposure and the hardship of the march to the Mississippi River, coupled with an outbreak of cholera, took a heavy toll.
[2] The militia unit was reorganized on 13 April 1836 as the Brady Guards under the command of CPT Rowland, and was recalled for federal service on 6 December 1838 to help state and federal authorities maintain order in the aftermath of conflict along the Canada–United States border in the Patriot War.
[3] The Brady Guards were reactivated for federal service during the Mexican–American War on 4 December 1847, where they joined with other militia companies to form the 1st Michigan Volunteer Infantry Regiment.
The men were sent to garrison the various forts in the area to enable Regular Army units to move to the fight in Mexico.
[4] At the outbreak of the American Civil War, many state militia and volunteer companies eagerly rushed to join the Union Army, and often got to fight as a unit.
In the camps, particularly at Chickamauga, disease was rampant, and the 31st was forced to evacuate to Knoxville, Tennessee after an outbreak of typhoid.
The 31st landed at Cienfuegos and was then parceled out to the towns of Santa Clara Province to preserve order and protect property.
The 32nd Michigan Volunteer Infantry was one of the earliest regiments moved to Fernandina Beach, Florida, where it remained in camp for a while.
This division was made up entirely of men from Wisconsin and Michigan, and had many native German speakers, making for easy interrogation in the coming months.
The division took a leading role in three important offensives, fighting on five fronts, suffered more than 14,000 casualties, captured more than 2,000 prisoners, and never yielded ground to the enemy.
For their courageous service in World War I, the current Detroit Light Guard unit (the 1225th Corps Support Battalion), still wears the French Croix de Guerre with Palm.
The Detroit Light Guards, now simply the 1st Battalion, were transferred to the 38th Infantry Division on 1 February 1968.
[3] While deployed to Iraq, the 1225 received the Meritorious Unit Commendation for its outstanding service in a hostile environment.
The 1225th was once again ordered into federal service on 3 August 2010, and deployed to Afghanistan for one year in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.