Our Battalion
The Northern California Recruiting Battalion has a proud history serving this great nation and the Army, recruiting America's finest.
Present U.S Army Recruiting Command was formed October 1, 1964, and then reorganized in July 1, 1965, consolidating 1st and 2nd districts into the current configuration of five districts, now brigades. Of these five recruiting districts, now recruiting brigades, San Francisco, or now the 6th Recruiting Brigade, was established as one of USAREC’s districts including the main station of Sacramento, represented now was the Northern California Recruiting Battalion. Northern California Recruiting Main Station was changed in 1983 to a recruiting battalion, aligning with military structure.
This Northern California/Western Nevada unit initially covered 42,000 square miles. The five companies in the initial battalion were Fresno, Stockton, Sacramento East, Sacramento West and Chico. With the closing of San Francisco Battalion in 1989, the Northern California Recruiting Battalion spanned all of Northern California, adding North Bay and South Bay companies, covering 72,000 miles.
Prior to the movement of the 6th Brigade headquarters in 1993, the battalion’s configuration was changed to include southern Oregon territories. With this new market alignment, the Redding Recruiting Company was assigned to the battalion’s area of responsibility, reducing the size of Chico Company, which previously covered the area from Shasta to Winnemucca. This new company alignment shift put the newly-created Sierra Nevada Company, spanning from Truckee to Susanville, Winnemucca, and Fallon, on the map. With the greater Sacramento area’s growth increasing, the valley companies were realigned and named Sacramento valley and Capital Company. The San Francisco Bay area also grew in population, requiring the North and South Bay companies to realign, creating two new companies: East Bay and Monterey Bay. In this same period the Fresno company was reassigned to the Los Angeles Recruiting battalion making this battalion the battalion the largest in USAREC with nine companies.
In 1997, Redding Company was realigned between Portland and Sacramento battalions, making its northern border Grants Pass and its southern border Chico, from a previous Red Bluff area of responsibility. The Redding Company realignment with Portland reduced the Sacramento Battalion to eight companies. In 2002, the Salt Lake Battalion’s area of responsibility was adjusted to include the Sierra Nevada Company, sizing the Northern California Battalion back to seven companies.
With the California growth in the bay and Los Angeles areas of responsibility surging to an all-time high, the new Fresno Battalion was created from three Northern California Battalion companies and three Los Angeles Battalion companies in September 2007. Additionally, Redding Company was transferred back to Northern California Battalion, bringing the total number of companies back to five. Sierra Nevada Company will also come full circle back to the Northern California Battalion in March 2008, taking this now five-company battalion to six.
As part of the 6th Brigade Team West since the beginning, this battalion has a proud history now serving as part of the Outriders. Northern California battalion has received Superior Unit Citations in 1997 and 2000.