Last of the famous Marine divisions of World War II, the Sixth was activated on7 September 1944 on Guadalcanal, the same island that the First Marine Division hadlanded on exactly twenty five months before. Although the Sixth Marine Division wasnew in name, the elements that composed it were, for the most part, as old as thewar itself. From the First Provisional Brigade that had fought so notably on Guamcame two regiments: the Fourth Marines and the Twenty Second Marines. The otherregiment of the new division came from Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, where it wasorganized, with the exception of its First Battalion, by Colonel Victor F. Bleasdale fromhandpicked officers and men.
In command of the new division was Major General Lemuel C. Shepherd, USMC,who had had a varied and colorful career in this war. He had trained the Ninth Marines,afterwards a part of the Third Marine Division, and was later Assistant Division Commanderof the First Marine Division during the Gloucester operation in New Britain.When the landings on Guam were made in July of 1944, General Shepherd (then a Brigadier)was in command of the First Provisional Marine Brigade. His Brigade, consistingof the Fourth and Twenty Second Marines plus reinforcing elements, fought notably onGuam and received the Navy Unit Commendation for its excellent record.
The Assistant Division Commander was Brigadier General William T. Clement, USMC,another colorful figure. On the staff of Admiral Thomas Hart in the Philippines at theoutbreak of the war, General Clement (then a Colonel) left Corregidor on a submarine.Later he served in London, and for a while was Commandant of the Marine CorpsSchools at Quantico before returning to the Pacific.
Of the three regiments the Twenty Second Marines was the oldest. It was formedat San Diego in June, 1942, and the following month left for Samoa where it remainedas a part of the defense force until the fall of 1943. After an extensive training periodthe regiment left Samoa and sailed to the island of Hawaii to prepare for the MarshallsCampaign. During the Kwajalein phase it acted as a res