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This volume gathers in compact form the official historical records of 109 military police units—commands, camps, centers, brigades, groups, and battalions—the echelons authorized distinctive heraldic items. Included are all the Regular Army and Army Reserve units active between 1962 and 1987, as well as all Army National Guard organizations active as of 30 September 1987.

The lineage and honors of a unit provide an outline history of that unit, and the official certificate attesting to that history, prepared in the Organizational History Branch of the U.S. Army Center of Military History. The unit lineages in this book are adapted from these official certificates is a highly stylized document. The lineage begins with the official designation of the unit, followed by an approved special designation. The events in the life of a unit recorded in the official certificate are restricted to a few specific actions, such as activation, inactivation, and redesignation. The data has been compressed to save space, which accounts for the technical language used. A glossary appears at the end of the volume to assist the reader in understanding these technical terms. Campaigns and decorations for all the units are listed following each lineage. General orders announcing decorations are shown parenthetically.

The Organizational History Branch is responsible for the determination of the official unit lineages and honors, and the lineages that appear in this volume are the result of research done by many members of the branch, past and present. The undersigned compiled the lineages, and John E. Parker drafted the introduction. Dana Purdy assembled the bibliographies with the assistance of Charles E. Dornbusch's comprehensive bibliography entitled Histories, Personal Narratives, United States Army (Cornwallville, New York: Hope Farm Press, 1967), James Contravich's United States Army Unit Histories, A Reference and Bibliography (Manhattan, Kansas: Military Affairs/Aerospace Historian, 1983). and the U.S. Army Military History Institute's work in this area, compiled by George S. Pappas and entitled United States Army Unit Histories, (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1978). Most of the unit histories cited arc unofficial works that were prepared outside the Department of the Army. Joycelyn M. Canery edited the manuscript.

Descriptions of the shoulder sleeve insignia, distinctive insignia, and other heraldic items approved for the units are included with the lineages. These descriptions, as well as the color illustrations of the heraldic items, were furnished by The Institute of Heraldry, U.S. Army, and the Organizational History Branch is especially grateful to Opal Landrum. Nuala Barry, and Adele Richey for their valuable assistance. In some instances the text ix