Marching song of the 318th Eng'rs

Dorothy Rich Godfrey wrote this march in honor of the 318th Engineers. The 318th was attached to the 6th Infantry Division. They supported U.S. Army operations during the Meuse-Argonne offensive. 

Combat engineers had a variety of roles in France. They were organized into 1,660 man engineer regiments and assigned to American combat divisions. They were tasked with all manner of efforts that would maintain the smooth distribution of supplies. This could include the creation of lumber, building railroads, constructing bridges, and clearing roads. These kinds of efforts would run all the way up to the front lines. But it was also common for them to be working farther from the action, where they built storage facilities, and improved ports. 

Due to their technical training, engineers were also asked to form the first U.S. Army tank units. They also worked to develop defensive equipment and chemical munitions. The role of tanks and chemical weapons would become so integral during WWI that the Army created dedicated Tank Corps and the Chemical Warfare Service in 1918.