American Expeditionary Force, North Russia

339th Regiment
339th Infantry Regiment
Men of the American Expeditionary Force return home from service in Northern Russia, arrived in Hoboken aboard the SS Von Steuben. (2) Sergeant Matthew J. Gradok. (3) Sergeant Harvey Minteer. (4) Major J. Brooks Nichols (5) Captain H. G. Winslow.
Active2 August 1918 — 5 August 1919
(1 year and 3 days)
Country United States
BranchUnited States Army
TypeInfantry
SizeRegiment
Nickname(s)Detroit's Own
Polar Bears
Motto(s)"We Finish With The Bayonet"
EngagementsRussian Civil War (Polar Bear Expedition)
Insignia
Distinctive unit insignia
Polar Bear Memorial at White Chapel Cemetery in Troy, Michigan

The American Expeditionary Force, North Russia (AEF in North Russia) (also known as the Polar Bear Expedition) was a contingent of about 5,000 United States Army troops[1] that landed in Arkhangelsk, Russia as part of the Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War. It fought the Red Army in the surrounding region during the period of September 1918 through to July 1919.

  1. ^ Willett 2003, p. 267