February 17, 1944

Fort Smith (Sebastian County) native and West Point graduate William Orlando Darby, who had organized and trained an elite commando unit that became the First United States Army Ranger Battalion and later expanded into several battalions, was reassigned to head the 179th Infantry Regiment of the Forty-fifth Division. Darby reorganized the broken regiment into a serviceable unit after it had played a role in saving the Anzio, Italy, beachhead. Darby was known as an exemplary leader and received many military honors.