15th Sustainment Brigade
15th Support Brigade
Division Support Command (DISCOM), 1st Cavalry Division
"Wagonmasters"

The mission of the 15th Sustainment Brigade, "Wagonmasters," is to rapidly deploy to designated contingency areas; conduct security and support operations; receive, integrate, and provide command and control for attachments to facilitate the Brigade's support to units assigned within the area of operations.

The 15th Sustainment Brigade was first constituted on 22 August 1957 in the Regular Army as Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 1st Cavalry Division Trains and activated on 1 November 1957 in Korea. Prior to the Second World War, most units of the 1st Cavalry Division not assigned to the major subordinate maneuver commands were under control of the Headquarters, Division Special Troops. These included service and supports elements of the division. After World War II, however, the Special Troops Headquarters was reorganized under the Pentomic concept, leading to the activation of the 1st Cavalry Division Trains. Although a new organization, division trains employed concepts similar to US armored division trains that originated in World War I.

The unit was consolidated on 1 September 1963 with the 1st Cavalry Division Band (first organized in 1856) and the consolidated unit was reorganized and redesignated as Headquarters, Headquarters and Band, 1st Cavalry Division Support Command. This was part of the ROAD (Reorganization of the Army Divisions) concept.

The unit deployed with the rest of the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) to Vietnam beginning in 1965. The unit was redesignated on 15 November 1967 as Headquarters, Headquarters Company and Band, 1st Cavalry Division Support Command. It served with the Division in 13 campaigns of the conflict in Vietnam: Defense, Counteroffensive, Counteroffensive Phase II, Counteroffensive Phase III, Tet Counteroffensive, Counteroffensive Phase IV, Counteroffensive Phase V, Counteroffensive Phase VI, Tet 69/Counteroffensive, Summer-Fall 1969, Winter-Spring 1970, Sanctuary Counteroffensive, and Counteroffensive Phase VII. The unit received the Presidential Unit Citation for action in Pleiku Province and the Valorous Unit Award for action in the "Fish Hook" area of Cambodia. In addition, the Division Support Command received 3 Meritorious Unit Commendations and 4 Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry awards.

After returning from Vietnam, the unit was reorganized and redesignated (less band, which thereafter had a separate lineage) on 5 May 1971 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Cavalry Division Support Command. Most major subordinate units of the Division Support Command had returned from Vietnam in 1971 and were stationed at Fort Hood, Texas. By the end of June 1971, the Division Support Command was a large command comprised ofa Headquarters and Headquarters Company, the 15th Adjutant General Company/Band, the 15th Medical Battalion, the 15th Supply and Transport Battalion, the 27th Maintenance Battalion, the 8th Engineer Battalion, the 315th Composite Support Battalion, the 15th Finance Company (the latter 2 units having been transferred from the 1st Armored Division), and the 15th Data Processing Unit.

During the early 1980s, the Division Support Command consisted of a Headquarters and Headquarters Company, a Division Materiel Management Center, a Division Data Center, the 15th Medical Battalion, the 15th Adjutant General Battalion, the 15th Finance Company, the 15th Supply and Transport Battalion, the 27th Maintenance Battalion, and the 68th Chemical Company. In October 1984, the 1st and 2nd Forward Support Battalions were activated from elements of the 3 functional battalions. The following year saw the Army of Excellence (AOE) reorganization transform the remaining elements of the 3 functional battalions (maintenance, medical, and supply and transport) into the 4th Main Support Battalion. The AOE reorganization also added the 493rd Transportation Aircraft Maintenance Company to the Division Support Command. The forward and main support battalions, along with the Aviation Maintenance Company, were redesignated in 1987, becoming the 15th and 115th Forward Support Battalions, 27th Main Support Battalion, and 227th Transportation Aviation Maintenance Company.

On 28 September 1990, the Division Support Command deployed to Southwest Asia in support of Operation Desert Shield. In January 1991, Division Support Command provided support throughout Operation Desert Storm, leading to a quick liberation of Kuwait.

On 16 December 1991, the 215th Forward Support Battalion was activated at Fort Hood bringing the number of active duty forward support battalions to 3. On 8 July 1996, the 615th Aviation Support Battalion was provisionally organized. The Battalion was formally activated on 17 September 1996.

On 6 July 2005, as part of the Army's transformation towards a modular force, the Division Support Command, 1st Cavalry Division was inactivated. It was known provisionally for a short period as the 15th Support Brigade. As part of the modular transformation, support assets previously held by the Division Support Command, but habitually attached to a division's brigades during operations were made organic to reorganized and redesignated brigade combat teams. The forward support battalions and the main support battalion became the new brigade support battalions for the 1st Cavalry Divisions 4 brigade combat teams. The aviation support battalion was made organic to the Division's Combat Aviation Brigade.

The lineage and honors of the Division Support Command were officially consolidated on 17 October 2005 with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 15th Support Brigade. The 15th Support Brigade was first constituted on 4 May 1966 in the Regular Army as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 15th Support Brigade and activated on 1 July 1966 at Fort Hood, Texas. During the formative stages of Task Force Oregon, the 15th Support Brigade was deployed from Long Binh to Chu Lai in support of Task Force Oregon. As part of the conversion of Task Force Oregon into the 23rd Infantry Division (AMERICAL), the 15th Support Brigade was inactivated in Vietnam on 20 October 1967. The Brigade was reactivated on 21 September 1968 at Fort Lewis, Washington and inactivated there on 21 March 1973. The consolidated unit was designated as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 15th Sustainment Brigade, with its organic elements concurrently constituted and activated. The Brigade's mission remained on of supporting the units of the 1st Cavalry Division.

In July 2006, the 15th Sustainment Brigade deployed to Camp Taji, Iraq, in support of the 1st Cavalry Division, Multi-National Division - Baghdad, Multi-National Division - Central, and the 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary). The Brigade supported 13 brigade combat teams, totaling more than 100,000 Soldiers during "the Surge" in 2007. The Brigade redeployed to Fort Hood, Texas, in October 2007.

On 15 February 2008, the 15th Sustainment Brigade was reassigned to the 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) from the 1st Cavalry Division. The Brigade provided logistics support to 40,000 Soldiers at Fort Hood while simultaneously training for deployment.

In September 2009, the brigade once again deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. On 5 October 2009, the 15th Sustainment Brigade assumed the sustainment mission for Multi-National Division-North at Contingency Operating Location Q-West, Iraq. During the deployment, the Brigade provided sustainment support for United States Division - North and United States Division - Center, swelling to command and control nearly 7,000 Soldiers. In addition, the Brigade managed human resources and finance operations for the entire country of Iraq.