10/13/2026
"Those farm boys can fight, I can tell you that much." -Chesty Puller
Eighty four years ago today in History, 13 Oct 1942.
Nearly 2000 “farm boys from North Dakota” arrive as the 164th Infantry Regiment on the beaches of Guadalcanal to serve as emergency reinforcements for the 1st Marine Division during the Guadalcanal Campaign of World War II. Bold, brave, and determined, their mission was simple: to defend the tactical airstrip known as Henderson Field and to stay alive.
Within hours of their arrival, the 164th would become synonymously known as the first U.S. Army unit to offensively engage the enemy during . The Japanese Navy welcomed the newcomers through the night with 14" artillery shells that turned palm trees to toothpicks and left holes the size of basements. The Regiment lost its first Soldier that very first day and, as word spread, the Guardsmen quickly learned the realities of war. They did not waver.
Just 12 days later, the 164th would fight alongside the Marines in what was officially called the Second Battle for Henderson Field but was unofficially called "The Battle of Coffin Corner" because of the thousands of enemy dead that had to be buried there.
Capt. Al Wiest, Commander of Co M, 164 Infantry, overheard Marine Lt. Col. Chesty Puller, Commander 1st Bn, 7th Reg't, 1st Marine Division, say, "Those farm boys can fight, I can tell you that much."
