The Oregon Civil Defense Force (ORCDF), formerly known as the Oregon State Defense Force, is the official

state defense force In the United States, state defense forces are military units that operate under the sole authority of a state government. State defense forces are authorized by state and federal law and are under the command of the governor of each state. ...

of Oregon and one of the three components of

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

State's organized militia, with Oregon's

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

and

Air National Guard The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia of each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the ter ...

(ORNG) making up the other two. It serves as a state-level military and emergency services reserve force. As part of the official state militia, the Oregon Civil Defense Force serves under the Governor of Oregon rather than the President of the United States and draws its legal authority from Chapter 399 of Oregon law. Those statutes require that the ORCDF be made up of individuals that are not a part of the federal military services or the National Guard. It is an all volunteer force composed and is a branch of the

Oregon Military Department The Oregon Military Department is an agency of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon, which oversees the armed forces of the state of Oregon. Under the authority and direction of the governor as commander-in-chief, the agency is responsib ...

. In April 2015, the Oregon Military Department temporarily suspended the Oregon State Defense Force. However, a spokesman for the Oregon Military Department stated on record that the suspension was temporary and the ORSDF would return to active service. In 2017, the Oregon State Defense Force was renamed under Oregon state law as the Oregon Civil Defense Force. In December 2019, the ORSDF was reactivated under its current name: the Oregon Civil Defense Force.

History

Civil War

The Oregon Civil Defense Force traces its root to the state military forces first created during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. Although Oregon militia units did not directly serve in the Civil War, they were called up to replace the federal soldiers who were called away from protecting the frontier and redeployed to fight against the Confederate Army. In 1866, the state militia was disbanded as federal soldiers were once again deployed in the Oregon territory. However, almost immediately after their disbanding, they were re-formed after legislation was introduced by State Representative Colonel

Owen Summers Owen Summers (June 13, 1850 – January 21, 1911) was a businessman, Oregon state legislator, and founder of the Oregon National Guard. Colonel Summers Park in Portland, Oregon, is named in his honor. Early years Owen Summers was born in Brockv ...

Spanish–American War

During the Spanish–American War, Oregon provided the

2nd Oregon Volunteer Infantry Regiment The 2nd Oregon Volunteer Infantry Regiment was a military regiment recruited in the U.S. state of Oregon during the Spanish–American War. As the first foreign war in U.S. history, it was the first time members of the Oregon National Guard had fo ...

to serve in the Philippines. They were among the first United States forces to enter the Pacific theater of the war, and served with distinction. The 2nd Oregon Volunteer Regiment was the first unit to land in the Philippines, and the first to enter the capital of Manila.

World Wars I and II

During both World Wars, when the National Guard was deployed abroad, states were forced to organize their own military units if they wished to protect their borders and infrastructure from sabotage or attack. In World War I, a Home Guard was mustered to protect shipyards. Oregon's World War I-era home guard, the Oregon Guard, included an intelligence department created with the express purpose of finding spies, deserters, and draft-dodgers. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, a Home Guard was once again created in order to guard National Guard bases and protect against sabotage. After both wars, the organizations were deactivated.

Modern times

The Oregon National Guard Reserve was formed in 1961, and was renamed the Oregon State Defense Force (ORSDF) in 1989. In 1996, the ORSDF was activated to assist in recovery operations after severe snowstorms struck Oregon. In 2002, the Oregon State Defense Force was reorganized to better parallel their National Guard counterparts. In April 2015, the Oregon Defense Force was placed under temporary suspension. Spokesmen from the Oregon National Guard promised that the ORSDF would be returning. The ORSDF was reactivated under its current name, the Oregon Civil Defense Force, in December 2019. Oregon State Defense Force member helps child try on armor

Oregon State Defense Force member helps child try on armor

Membership

Membership in the Oregon State Defense Force is open to able-bodied residents of the state between the ages of 18 and 45. State employees of the Oregon Military Department who are not otherwise members of the Oregon National Guard may be required to join the Oregon State Defense Force as a condition of employment.

Duties

By statute the Oregon State Defense Force is an internal security force for the Oregon State National Guard and can be called upon by the Governor of Oregon to serve under many capacities. These capacities include, but are not limited to: *provide assistance to the Oregon National Guard in an emergency *maintain

ham radio Amateur radio, also known as ham radio, is the use of the radio frequency spectrum for purposes of non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, private recreation, radiosport, contesting, and emergency communic ...

communication during an emergency *augment National Guard state active duty missions *participate in local training exercises with other first responders *fulfill the state duties of the National Guard when the National Guard is federalized. The ORCDF assists, augments or replaces the National Guard as ordered by the Governor (e.g., during times of crisis or when the ORNG is deployed elsewhere). During emergency or disaster incidents, the ORCDF assists requesting civil or military authorities with rapidly deployable emergency communications, coordination, and

incident command system The Incident Command System (ICS) is a standardized approach to the command, control, and coordination of emergency response providing a common hierarchy within which responders from multiple agencies can be effective. ICS was initially develo ...

expertise and support compliant with

Federal Emergency Management Agency The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Exec ...

(FEMA) rules. After the reactivation of the ORCDF in 2019, the primary mission assigned to the ORCDF became the support of

high frequency High frequency (HF) is the ITU designation for the range of radio frequency electromagnetic waves (radio waves) between 3 and 30 megahertz (MHz). It is also known as the decameter band or decameter wave as its wavelengths range from one to ten ...

communications at National Guard armories, with future additional missions to be determined in conjunction with the National Guard.

Units

* Headquarters, 41st Regiment (Tigard) * 218th Battalion (Forest Grove) * 162nd Battalion (Springfield) * 186th Battalion (Medford) * Special Troops Detachment (Clackamas) * Headquarters, 82nd Regiment (Clackamas) * Headquarters, 249th Regiment (Warrenton) * 1249th Battalion (Salem) * 116th Battalion (La Grande) * 1-82 Battalion (Bend)

ORSDF Pipe Band

The Oregon State Defense Force maintained a military band, which was composed of bagpipe and drum players. The unit was invited to play in Ronald Reagan's inauguration in 1981, and continued to play in military ceremonies and parades in Oregon.

Legal protection

Protection against dissolution

Oregon law requires the state to maintain the ORSDF at a

cadre Cadre may refer to: *Cadre (military), a group of officers or NCOs around whom a unit is formed, or a training staff *Cadre (politics), a politically controlled appointment to an institution in order to circumvent the state and bring control to th ...

level during peacetime.

Employment protection

Employers within the state of Oregon are required under Oregon law to grant a

leave of absence The labour law concept of leave, specifically paid leave or, in some countries' long-form, a leave of absence, is an authorised prolonged absence from work, for any reason authorised by the workplace. When people "take leave" in this way, they are ...

to any of their employees who are members of the Oregon State Defense Force, and who are activated to take part in training or to respond to an emergency situation. Employers must then reinstate these employees to their previous position, without loss of seniority, accrued vacation time, personal time, sick leave, or other benefits when their deployment ends.

References

External links

The Oregon Civil Defense Force Website

Oregon Military Department Website
{{State Defense Forces Military in Oregon State defense forces of the United States 1961 establishments in Oregon 2005 disestablishments in Oregon Defunct organizations based in Oregon