The 39th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, known as the “Bowie Brigade,” deployed to Iraq in 2004 as part of the 1st Cavalry Division. The Arkansas National Guard brigade arrived in Iraq in March 2004 and operated mainly around Baghdad and Camp Taji.

The 39th arrived at a difficult time in the war. The insurgency was growing, and major fighting broke out across Iraq in the spring of 2004. The brigade was given responsibility for a large area north of Baghdad, much of it within the Sunni Triangle. Its mission was to help stabilize the area, protect major roads and bases, conduct patrols and raids, and work with Iraqi security forces.

The brigade’s area was one of the largest assigned to a brigade in Iraq at the time. Soldiers spent much of their deployment outside the wire, conducting patrols, convoy security, raids, and other combat missions. They also faced frequent mortar and rocket attacks on their bases.

The deployment came with a high cost. Thirty-three soldiers under the brigade’s command were killed, and more than 300 received Purple Hearts for combat wounds. Four Bowie Brigade soldiers received the Silver Star for valor.

For the 39th, the 2004–2005 deployment was very different from the short conventional war of 2003. By the time the brigade arrived, the mission had become a daily fight against an increasingly active insurgency. Serving under the 1st Cavalry Division, the 39th Infantry Brigade spent a year helping secure and stabilize one of the most difficult areas around Baghdad.