The article “Homeland Defense: The Pennsylvania State Guard 1941–1953” by Lieutenant Colonel Brent C. Bankus (AUS-Ret.) provides a detailed historical account of Pennsylvania’s State Guard during World War II and the Korean War, illustrating its vital role in maintaining homeland security while the National Guard was federalized for overseas combat. It explains how, following the 1940 amendment to the National Defense Act, Pennsylvania established the Pennsylvania Reserve Defense Corps—later renamed the Pennsylvania State Guard—to protect key infrastructure such as bridges, factories, and airports after the mobilization of the 28th Infantry Division. The force, composed primarily of veterans and volunteers, operated on a brigade level and trained to Army standards, performing 24-hour security duties immediately after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The article chronicles its growth to over 5,700 members, expansion to multiple regiments and support units, and its disbandment after the National Guard’s postwar return in 1948. It also covers the Guard’s reactivation in 1950 during the Korean War, when it once again replaced the 28th Infantry Division for state duties, operating as a division-sized organization staffed largely by combat veterans. Bankus concludes by drawing parallels between past and present, asserting that the success of Pennsylvania’s State Guard exemplifies the continuing need for State Defense Forces to provide local security and emergency response when the National Guard is deployed abroad.
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