1st Engineer Battalion w SVC Ribbon Magnet

The battalion's history can be traced back to 15 May 1846 when a company of miners, sappers, and pontoniers was formed at West Point, New York. Alpha Company, 1st Engineer Battalion is that company's direct descendant. The battalion has received 67 decorations and campaign streamers and eight foreign awards. Alpha Company served during the Mexican–American War of 1846, participating in the Veracruz campaign and charging up the heights of Chapultepec in Mexico City. During the war, three future Civil War generals, George McClellan and P.G.T. Beauregard served as lieutenants in Alpha Company, and the company worked closely with Captain Robert E. Lee, an engineer aide to General Winfield Scott.