The Marseilles Training Center (MTC) is located in LaSalle County,
Illinois. Seven of Illinois' eight metropolitan areas, representing over
three-fourths of the State's population, are within 80 miles of LaSalle
County.
The mission of Marseilles Training Center is to
provide military organizations through battalion size with the absolute
best environment for conducting individual and collective training. This
environment includes MTC's personnel, ranges, training and cantonment
areas as well as the operational and support elements of MTC.
Marseilles Training Center's historical lineage can
be traced to Camp Logan near Zion in northern Illinois. Camp Logan was
established in 1883 as a small arms training facility for the Illinois
Army National Guard. Camp Logan was used extensively for mobilization
during WWI and again during WWII. It was also home to the first official
marksmanship-training program in the National Guard. The program was
established by then Colonel George C. Marshall assigned as the Senior
Instructor to the 33rd Division Illinois Army National Guard. The same
Colonel Marshall would become General Marshall, Chief of Staff of the
United States Army, during WWII and eventually United States Secretary
of State.
Acquisition and development of the MTC (2551 acres)
was a direct result of compatible needs of the State of Illinois
Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) and the Department of Military
Affairs of Illinois (DMAIL). This site was selected and agreed upon in
1972: property acquisition began shortly thereafter. As a result of
MTC's development, Camp Logan was given to IDNR in order to facilitate
IDNR's expansion of Illinois Beach State Park. In addition to the 2551
acres, MTC leases about 275 acres from Commonwealth Edison along the
eastern boundary. MTC is cooperatively managed with IDNR as provided for
in a Memorandum of Understanding between the two state agencies.
The completion of a 700 person-housing complex in
March of 2002 resulted in MTC being classified as a Collective Training
Center (CTC) by National Guard Bureau. In addition to the housing
complex MTC has 6 live fire ranges along with over 30 other training
areas, facilities and simulations systems. MTC is primarily used for
military training by all branches of military service. In addition to
the military training, a variety of police agencies use the range
complex. These agencies include Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI),
Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms (BATF), Department of Natural
Resources, Illinois State Police (ISP), along with local and county
police. Additional specific information regarding MTC training assets
can be found in DMAIL Regulation 350-11, which is the installation
regulation.
MTC is also home to A Company 33 Brigade Special
Troops Battalion (BSTB) Engineers, A Company Recruit Sustainment
Program, Unit Training Equipment Site (UTES) and the Illinois Army
National Guard's Small Arms Readiness Training Section (SARTS).
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