353rd Psychological Operations Battalion
The 353rd Psychological Operations Battalion was an Army Reserve organization associated with Northern California. Its headquarters history continues in the formal lineage of the 12th Psychological Operations Battalion, rather than ending with the disappearance of the 353rd title.
The Presidio Years
The Army constituted the 353rd Psychological Operations Battalion on November 8, 1965, and activated it on December 1, 1965, at the Presidio of San Francisco. These were separate administrative milestones: constitution established the organization on the Army's rolls, while activation brought it into active organizational existence.
On September 16, 1990, it was reorganized and redesignated as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 353rd Psychological Operations Battalion. The headquarters remained part of the Army Reserve's PSYOP structure as that force developed through the later Cold War and its aftermath.
Moffett Field and the 12th POB
The official record places the headquarters' move to Moffett Field, California, on September 15, 1994. On June 16, 1996, it was reorganized and redesignated as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 12th Psychological Operations Battalion.
The Center of Military History certificate documenting this sequence was issued in November 1996. It is evidence for the headquarters' lineage through that period, not a complete account of later missions by the 12th or its subordinate companies.
Preserving the Historical Name
AAC's collection recognizes the Soldiers who served under the 353rd battalion designation. The Army separately maintains lineage records for a 353rd Psychological Operations Company; that company should not be substituted for the battalion in a historical account. The 353rd Civil Affairs Command is also a different organization.
Historical Sources
- Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 12th Psychological Operations Battalion — Lineage and Honors. U.S. Army Center of Military History, November 29, 1996. 353rd battalion origins, headquarters reorganizations, Moffett Field move, and 1996 redesignation.
- Psychological Operations lineage index. U.S. Army Center of Military History. Separate records for 12th POB headquarters and 353rd PSYOP Company.
Airborne Apparel Company honors this heritage through reproductions and original designs for the people who served and those who remember them.