The brigade was established in 1967, as part of an initiative by Secretary of Defense McNamara to reduce the number of National Guard divisions while increasing the number of brigades. The 256th replaced a brigade from the
39th Infantry Division in the Louisiana Army National Guard. The brigade was part of the Selected Reserve Force from 1967–1969, but the Selected Reserve Force was eliminated in an attempt to eliminate readiness differences between reserve component units. The brigade initially consisted of three infantry battalions and a "brigade base": a headquarters company; a reconnaissance troop; light tank and engineer companies; a 105 mm howitzer battalion; and a support battalion In 1975, the 256th was assigned as the 'round-out' brigade for the
5th Infantry Division as part of the expansion to a 24 division force. The brigade was mechanized in 1977, when the 1st Battalion, 156th Infantry was converted to the 1st Battalion, 156th Armor The 256th Brigade was activated from November 1990 through May 1991, and conducted training at Fort Hood, TX, but never deployed. After the 5th Infantry Division was inactivated in 1992, the 256th Brigade served as the round out brigade for the 2nd Armored Division, until the end of the round out program in 1996. With the end of the round out program, the 256th was selected as one of 15 Enhanced Brigades in the ARNG. The enhanced brigade program increased resources and training to allow the brigades to mobilize and deploy within 120 days.
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, 2005 On 29 August 2005,
Hurricane Katrina struck the
gulf coast of Louisiana and Mississippi while most members of the 256th Infantry Brigade were still serving their final weeks of deployment in Iraq. Following the return of the brigade to Louisiana, a detachment immediately mobilized to New Orleans to aid law enforcement with rescue efforts. With the help of the
Louisiana State Police, those efforts transitioned into a support mission for the New Orleans Police Department.
Joint Task Force Gator was created to help combat the rise of looting and other crimes resulting from the loss of law enforcement officers in the New Orleans area. After three-and-a-half years of assisting local police and patrolling the city, the task force was released from duty on 28 February 2009.
Conversion to a Modular Infantry Brigade Combat Team On 1 September 2006, the 256th converted from a separate mechanized infantry brigade into a modular
Infantry Brigade Combat Team. The 1st Battalion, 156th Armor inactivated and its personnel were used to form the 2d Squadron, 108th Cavalry. The 2d and 3rd Battalions, 156th Infantry converted from three mechanized infantry to infantry, and the 1st Battalion, 141st Field Artillery traded its 155 mm self-propelled howitzers for 105 mm towed howitzers. The brigade also formed a new battalion, the Special Troops Battalion (STB), 256th BCT, which provided a battalion headquarters for companies of engineers, signal and military intelligence.
Deployment to Iraq, 2010 On Monday 19 May 2008, Louisiana's 256th BCT was alerted by the
Defense Department that they might begin a second tour in Iraq starting in spring 2010. Brigades from the Texas, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee National Guards were also notified in the same press release. The press release specifically stated tours of duty in
Iraq and
Kuwait, and not
Afghanistan. The notice of this deployment came within three years of the unit's return from their first tour of
Iraq in 2004–05. In February and March 2009, the 256th prepared for deployment to Iraq. On 5 January 2010, the 256th BCT left for mobilization at
Camp Shelby,
Mississippi where soldiers trained for a variety of missions, such as PSD, FOB security, gate guard, convoy security, and more. In early March, they flew out of Gulf Coast Airport in Mississippi. The brigade was divided into many different sections, being controlled by sustainment brigades and commands. The brigade commander, Col. Ball, did not command the entire brigade as subordinate units fell under other brigades. While select units returned home in August, the majority of brigade unit deployed back to home station in Louisiana in December 2010. ==Order of battle==