The 37th Engineer Battalion was organized Jan. 16, 1918 and fought in two major campaigns in France: St. Mihiel and Meuse-Argonne. The battalion was made up of electricians, mechanics, and graduate engineers from all over the country. They installed and maintained barbed wire ahead of front line trenches, maintained water supply, and furnished electric light for hospitals. They were the first American soldiers to cross the Rhine River in Germany after the Armistice on Nov. 11, 1918.

The battalion was demobilized in March of 1919. The Twin Cities members returned home on April 6, 1919, by way of the Union Depot train station in St. Paul.