Camp Frank D. Merrill is the home of the 5th Ranger 
Training Battalion and the mountain phase of the U.S. 
Army Ranger School, where small unit leaders are 
instructed in combat techniques and procedures used to 
move swiftly over all types of terrain including 
mountains.  One-eighth of the earth's surface is covered 
by mountains and almost every war which has been fought 
since the start of recorded history has included some 
type of mountain operations.

In the pre-dawn hours of D-Day as Omaha Beach quietly 
awaited the fury of the Allied invasion, the 2nd Ranger 
Battalion assaulted the cliffs of Normandy at Point Du 
Hoc to clear the way for the invasion force.  Battling 
rain soaked rocks, rough seas, and intense German fire, 
the American Rangers scaled 100 foot cliffs, secured 
their objective and stood on European soil before the 
amphibious assault began.

Future conflicts involving American soldiers could very 
well be conducted in mountainous terrain.  Whether in 
Europe or Latin America we will see rough terrain.  The 
training that Ranger students receive at Camp Merrill and 
the surrounding North Georgia Mountains will enable them 
to successfully operate in any mountainous environment.

The Mountain Ranger Camp was officially designated  Camp 
Frank D. Merrill in honor of Major General Frank D. 
Merrill, Commander of Merrill's Marauders during Burma 
operations of World War II.  On October 1, 1988, the 2nd 
Ranger Company was officially reorganized and designated 
the 5th Ranger Training Battalion.