Also known as a unit crest or DUI, the Distinctive Unit Insignia is worn by all Soldiers (except General Officers) in units that have been authorized to be issued the device. It is worn centered on the shoulder loops of the Army Green Service Uniform (AGSU) and the blue Army Service Uniform (Enlisted only) with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam. Full guidance on wear of the DUI is found in DA Pamphlet 670-1,
Section 21-22, "Distinctive unit insignia."Purple and white, primary and secondary branch colors for Civil Affairs units, are used liberally in the 490th Civil Affairs Distinctive Unit Insignia that was approved on 27 May 1953. The only other color used in the insignia is gold, the color signifying honor and achievement. At the heart of the insignia is a saltire, an “X” shape formed by two diagonal gold lines and counterchanged (alternating) purple and white fields; the counterchanged colors and the saltire itself stand for cooperation and strength. Surmounted over the center of the saltire is a stylized torch of liberty, adapted from the Civil Affairs branch insignia and representing enlightenment and the spirit of democracy. “Progress Through Unity” is the Battalion motto.
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
The 490th Civil Affairs Battalion was originally constituted in the Army of the United States as the 90th Military Government, HQ and HQ Company on 25 August 1945 and activated at the Presidio of Monterey, California. It was inactivated in Japan on 30 June 1946 and was reactivated on 1 December 1955 in the Army Reserve as the 490th Military Government Company (effective 2 November 1955).
It would be reorganized once and redesignated twice before being given its current designation of HQ and HQ Detachment, 490th Civil Affairs Battalion on 16 September 1992; its organic elements were concurrently constituted and activated on this date as well. On 1 April 2010, the Battalion’s location changed to its current home at Grand Prairie, Texas.
The Battalion and/or its component units have been called to active military service in the War on Terrorism on several occasions since 2003. The entire Battalion was honored with a Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC) for its service between March 2003 and March 2004, and the Battalion’s A and B Companies were individually chosen for the same award for their service between September 2008 and June 2009 while assigned or attached to the 448th Civil Affairs Battalion.
According to the Army General Orders Unit Award Index, two different Detachments of the Battalion were selected for Valorous Unit Awards for service in 2003. But a search of the actual Army General Orders shows no unit from the Battalion receiving a VUA, and there is only one Army Permanent Orders (038-22) that shows a Detachment from the Battalion being selected for the award. Awards given in Permanent Orders are provisional and are subject to final confirmation in Department of the Army General Orders.