The 61st Cavalry Regiment Distinctive Unit Insignia (DUI), commonly called a unit crest, was approved on 14 December 2005. Its centerpiece is a black pall (the “Y” shape), which represents the Regiment’s descent from the 601st Tank Destroyer Battalion and the unit’s dedication and determination to accomplish mission objectives. Ten stars, called mullets in heraldry, represent the ten campaigns the 601st TDB participated in during World War II.
Behind the pall the shield is divided into red and white halves, the colors of the Cavalry’s guidon. A crossed saber and rifle allude to the power of combined arms and is a reference to the lineage of the major elements that were used to form the Regiment. A dagger above the pall indicates military preparation and readiness, warriors from an earlier age, and dismounted reconnaissance Soldiers.
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 (ASU, 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" and 21–3(d) and (e),
"Beret" and
"Garrison Cap," respectively.
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On 19 August 1941, the 61st Cavalry Regiment’s forebear, the 601st Tank Destroyer Battalion, was activated. Deployed to England a year later, the Battalion first saw combat in several battles in Tunisia, earning the first of two Presidential Unit Citations at the Battle of El Guettar. The Battalion would go on to fight in ten campaigns in the European-African-Middle Eastern Theater before its inactivation in October 1945. While still inactivated, it reorganized and allotted to the Organized Reserve (later known as the Army Reserve) as the 332nd Heavy Tank Battalion in 1949 before being redesignated as the 601st Tank Battalion.
The 601st Tank Battalion was redesignated as the 1st Squadron, 61st Cavalry Regiment on 16 August 2004 and activated as an element of the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division. Over the next ten years, the 1st Squadron and 3rd Squadron and/or their subordinate units would be the recipient of three Valorous Unit Awards and eight Meritorious Unit Commendations for their service in Iraq and Afghanistan, often while deployed with the 4th Brigade Combat Team.
The 1st Squadron, 61st Cavalry Regiment was inactivated along with several other units including the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division on 25 April 2014. As of Summer 2023, the Regiment's lone active unit is its 3rd Squadron., based at Fort Carson in Colorado and still "Forging Destiny" as part of the 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division.