The 87th Support Battalion (Corps) was constituted on 1 May 1936 in the U.S. Army as the 87th Separate Quartermaster Battalion (Light Maintenance) at Fort Des Moines, Iowa. In November 1942, the battalion arrived in Africa. Assigned to II Corps, it was to provide 3rd Echelon Maintenance and Supply to Corps troops, 1st Infantry, 1st Armored and 34th Infantry Divisions in and around Oran, Algeria. In early 1943, the battalion was assigned to Fifth Army and then to the 1st Destroyer Group which operated south of Oran near Sebban. By September 1943, the battalion boarded the USS Korea for movement to Salerno, Italy.