Maryland's portion of U.S. 29 was renamed the "29th Infantry Division Memorial Highway" yesterday, honoring the only National Guard soldiers to participate in the D-Day invasion.

"I feel elated over it," said Lowry Brooks, 72, a D-Day veteran from Dundalk and supporter of the effort to rename the 30-mile stretch of highway.

Gov. William Donald Schaefer took part in the formal dedication of a wood-and-stone sign bearing the new name. The sign is on a grassy median of U.S. 29 near the exit for U.S. 40 East in Ellicott City.

Twenty-inch signs will be added along the highway.

Established in 1917, the division fought in World War I and World War II. During D-Day, on June 6, 1944, on Omaha Beach in France, it was the only National Guard unit to go ashore.

The 29th Infantry Division Association, raised more than $17,000 to pay for the sign.