After a yearlong deployment in Afghanistan, Cherokee County's troops are coming home.

Georgia Army National Guard officials said Thursday that the 48th Infantry Brigade's Combat Team, which includes troops from the Canton Armory, will begin its return this month.

The soldiers who deployed 12 months ago from across the state will come home to Georgia in a staggered arrival schedule from late February to early April.

It is anticipated that the first group of 175 soldiers will arrive in Georgia on Feb. 23. About 600 soldiers will arrive by the end of the month.

Arrival dates for specific units are being arranged, officials said, and will be released to families first by their respective rear detachments and family readiness organizations.

The 87 soldiers from the Canton Armory are part of the Bravo Troop, First Squadron, 108th Cavalry. About 25 members of the unit live in Cherokee. The majority of the rest are from other north Georgia communities, but some are from south Georgia and Florida.

"This is the information which we've been anticipating since the brigade's departure last February," said Maj. Gen. Terry Nesbitt, Georgia's adjutant general.

"These soldiers represent what our National Guard is about, ready to serve whenever called and ready to return to their lives and jobs when their duty is complete," he added. "I cannot be more proud of these soldiers, nor more appreciative of the sacrifices made by their families and loved ones."

The 2,400-soldier brigade's mission while in Afghanistan was to train Afghan security forces and Afghan police.

Each group of soldiers will arrive at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah. They will then be transported to Cottrell Field at Fort Stewart for a homecoming ceremony with their families before being released to return home.