#FridayForts - Ft. Riley

Fort Riley, "Home of the Big Red One" (1st Infantry Division), is known for its excellent training, abundant recreational opportunities, rich history, and tremendous relations with surrounding communities.

That's according to the website for Fort Riley, located in Kansas, about 60 miles west of Topeka. I can't speak to all of that, but it definitely has a rich history. 

In 1853, Camp Center, in the Kansas Territory was named after Major General Bennett C. Riley, just 3 weeks after his death. It initially served as a military post to protect people and trade traveling over three of the major trails heading westward, the Oregon, California and Sante Fe Trails. In the years after the Civil War, the post was a U.S. Cavalry base and school for cavalry tactics. It was also used as a base for years of Indian skirmishes, George Custer was stationed here with the 7th Cavalry in 1866. Custer Hill is the main troop billeting area on the base and the Custer Home is a period accurate museum located on the base. In 1887, Fort Riley became home to the United States Cavalry School. 

Among other notable units associated with Fort Riley are the 9th and 10th Cavalry, the famed "Buffalo Soldiers". They were each stationed at Ft. Riley at various points in their histories. Just before World War One, both became part of the 2nd Cavalry Division, which was also stationed here for a short time.

In the following two decades, sometimes referred to as the golden age of cavalry, thanks to rigorous, outstanding training at Fort Riley, U.S. Cavalry units grew to be among the best in the world. The United States Army Cavalry School's reputation, ranked them with the French and Italian schools. All things cavalry became very popular for the time, including horse shows, hunts and polo matches, which were an outgrowth of the cavalry.

Advances in battlefield technologies demonstrated during WW1 cast doubt, by some, on the future of effective usefulness of  cavalry units. The War Department had directed the development of tank units by the late 1920's and in 1936, the 7th Cavalry Brigade(mechanized) was activated. In 1938, the 7th marched from Fort Knox to Fort Riley and took part in large-scale combine maneuvers of horse and mechanized units. These exercises helped prove the effectiveness of mechanized cavalry.

The lead up to World War Two saw changes at Fort Riley. One notable change was the rebuilding of Camp Funston, just outside the base. Funston was initially built as a cantonment that could accommodate up to 50,000 troops. In December, 1940, the 2nd Cavalry Division was stationed there and an additional 32,000 acres were acquired for training purposes. The 9th Armored Division was organized in July, 1942 and after they deployed, Funston was turned into a POW camp. It became one of up to fourteen in the immediate area.

Just after WW2, in November, 1946, the Cavalry School ceased operations. The following March, the last tactical horse units were deactivated. The Cavalry School was replaced with the Ground General School. It trained newly commissioned officers in basic military subjects. An officer’s candidate course was conducted along with training officers and enlisted men in intelligence techniques. Soon after, the storied 10th Mountain Division was activated. The 16-week basic military program conducted by this division prepared soldiers for infantry combat and duty with other infantry units. This was 1948. About two years later, North Korea invaded South Korea and Fort Riley became the focal point for much of the training of the troops involved.

The Cold War saw the 10th Mountain Division rotate to Germany as part of Operation Gyroscope. The void at Fort Riley was filled handily by the Big Red One. The 1st Infantry Division began arriving in July, 1955 and did not fully integrate until the last units of the 2nd Battle Group, 8th Infantry arrived in December 1959. Over the next seven years, heightened activity with the 1st Infantry Division in the way of Operation Long Thrust, which saw troops moved to and from Germany, the building of the Berlin Wall, and the Cuban Missile Crisis had Ft. Riley bursting at the seams. To support the need for more adequate training facilities, an additional 50,000 acres were acquired in 1966.

The Vietnam War required the 1st Infantry Division to be deployed starting in July, 1965 with the 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry. Divisional HQ followed in September. Fort Riley was home to a new provisional basic combat training brigade which was followed by the addition of the reactivated 9th Infantry Division. They soon followed the 1st ID to Vietnam.

Soon, the 24th Infantry Division would arrive. The 1st ID would return from Vietnam in April of 1970. Reserve Officer Training Corps summer camps were also held at the fort, demonstrating and teaching their skills to aspiring second lieutenants. The fort also hosted the model U. S. Army Correctional Brigade, housed in Camp Funston, and the 3rd ROTC Region Headquarters until their inactivation in 1992.

Operation Desert Storm saw the Big Red One on the move, yet again. Along with the 1st Infantry Division, 27 non-divisional units were deployed and twenty-four reserve components were mobilized. This amounted to 15,180 soldiers being sent overseas via 115 aircraft. This, along with 3,000 short tons of equipment. This culminated with the "100 hours of combat", in February, 1991, which crushed Iraq's Republican Guard. Later that spring, the 1st ID came home to Fort Riley.

Spring of 1995 saw the 1st Infantry Division's HQ transferred back to Germany. All that remained at Ft. Riley was 1st Brigade, 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division and the 937th Engineer Group.

1999 saw the re-emergence of Ft. Riley as a Division Headquarters with the reactivation of the 24th Infantry Division (Mechanized).

In April, 2003, the 3rd Brigade 1st Armored Division deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The 3rd Brigade operated in and around Baghdad in support of the 1st Armored Division. Over the next 9 years, Fort Riley units supported combat operations both Iraq and Afghanistan.

On August 1, 2006, the 1st Infantry Division returned to Fort Riley and became the post's main Division, replacing the 24th Infantry Division in that role.

Four museums, in addition to the Custer Home are located on base. The U.S. Cavalry Museum, which features exhibits and artifacts dating from the Revolutionary War up until the 1950's, the 1st Infantry Division Museum, which traces the division from it's inception, the first territorial capitol of Kansas, which is the sole remaining building in the ghost town that was taken over by Ft. Riley after only 5 days of existence, and finally, one of  eight of the twenty M65 atomic cannons, known collectively as "Atomic Annie".

Fort Riley has been a focal point of U.S. military operations since its inception. The role it has played in cavalry operations, training and support have done a tremendous amount for the preparation and readiness of combat troops going back 150 years. Two of the most storied divisions in our history have called Ft. Riley home. Innumerable troops have passed through her gates in various roles with various duties and destinations. Many of them never came home. Let's not forget those who have fought out of Ft. Riley. The sacrifices they have made have gone a long way on forging the freedoms we now enjoy.

Thank you to all who have ever set passed through Ft. Riley in the name of defending this country! Your impact is cherished and your memory remains alive! 

  

#FridayForts - Fort Rucker

The Ozark Triangular Division Camp was renamed Camp Rucker before it officially opened in 1942. Camp Rucker was named after Civil War Colonel Edmund Rucker of the the Confederate Army of Tennessee. Rucker became an industrial leader in Birmingham after the war. Camp Rucker is located about 125 miles south of Birmingham in Dale County, Alabama.

In September of 1942, more land was acquired and an airfield was built, Ozark Army Airfield. It would later, in 1959, be changed to Cairns Army Airfield. During World War II, Camp Rucker was used as training for infantry divisions. The 81st "Wildcat" Division, that would go on to fight in the Pacific at Palau, Peleliu, and Leyte Islands. The 35th "Sante Fe" Division which fought all over Europe, from Omaha Beach, to Bastogne to the mopping up and occupation of Hanover at the end of the War. The 98th "Iroquois" Division that was slated to take part in the invasion of Japan. And the 66th "Black Panther" Division, which suffered a great tragedy when one of the transport ships it was utilizing was torpedoed, causing the loss of over 760 men. The division went on to fight in the last few months of the war in Germany before readying for a deployment to the Pacific that never happened.

Camp Rucker also trained dozens of smaller units, including tank units, Women's Army Corps units and many infantry replacement units. It was also used to house German and Italian prisoners of war. Camp Rucker was closed for a short period after the war ended, but re-opened with the start of the Korean War.

The Minnesota Army National Guard was sent to Camp Rucker in the fall of 1950 and would remain there throughout the war as a training force for replacement troops being sent to the Korean peninsula. At the end of the war, after another short deactivation, it was expanded to become a helicopter training base and the name was officially changed to Fort Rucker in October of 1955. In October of 1959, the Hanchey Army Heliport at Fort Rucker became the home of the Department of Rotary Wing Training of the Army Aviation School. That marked the first time that the department had been centralized in one location.

Fort Rucker is now the primary training for Army Aviation and is home to United States Army Aviation Center of Excellence (USAACE). The U.S. Army Aviation Museum is also located on Fort Rucker. Army Aviation training has taken place solely at Fort Rucker since 1973. In addition to all of the intensive, comprehensive training that takes place here, it is also home to Warrant Officer Candidate School, Warrant Officer Career College, and the U.S. Army Combat Readiness/Safety Center.

Fort Rucker has grown mightily from its humble beginnings to become one of the pre-eminent bases/training centers in use by the U.S.Army. Helicopter warfare was born here and perfected in and above the jungles of Vietnam. Many other innovations and training doctrines were developed at Fort Rucker and have come to be a huge part of U.S. Army Aviation.

The number of people that have come through Fort Rucker is probably innumerable, but to say that many of them went on to serve in ways that altered the course of history is probably an understatement.

We are thankful for all who have trained others here and all who have been trained here. Our nation and the outcome of countless battles and several wars have depended on you for over 70 years.

#FridayForts - NBSD

Naval Base San Diego is one of the Navy's largest installations. Sometimes referred to as the 32nd Street Naval Station, It is the principle home port of the U.S Pacific Fleet. That fleet consists of over a quarter million Navy and Marine personnel, and over 200 ships. The NBSD as home port, consists of about 50 of those ships and over 120 tenant commands. The base population is around 20,000 military and 6,000 civilian workers. The base stretches over 1300 acres, both in water and on land.

The land was initially owned and operated by a coalition of ship building firms known as the Emergency Fleet Corporation which was operating under the name of Pacific Marine Construction. With World War 1 coming to a close, the outlook was bleak for PMC. One of the coalition companies, Schofield Engineering held an option to purchase the existing plant, but was delaying a decision as the rest was negotiated back to the city of San Diego. The Navy wanted the area to establish a west coast ship repair facility. They, too, were dragging their feet by not having passed an  appropriations bill for the project. In June of 1920, however, Congress passed an appropriations bill that included 750,000 dollars for the Navy. Still, Schofield hesitated. Roger Welles, then the commandant of the 11th Naval District grew tired and threatened to pull the plug and seek land elsewhere. His threat worked, Schofield relented, and the Navy had her yard.

The base expanded consistently for the next 16 years, functioning as a Destroyer Base, adding torpedo and radio schools and adding land and around 30 buildings. At the outbreak of World War Two, the base expanded heavily, adding expanded fleet training schools and an amphibious force training unit. By October of 1943, it had dramatically outgrown its basic function of a Destroyer Base. It was then re-designated U.S. Repair Base, San Diego. It held that title and function though WW2.

Between 1943 and 1945, conversion, overhaul, maintenance and repairs from damage taken in battle became a primary focus. During this time, over 5100 ships came into port for these reasons. A large part of this process was the construction of 155 dry docks. They were delivered to various bases and also utilized heavily at San Diego. Included in these were seven large floating dry docks from 900 tons up to 3000 tons. These became the central repair and training facilities and were absolutely crucial to the mission of the base during World War 2.

Post war, the mission changed again. This time to providing logistical support (including repair and dry-docking) to the active fleet. With this transition, the base continued to grow, adding buildings, berthing space and land. The barracks grew to accommodate more than 18,000 men. The galley grew large enough to be able to feed 3,500 men in a single siting.

In the 1990's the Long Beach Naval Yard closed. Naval Station San Diego was re-aligned under Commander, Navy Region Southwest and became the hub for all Navy port operations for the region. It was at this time, it became Naval Base San Diego, with the change, assuming all logistical responsibility for the region as well as for Naval Medical Center San Diego.

This base has been an integral part of Navy operations for almost 100 years. It has been home to countless men and women who have put their lives on the line in combat in every engagement since World War 2. During WW2, it was an absolutely vital part of the effort that won the war. It remains no less vital today in its mission. Taken from the website of NBSD:

Our Mission
Our Mission is to deliver the highest standard of support and quality of life services to the Fleet, Fighter and Family.

Our Vision 
We will continually pursue excellence and be the best in all that we do.  Working as one team with one mission, we will be responsive to the needs of the Fleet, Fighter and Family and efficiently deliver top quality capabilities.  We exist to serve and support; our labors will demonstrate effective stewardship of the resources entrusted to us to support the fleet.

Our Philosophy 
Lead by example! Don't give up the base!

Everything you could possibly want to know about the Naval Base San Diego can be found at the Navy's website: NBSD Website.

The people that have passed through the gates, into and out of the harbor, or had anything at all to do with this base have been a part of something excellent. They are what make it so. We can never thank them enough for the role they have played in securing our freedoms, tending to the needs of those in combat, and helping the families of everyone involved. An incredible team effort headed up by some of the best leadership in the history of naval warfare has made an impact on the world that can not be stated strongly enough.

Thank you to all who have served, in any capacity at the Naval Base San Diego. Our flag flies proudly because of your service and sacrifices.