Camp Travis

Camp Travis (1917-1922) - A World War I training camp established in 1917 in San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas. Named Camp Travis after William B. Travis, martyred hero of the Alamo. Absorbed into Fort Sam Houston in 1922. Camp Travis circa Oct 1917 History Established in 1917 as one of sixteen National Army Camps in preparation for U.S. involvement in World War I. The Camp occupied 18,290 acres, with 5,730 acres adjacent to Fort Sam Houston. The site was selected on 15 Jul 1917 and by 25 Aug 1917 it was ready for the troops and by October 1917 there were 31,000 troops from the 90th U.S. Infantry Division at the camp. See the World War I page for a listing of the training camps. The first camp commander was Major General Henry T. Allen (Cullum 2951) who formed and trained the 90th U.S. Infantry Division mainly composed of draftees and volunteers from Texas and Oklahoma. In the early summer of 1918, the 90th U.S. Infantry Division left for the front in France. On 22 Aug 1918 the 18th U.S. Infantry Division under the command of Brigadier General George H. Estes (Cullum 3599) was formed at Camp Travis. The 18th Division was in training when the war ended on 11 Nov 1918. After the war ended Camp Travis became a demobilization center and discharged some 62,500 troops over a period of 8 months. The Camp became a part of Fort Sam Houston in 1922. Camp Travis Partial Commanders List (edit list) Assumed Relieved Rank Name Cullum Notes 1919-03-02 1919-06-23 ˜ Maj.‑Gen. Hodges, Harry Foote 2882 Grade returned to Brig.‑Gen. on June 15, 1919. Dates are formatted in yyyy-mm-dd to sort correctly. The Cullum Number is the graduation order from the United States Military Academy by year and class rank and links to a page for the officer on the website version of the Cullum Register. Listings without a Cullum Number indicate that the person was not a graduate of the United States Military Academy. Current Status Part absorbed into Fort Sam Houston in 1922 and parts became private property, San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas. Location: Fort Sam Houston, San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas. Maps & Images Lat: 29.48079 Long: -98.44835 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: 784' GPS Locations: 29.48079, -98.44835 Camp Travis Sources: Roberts, Robert B., Encyclopedia of Historic Forts: The Military, Pioneer, and Trading Posts of the United States, Macmillan, New York, 1988, 10th printing, ISBN 0-02-926880-X, page 779 Rinaldi, Richard A., The US Army in World War I - Orders of Battle, Tiger Lily Publications LLC, 2004, 244 pages Brief Histories of Divisions, U.S. Army: 1917-1918, U.S.A. General Staff, June 1921, 92 pages USGS Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Database Entry: 1802824 Links: North American Forts - Camp Travis The Handbook of Texas On-Line - Camp Travis Archives - Camp Travis and Its Part in the War New River Notes - World War I Forces Visited: No