Fort Hood (1)
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Fort Hood (1) (1942-Present) - Officially opened as Camp Hood on 18 Sep 1942 during World War II and named after Confederate General John Bell Hood (Cullum 1622). Renamed Fort Hood on 15 April 1950 and designated a permanent post. Active military post.
History An initial acquisition of 108,000 acres was made in 1942, and it was estimated that the camp would cost $22,800,000 for the land, facilities, and development of utilities. The date of completion was set for August 15, 1942. The original facilities provided housing and training sites for nearly 38,000 troops. In January 1943, an additional 16,000 acres in Bell County and 34,943 acres in Coryell County near Gatesville, Texas were purchased. The site near Gatesville was known as the sub-camp and later as North Fort Hood. During the war years, North Fort Hood housed nearly 40,000 troops and 4,000 prisoners of war and was the site for the southern branch of the United States Disciplinary Barracks. At the end of 1942, there were about 45,000 troops living and training at Camp Hood. Camp Hood reached its peak population of almost 95,000 troops in late June 1943. These strengths were maintained until early 1944. In 1944 the number of tank destroyer battalions in training at Camp Hood declined rapidly. Field artillery battalions and the Infantry Replacement Training Center replaced them in March 1944. By September, the Infantry Center was the largest activity on post, reaching a peak of 31,545 troops. The total camp population on the last day of 1944 was 50,228. The last year of World War II saw a major shift of emphasis in Camp Hood's mission and a drastic reduction in population. As the war came to an end, the training of troops slowed and equipment reclamation and demobilization planning became the priorities. A separation center was established in September 1945, and as the year ended, post strength had fallen to 1,807 prisoners and about 11,000 troops. (from Wikipedia)
Current Status Active military post with two on-post museums, both with excellent static displays of heavy armor and aircraft and excellent historic displays in the museum buildings.
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Links: Visited: 9 Nov 2011
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