Fort Roots

Fort Roots (1893-1917) - A U.S. Army post established in 1893 by Act of Congress in Pulaski County, Arkansas. Named for Bvt. Lieutenant Colonel Logan Holt Roots, Commissary, U.S. Volunteers, who died 30 May 1893. Abandoned as a U.S. Army post in 1917 and established as a post hospital. Fort Roots 1896, 12 Bed Hospital Fort Roots 1907, Commanding Officer's Quarters Fort Roots 1907, 130 Man Barracks History Fort Roots 1907, 9 Man Bachelor Officer's Quarters Fort Roots 1905 Administration Building The land for Fort Roots was officially traded for the land occupied by the Little Rock Arsenal in downtown Little Rock on 23 Apr 1892. Construction began in 1893 and the post was first garrisoned in 1896 by a small 4th U.S. Cavalry detachment. Construction was temporarily halted in 1898 during the Spanish-American War when the garrison was sent to Puerto Rico. Construction resumed about 1905 with three large barracks and a commanding officer's quarters built during this period. The 1,000-acre post was built on a high bluff in North Little Rock that overlooks the city and that restricted the size of the facility. As World War I approached a larger post was needed to train the large numbers of troops that would be required. Fort Roots was converted to a hospital in May 1917 and the 6,000 acres Camp Pike was established nearby to train troops for the war. Camp Pike was later renamed Camp Joseph T. Robinson. Fort Roots was designated a General Hospital 1 Oct 1918, a public health hospital in 1921, and became a part of the VA Hospital System 29 Apr1922. Fort Roots Partial Commanders List (edit list) Assumed Relieved Rank Name Cullum Notes 1901-02-01 1901-04-09  Capt. Chandler, Elias 2851 1902-06 1903-09  Capt. Parke, John Spry 2801 Promoted Major July 31, 1903 1907-09-23 1909-04-18  Maj. Thompson, James K. 3046 1911-12-31 1913-02-12  “Lt. Col. Taggart, Elmore F. 3007 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 of the Veterans Administration, Eugene J. Towbin Healthcare Center, Pulaski County, Arkansas Location: VA Hospital, Eugene J. Towbin Healthcare Center, Pulaski County, Arkansas. Maps & Images Lat: 34.775 Long: -92.2958333 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: 531' 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 56 Links: North American Forts - Fort Roots Wikipedia - Fort Roots Encyclopedia of Arkansas - Fort Roots Visited: 26 Oct 2011