Camp Kilmer

 (1942-2009) - A World War II Camp established in 1942 near Edison, Middlesex County, New Jersey. Named Camp Kilmer after World War I soldier-poet Sergeant Joyce Kilmer who was killed in France during World War I. Portions sold off in 1963 and 1966 and the remaining reserve center closed in 2009. Also known as Camp Joyce Kilmer.

History of Camp Kilmer
Established in June 1942 as a World War II overseas embarkation and processing center. The camp came to enclose some 1,573 acres and 1,230 buildings and included an Italian Prisoner of War Camp near the main gate. After the war in Europe ended on 8 May 1945 the camp was used to process returning troops and send those to be discharged on to regional separation centers. The camp remained active until the fall of 1949 when it was no longer needed to process returning troops. The camp was reactivated in the fall of 1950 during the Korean War but deactivated again in June 1955. After the failed 1956 Hungarian Revolution, 30,000 Hungarian refugees were temporarily housed at Camp Kilmer before being integrated into American society.

In 1958 Camp Kilmer became Headquarters for the U.S. Army II Corps, headquarters for United States Army Reserve units across the northeast. The camp also housed a maintenance and repair facility for the Nike/Hercules missile sites in the New York City area. The headquarters of the U.S. Army II Corps left Camp Kilmer in 1963 and moved to Fort Wadsworth on Staten Island.

Without a major military unit at the camp, the decision to close it was made and most of the 1,573 acres was auctioned off in 1963 and 1966 to universities and colleges. Rutgers University received the largest portion of the land. The government retained 24 acres for use as a Reserve Center, known as the Sergeant Joyce Kilmer Reserve Center.

The 2005 Defense Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission recommended that the reserve center be closed and it closed on 5 Oct 2009.

Current Status
Now part of the Livingston Campus of Rutgers University.

See Also:
 * NIKE System
 * New York NIKE Sites

Sources:
 * , page 510.

Links:
 * Wikipedia - Camp Kilmer
 * US Army - Closure of Camp Kilmer
 * Piscataway public Library - Camp Kilmer
 * National Archives - Camp Kilmer