Fort Gordon Becomes Fort Eisenhower on Friday
Fort Gordon wasn’t always Fort Gordon. It was originally called Camp Gordon when it was created in 1941 as a World War II training camp for the 4th and 26th Infantry Divisions and the 10th Armored Division.
Camp Gordon was named for LTG John Brown Gordon, a native Georgian soldier, legislator and businessman. After the war, the camp was designated a U.S. Army Personnel and Separation Center.
From 1943 to 1945, Camp Gordon served as an internment camp for foreign prisoners of war. Two major schools, The Military Police and the Signal Corps Training Center, were brought to Camp Gordon in 1948. Fast forward to 1956, and Camp Gordon was re-named Fort Gordon, making it a permanent part of the Army’s readiness posture.
In 2022, a U.S. Army commission recommended changing the names of nine military installations whose names commemorated Confederate officers, with Fort Gordon being one of them.
Military Installations on the Renaming List This Year:
- Fort Benning became Fort Moore
- Fort Bragg renamed as Fort Liberty
- Fort A.P. Hill renamed as Fort Walker
- Fort Hood renamed as Fort Cavazos
- Fort Lee renamed as Fort Gregg-Adams
- Fort Pickett renamed as Fort Barfoot
- Fort Polk renamed as Fort Johnson
- Fort Rucker renamed as Fort Novosel
- Fort Gordon to be renamed Fort Eisenhower on October 27
Fort Gordon, which covers roughly 86 square miles, is the last of the nine military installations to be renamed this Friday. During a special renaming ceremony, Fort Gordon will become Fort Eisenhower, honoring the former president and commander of allied forces in Europe in World War II. The hospital on post already bears Eisenhower’s name. Members of Eisenhower’s family will be attending the renaming ceremony.
Army officials had previously estimated the cost of renaming the nine installations at around $39 million.
Fort Gordon is home to the U.S. Army Signal Corps, U.S. Army Cyber Command, and the Cyber Center of Excellence. It’s the largest employer in Augusta with nearly 32,000 military, civilian and contractors on post.
Bronze sculpture of Dwight David Eisenhower in Grosvenor Square in Mayfair, London W1, England
