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The Army has finished renaming nine installations that were previously named after Confederate generals following the redesignation of Fort Gordon, Georgia, to Fort Eisenhower.
The Defense Department had until the end of the year to complete the recommendations from the congressionally-mandated Naming Commission, which was charged with identifying U.S. military property that honored the Confederate States of America.
The redesignation of Fort Gordon to Fort Eisenhower took place in an official ceremony Oct. 27.
Fort Gordon was named for Maj. Gen. John B. Gordon, who served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War and was wounded in several battles.
Gordon later served as a U.S. senator and the governor of Georgia. He also once headed the Ku Klux Klan in Georgia, according to Gordon's National Governors Association bio.
Fort Eisenhower's new name honors President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who also led the D-Day invasion of Normandy in World War II as a five-star Army general.
In its recommendation for the fort's new name, the Naming Commission said, "Eisenhower's extensive military experience as a combined and allied commander, and as a U.S. President symbolizes the professionalism, excellence, and joint nature of the base's mission."
The installation is the home of the Army's Signal Corps, Cyber Command and Cyber Center of Excellence.
The fort is also where Eisenhower delivered his farewell remarks to the U.S. military after departing the presidency and retiring from national service in 1961, according to the Naming Commission.
Below are the eight other installations nationwide that received new names:
- Fort Rucker, Alabama, renamed Fort Novosel in honor of Chief Warrant Officer 4 Michael Novosel, an Army aviator who earned the Medal of Honor for his actions in Kien Tuong Province, Vietnam.
- Fort Benning, Georgia, renamed Fort Moore in commemoration of Vietnam War hero Lt. Gen. Hal Moore and his wife, Julia, an advocate for military families.
- Fort Polk, Louisiana, renamed Fort Johnson in honor of Sgt. William Henry Johnson, a member of the famed "Harlem Hellfighters" from the New York Guard. Johnson earned the Medal of Honor for his actions in France’s Argonne Forest during World War I.
- Fort Bragg, North Carolina, renamed Fort Liberty.
- Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia, renamed Fort Walker in honor of Dr. Mary Walker, a Civil War hero and the only woman to receive the Medal of Honor.
- Fort Lee, Virginia, renamed Fort Gregg-Adams in commemoration of Lt. Gen. Arthur Gregg and Lt. Col. Charity Adams. Gregg, who retired in 1981, is considered one of the Army’s great logistics leaders of the 20th century. Adams commanded the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, the first and only all-Black, all-female American battalion deployed overseas during World War II.
- Fort Pickett, Virginia, renamed Fort Barfoot in honor of Army Tech. Sgt. Van Barfoot, who received the Medal of Honor for his actions near Carano, Italy, while serving with the Guard’s 45th Infantry Division during World War II.
- Fort Hood, Texas, renamed Fort Cavazos in commemoration of Gen. Richard Cavazos, who fought in Korea and Vietnam and was the Army’s first Hispanic four-star general.
Besides renaming the nine installations, the Naming Commission recommended renaming hundreds of other items, including streets and buildings on military installations.
Created by the fiscal 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, the commission is authorized to recommend new names for military assets — installations, ships, buildings, roads, etc. — honoring Confederate leaders.
The commission’s full name is the Commission on the Naming of Items of the Department of Defense that Commemorate the Confederate States of America or Any Person Who Served Voluntarily with the Confederate States of America.
— By John Goheen
