Camp Perry is a

National Guard National Guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. Nat ...

training facility located on the shore of

Lake Erie Lake Erie ( "eerie") is the fourth largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also h ...

in northern

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

near Port Clinton. In addition to its regular mission as a military training base, Camp Perry also boasts the second largest outdoor rifle range in the world after the NRA Whittington Center in Raton, NM. The firing is done in the direction of the open water of the lake, that lies just beyond an earthen berm and the targets.

History

The original land for Camp Perry was purchased in 1906, and the reservation was named after Commodore

Oliver Hazard Perry Oliver Hazard Perry (August 23, 1785 – August 23, 1819) was an American naval commander, born in South Kingstown, Rhode Island. The best-known and most prominent member of the Perry family naval dynasty, he was the son of Sarah Wallace A ...

, the American naval commander who won the Battle of Put-in-Bay during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

. Rudimentary structures were constructed for use by competitors in the National Matches, and for transient military personnel. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Camp Perry served as a training center for Army officers and marksmanship instructors. Around 1918 an additional area immediately adjacent to the existing Camp Perry grounds was used to construct the Erie Army Depot for artillery ordnance storage. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, Camp Perry served as a POW camp for German and

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

prisoners. The Italian prisoners were very lightly guarded and worked alongside the civilians at the camp. They were also used as workers at various local industries and returned to the camp each night. The camp was used to test the longevity of artillery weapons. The gun barrels were measured with a very precise gauge. The guns were then fired into Lake Erie and retested to determine the amount of wear the rounds of firing caused. This enabled the Army to estimate the effective life of the weapon. After the war prisoner quarters were converted back to use by transient personnel who were at Perry for training. In 1946 the Governor of Ohio,

Frank Lausche Frank John Lausche (; November 14, 1895 – April 21, 1990) was an American Democratic politician from Ohio. He served as the 47th mayor of Cleveland and the 55th and 57th governor of Ohio, and also served as a United States Senator from Ohio ...

considered turning the camp into a college temporarily. The camp was used extensively for several years after World War II, but use slowed somewhat during the 1960s. The Erie Army Depot closed in the mid-1960s and was eventually converted to industrial use. However, many of Camp Perry's original structures are still in use in one form or another. On June 24, 1998 a tornado damaged several buildings on the grounds.

Present use

Currently, Camp Perry is home to the 213th Ordnance Company (Missile Support, Corps), the 372d Missile Maintenance Company (DS) Detachment 1, the 200th RED HORSE Civil Engineering Squadron ( Ohio Air National Guard), U.S. Coast Guard Port Security Unit 309, the

Ohio Naval Militia The Ohio Naval Militia (Ohio Navy) is the naval militia of the State of Ohio. It is the naval arm of the State of Ohio's Adjutant General's Department, and is part of Ohio's military forces. Their operational headquarters are on the Camp Perry Joi ...

(the naval arm of Ohio's State Defense Forces), and the

Ohio Military Reserve The Ohio Military Reserve (OHMR) is one of three separate volunteer organizations that make up the State Defense Force (SDF). The SDF shares some similarities with the OHARNG (OHMR) and US Navy (ONM) in rank and organization, but are not part of t ...

(the militia arm of Ohio's State Defense Forces).

Civilian Marksmanship Program

Camp Perry has been the host of the

Civilian Marksmanship Program The Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) is a U.S. government-chartered program intended to promote firearm safety training and rifle practice for all qualified U.S. citizens with a specific emphasis on youth. Any U.S. citizen not otherwise legall ...

(CMP) and the NRA-sponsored National Rifle Matches since 1907. The National Matches, considered America's "World Series of the Shooting Sports," attracts shooting sports competitors from all across the world to compete in matches of all multitudes. Competition event shooters range from beginners to the world’s best. The National Matches include Small Arms Firing Schools, a series of CMP National Trophy Rifle and Pistol Matches, CMP Games Events and NRA national championships. The National Matches are conducted through a partnership with the CMP, the Ohio National Guard and the NRA. The camp is home to the Small Arms Firing School, which provides shooters with expert training and facilities for improving their shooting ability. The Small Arms Firing School was first conducted by The Department of Defense as part of the National Matches at the camp in 1918. Now there are over one thousand pistol and rifle shooters a year that take part in firearms safety and fundamental marksmanship skills. The Pistol and Rifle Schools are conducted by the U. S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU). The Schools are open to all United States citizens who are over the minimum age. USAMU instructors, assisted by

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with customs and security duties to ...

Marine Corps Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refl ...

and

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...

Active, National Guard and Reserve shooting team members teach basic marksmanship techniques to the new and less experienced, and experienced shooters who want to learn new ways to improve their scores. Camp Perry is also home to the

's north office.

References

External links

Ohio Military Reserve
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080511234624/http://ohmr.ohio.gov/ , date=2008-05-11
Long Range High Power at Camp Perry, Ohio
Installations of the United States Army National Guard Military installations in Ohio Buildings and structures in Ottawa County, Ohio World War II prisoner of war camps in the United States 1909 establishments in Ohio

History

Present use

Civilian Marksmanship Program

See also

References

External links