Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., and the oldest permanent settlement in Kansas. Fort Leavenworth has been historically known as the "Intellectual Center of the Army." During the country's westward expansion, Fort Leavenworth was a forward destination for thousands of soldiers, surveyors, immigrants, American Indians, preachers and settlers who passed through. Today, the

garrison A garrison is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a military base or fortified military headquarters. A garrison is usually in a city ...

supports the US Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) by managing and maintaining the home of the US Army Combined Arms Center (CAC). CAC's mission involves leader development, collective training, and Army doctrine and battle command (current and future). Fort Leavenworth is also home to the Military Corrections Complex, consisting of the United States Disciplinary Barracks the Department of Defense's only maximum security prison and the Midwest Joint Regional Correctional Facility. In addition, the Fort Leavenworth Garrison supports numerous tenant organizations that directly and indirectly relate to the functions of the CAC, including the

United States Army Command and General Staff College The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...

and the Foreign Military Studies Office. The fort occupies and has of floor area in 1,000 buildings and 1,500 quarters. It is located on the Frontier Military Scenic Byway ( U.S. Route 69 and K-7 corridor), which was originally a military road connecting to Fort Scott and Fort Gibson. Fort Leavenworth was also the base of African-American soldiers of the U.S. 10th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army, formed on 21 September 1866 at Fort Leavenworth. They became known as Buffalo Soldiers, nicknamed by the Native American tribes whom they fought. The term eventually was applied to all of the African-American regiments formed in 1866.

Tenants and organization

The garrison commander is a

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

reporting via IMCOM West to the Installation Management Command. The fort is nicknamed the "intellectual center" of the Army because much of its mission involves training. Major tenants include: *

United States Army Combined Arms Center The U.S. Army Combined Arms Center (USACAC) is located at Fort Leavenworth and provides leadership and supervision for leader development and professional military and civilian education; institutional and collective training; functional training ...

(CAC) which, among its various responsibilities, is the

, which includes a degrees granting

graduate school Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications usually pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachel ...

for U.S. and allied soldiers and officers. The school trains almost all of the army's majors. All modern five-star army generals have passed through the college including George Marshall,

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American general who served as a top commander during World War II and the Korean War, achieving the rank of General of the Army (United States), General of the Army. He served with dis ...

Dwight Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

, Henry "Hap" Arnold, and

Omar Bradley Omar Nelson Bradley (12 February 1893 – 8 April 1981) was a senior Officer (armed forces), officer of the United States Army during and after World War II, rising to the rank of General of the Army (United States), General of the Army. He wa ...

. Since 1978 it has been commanded by a

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

(3 stars). In 2007, its commander was David Petraeus. It reports to the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC). * United States Disciplinary Barracks, which is the only maximum security prison for military personnel of all branches. Since a 2007 reorganization, its commander is a colonel who reports to the United States Army Corrections Command. * Midwest Joint Regional Correctional Facility, a low security prison. reports to the United States Army Corrections Command. * Foreign Military Studies Office (which reports to TRADOC) * Munson Army Health Center (Post hospital) * University of Foreign Military and Cultural Studies (which includes teaching Red Teams among its courses) * Sherman Army Airfield—the Post airport (which reports to the garrison) * Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery * TRADOC Analysis Center (which reports to TRADOC) * Headquarters of the National Guard's 35th Infantry Division (Mechanized) * Mission Command Training Program is the focal point for National Guard of the United States division and brigade staff training and development. * Army/ACE Registry Transcript Systems (handles transcripts for all its training)

Schools

Fort Leavenworth School District operates schools for grades PreK-8. High school students go to Leavenworth High School of Leavenworth USD 453.

Media

'' The Fort Leavenworth Lamp'' newspaper served the military community living on post since 1971.

History

18th century

The fort is 10 miles south of the 18th century French Fort de Cavagnal, which was the farthest west fort in

Louisiana (New France) Louisiana or French Louisiana was a administrative divisions of France, district of New France. In 1682 the French explorer René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de la Salle erected a cross near the mouth of the Mississippi River and claimed the whole ...

. Its commandant was François Coulon de Villiers, a brother to Louis Coulon de Villiers, who was the only military commander to force

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

to surrender (after avenging the murder of his half brother Joseph Coulon de Jumonville while in Washington's custody, which was the incident that set off the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

). The French abandoned the fort after ceding its territory to

Louisiana (New Spain) Louisiana (, ), was a province of New Spain from 1762 to 1801. It was primarily located in the center of North America encompassing the western basin of the Mississippi River plus New Orleans. The area had originally been claimed and controlle ...

at the conclusion of the French and Indian War. Early American explorers on the

Missouri River The Missouri River is a river in the Central United States, Central and Mountain states, Mountain West regions of the United States. The nation's longest, it rises in the eastern Centennial Mountains of the Bitterroot Range of the Rocky Moun ...

to visit the area of Fort de Cavagnal include

Lewis and Clark Lewis may refer to: Names * Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname Music * Lewis (musician), Canadian singer * " Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohe ...

on 26–29 June 1804 and Stephen Harriman Long in 1819. The fort location had been chosen then because of its proximity to a large Kansa tribe village.

19th century

Colonel Henry Leavenworth, with the officers and men of the 3rd Infantry Regiment from Jefferson Barracks at St. Louis, Missouri, established Fort Leavenworth in 1827 to be a forward base protecting the

Santa Fe Trail The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century route through central North America that connected Franklin, Missouri, with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1821 by William Becknell, who departed from the Boonslick region along the Missouri River, the ...

. Leavenworth's instructions had been the following:

Colonel Leavenworth of the 3d Infantry, with four companies of his regiment will ascend the Missouri and when he reaches a point on its left band near the mouth of Little Platte River and within a range of twenty miles above or below its confluence, he will select such position as in his judgment is best calculated for the site of a permanent cantonment. The spot being chosen, he will then construct with the troops of his command comfortable, though temporary quarters sufficient for the accommodation of four companies. This movement will be made as early as the convenience of the service will permit.

Leavenworth was to report that spot around the confluence on the east side of the Missouri River (near present-day Farley, Missouri) would be prone to flooding and on 8 May 1827 recommended the location upstream on the west bank in the bluffs above the river. The first army installation in

Cantonment A cantonment (, , or ) is a type of military base. In South Asia, a ''cantonment'' refers to a permanent military station (a term from the British Raj). In United States military parlance, a cantonment is, essentially, "a permanent residential ...

Leavenworth (its original name) was located on Scott Avenue, south of the Post Chapel with initial strength of 14 officers and 174 enlisted men. The Cantonment almost immediately increased in importance as it became the eastern terminus for the Santa Fe Trail and

Oregon Trail The Oregon Trail was a east–west, large-wheeled wagon route and Westward Expansion Trails, emigrant trail in North America that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon Territory. The eastern part of the Oregon Trail crossed what ...

. After

Indian Removal Act The Indian Removal Act of 1830 was signed into law on May 28, 1830, by United States president Andrew Jackson. The law, as described by Congress, provided "for an exchange of lands with the Indians residing in any of the states or territories, ...

of 1830 attempted to remove all Indians west of the Missouri–Kansas border, the fort which is west of the border assumed even more importance. In 1832, it was renamed "Fort Leavenworth". Between 1832 and 1834, the Rookery was built as bachelor officer quarters. The Rookery is the oldest building in Kansas and would be the office of the first territorial governor and thus the first capitol in Kansas from 1854 to 1855 when the capitol was moved to Pawnee, Kansas. In 1836, William Clark at the fort presided over the transfer of Indian land directly across the Missouri River from the fort to the U.S. government in the Platte Purchase which involved the entire northwest corner of Missouri. In 1839, Col. Stephen W. Kearny marched against the

Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...

s with 20 companies of

dragoon Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat wi ...

s, the largest U.S. mounted force ever assembled. Throughout the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

, Fort Leavenworth was the outfitting post for the Army of the West. In 1854,

Kansas Territory The Territory of Kansas was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until January 29, 1861, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the United States, Union as the Slave and ...

Governor Andrew Reeder set up executive offices on post and lived for a short time in the quarters now known as the Rookery. During the 1850s, troops from Ft. Leavenworth were mobilized to control the "Mormon Problem" in what became known as the Utah War. Bfu-soldr-front

From 1858 to 1874 Fort Leavenworth was also home to the Fort Leavenworth Arsenal (originally called the Leavenworth Ordnance Depot) which supplied ordnance to the army in the western United States which was located at what today is the Combined Arms Center headquarters complex on what is called Arsenal Hill which was reached by Arsenal Avenue (which today is called Scott Avenue). The arsenal moved in 1874 to the Rock Island Arsenal in Illinois. Two surviving buildings from the arsenal are Sherman Hall and Sheridan Hall which are now in the same complex as Grant Hall and are among the most iconic buildings of the fort.

Civil War

At the outbreak of the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, Camp Lincoln was established on post as a reception and training station for Kansas volunteers. In 1864, news of the approach of Confederate General Sterling Price prompted construction of Fort Sully, a series of earthworks for artillery emplacements on Hancock Hill, overlooking what is now the Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery. (See Fort Sully (Fort Leavenworth)). However, Price's forces never reached Fort Leavenworth, having met defeat at Westport, which is now part of Kansas City. During its long history, the post was never subject to enemy attack. For three decades following the war, the Army's chief mission was control of the American Indian tribes on the Western plains. Between 1865 and 1891, the Army had more than 1,000 combat engagements with

Apache The Apache ( ) are several Southern Athabaskan language-speaking peoples of the Southwestern United States, Southwest, the Southern Plains and Northern Mexico. They are linguistically related to the Navajo. They migrated from the Athabascan ho ...

, Modoc, Cheyenne, Ute,

Nez Perce The Nez Perce (; autonym in Nez Perce language: , meaning 'we, the people') are an Indigenous people of the Plateau who still live on a fraction of the lands on the southeastern Columbia River Plateau in the Pacific Northwest. This region h ...

, Comanche,

Kiowa Kiowa ( ) or Cáuigú () people are a Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribe and an Indigenous people of the Great Plains of the United States. They migrated southward from western Montana into the Rocky Mountains in Colora ...

, Kickapoo and other tribes. The Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery is one of the national cemeteries established by

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...

on 17 July 1862. Veterans since the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

have been laid to rest in the cemetery. One veteran of the War of 1812 is the cemetery's most famous occupant, Brigadier General Henry Leavenworth, who gave his name to the fort, the cemetery, and the town and county they are located in. Others buried in the cemetery include 10

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

recipients, seven Confederate

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

as well as soldiers killed in Operation Desert Storm,

Operation Iraqi Freedom The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with the invasion by a United States-led coalition, which resulted in the overthrow of the Ba'athist governm ...

and Operation Enduring Freedom. Although there is no longer space for new burial sites, burials frequently take place for those who already have family members interred in the cemetery.United States Department of Veterans Affairs, "Cemeteries – Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery" at Retrieved 15 October 2011

Reconstruction and Indian wars

In 1866, the U.S. Congress authorized the formation of four black regiments, which were the 24th and 25th Infantry Regiments and the 9th and 10th Cavalry Regiments. The 10th Cavalry Regiment was formed at Fort Leavenworth under the command of Col. Benjamin Grierson. Today, a statue of a cavalry rider stands at Fort Leavenworth in tribute to the " Buffalo Soldier" of the 9th and 10th Cavalry Regiments. Just off Fort Leavenworth in the City of Leavenworth, The Richard Allen Cultural Center, housed in a former home of a Buffalo Soldier, also highlights the history of the Buffalo Soldiers and African-Americans serving in the U.S. Army. The United States Disciplinary Barracks, now a maximum-security

military prison A military prison is a prison operated by a military. Military prisons are used variously to house prisoners of war, unlawful combatants, those whose freedom is deemed a national security risk by the military or national authorities, and members o ...

, was established in 1875 under the command of Lt. Col. Edmund Rice. In 1877 some 400

were shipped to Fort Leavenworth after being pursued and captured in the Nez Perce War. In 1889 they were sent to Tonkawa, Oklahoma. The fort's first Catholic church was built in 1871 and was later replaced by St. Ignatius Chapel in 1889. St. Ignatius Chapel was destroyed by fire in December 2001. The first Protestant chapel, Memorial Chapel, was built by prison labor in 1878 of stone quarried on post. The round window behind the chapel's front altar was intentionally installed slightly askew by an inmate who was angry at his work boss. This chapel has brass cannon embedded in the walls at the sides of the church, and photos of many of the officers involved in the early history of the fort, including some of the Custer family. In 1881, Gen. William T. Sherman established the School of Application for Cavalry and Infantry. That school evolved into the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. The Western Branch National Military Home (" old soldiers' home"), now called the Veterans Medical Center, or Dwight D. Eisenhower Medical Center Historic District was established in 1885 as part of the

National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ...

system. The soldier home is closely associated with the nearby cemetery that became the Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery in 1973.

20th century

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

was the first opportunity to evaluate the impact of Sherman's school. Graduates excelled in planning complex American Expeditionary Forces operations. By the end of the war, they dominated staffs throughout the AEF. In the years between the world wars, graduates included such officers as

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

and George S. Patton. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, some 19,000 officers completed various courses at Fort Leavenworth. By the end of 1943, commanders and staffs of 26 infantry, airborne and cavalry divisions had trained as teams at the school. General

Michael Joe Costello Michael Joseph Costello (4 July 1904 – 20 October 1986) was an Ireland, Irish rebel and military leader during the Irish War of Independence. Biography Michael Joseph Costello was born on 4 July 1904 in Cloughjordan, County Tipperary, son o ...

of the army of the newly formed

Irish Free State The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...

attended Fort Leavenworth from 1926 to 1927, passing with such distinction that he was recommended for the United States Army War College. In 1946, the school was given its current name. In 1959, the college moved to the newly built J. Franklin Bell Hall on Arsenal Hill. In 1985, the Harold Keith Johnson wing was added to house the Combined Arms and Services Staff School (CAS³). Classes for the School of Advanced Military Studies and the School for Command Preparation, as well as the Combined Arms Research Library, are located in Eisenhower Hall which was dedicated in 1994. It was declared a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

in 1960. and Until the early 1970s, a battery of four Nike-Hercules Missiles were deployed at Bell Point on a hill on the west side of the fort. The base is served by the Sherman Army Airfield which has a runway and operates under a joint agreement with the city of Leavenworth, Kansas that permits civilian aircraft to use it all hours. The airfield was inundated by the Missouri River in levee breaches during the Great Flood of 1951, the Great Flood of 1993, and the Great Flood of 2011.

Freedom's Frontier Heritage Area

Fort Leavenworth is considered one of the most significant historic military installations in the Department of the Army, as well as to the nation. The fort's 5,634 ac (2,279 ha) contain a 213 ac (86.1 ha) National Historic Landmark District (NHLD), which was established in 1974. A number of historic preservation investigations have been conducted over the past few decades at Fort Leavenworth. In 1970, for example, two historic sites were listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

(NRHP): the Main Parade Ground and the Santa Fe Trail Ruts. During 2006, this historic military site became part of a new Freedom's Frontier National Heritage Area.

References

External links

Freedom's Frontier

Frontier Army Museum

Fort Leavenworth Home Page

Munson Army Health Center

The Fort Leavenworth Lamp Online – Fort Leavenworth's Newspaper

U.S. Army Combined Arms Center

U.S. Army Disciplinary Barracks, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

TRADOC Website

Fort Leavenworth History Collection
Combined Arms Research Library Digital Library
USD 207 local unified school district
* Fort Leavenworth has been extensively documented by the

Historic American Buildings Survey The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...

. Sample documents include: ** ** {{coord, 39, 21, 18, N, 94, 55, 16, W, region:US-KS_type:landmark_source:dewiki, display=title

Fort Leavenworth Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth, Kansas, Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., an ...

Buildings and structures in Leavenworth County, Kansas Leavenworth Kansas in the American Civil War Mexican–American War forts National Historic Landmarks in Kansas

Leavenworth Training installations of the United States Army World War I sites in the United States World War II sites in the United States Census-designated places in Leavenworth County, Kansas Census-designated places in Kansas Leavenworth National Register of Historic Places in Leavenworth County, Kansas American Civil War on the National Register of Historic Places Military installations established in 1827 Forts along the Missouri River