Camp Gilbert H. Johnson
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| Montford Point Camp | |
|---|---|
| North Carolina | |
 MCCSSS logo |
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| Type | Military base |
| Built | 1942 |
| In use | 1942 - Present |
| Controlled by | United States Marine Corps |
| Garrison | Recruit training |
Camp Gilbert H. Johnson is a satellite camp of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune and home to the Marine Corps Combat Service Support Schools (MCCSSS). This is where various support Military Occupational Specialties such as administration, supply, logistics, finance, and motor transport maintenance are trained. Camp Johnson is situated on Montford Point, the site of recruit training for the first African-Americans to serve in the Marine Corps.
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[edit] Mission
Conduct formal resident training for officers and enlisted personnel in the occupational fields of Logistics, Motor Transport, Personnel Administration, Supply, Fiscal Accounting and Disbursing, as well as to conduct Instructional Management and Combat Water Survival Swim training. The Commanding Officer of MCCSSS also serves as the Area Commander, Camp Johnson and provides administrative support to various tenant commands.
[edit] History
When Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 8802 blacks were, for the first time, permitted to join the Marine Corps. Between 1942 and 1949, the camp at Montford Point, then a recruit depot for black recruits trained 20,000 African-Americans. In 1948 Executive Order 9981 ordered the military was to integrate. In 1974, Montford Point was renamed Camp Gilbert H. Johnson in honor of the late Sergeant Major Gilbert H. "Hashmark" Johnson. Johnson was one of the first African Americans to join the Marine Corps. He was a Montford Point drill instructor, and served during [World War II]] and the Korean War, Camp Johnson became the home of the Marine Corps Combat Service Support Schools.[1]
In 2007, a documentary entitled "The Montford Point Marine Project" was released, honoring the black Marines who trained at Montford Point.
[edit] Other
Outside the gate of Camp Johnson stands a solemn tribute to Marines and Sailors who gave their lives trying to keep the peace in the Middle Eastern country of Lebanon. The Beirut Memorial is the site of an annual commemoration of the October 1983 Beirut barracks bombing. 241 Marines, sailors and soldiers were killed in the blast.
[edit] See also
- Montford Point Marine Association
- List of United States Marine Corps installations
- Military history of African Americans
- Frederick C. Branch
[edit] References
- ^ Who's Who in Marine Corps History - Sgt Maj Gilbert Johnson, USMC (Deceased). United States Marine Corps History Division. Retrieved on 2008-04-19. “On 19 April 1974, the Montford Point facility at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, was dedicated as Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, Montford Point, Camp Lejeune, in honor of this outstanding Marine.”
- Camp Johnson's official website. Retrieved on 2007-11-21.
- Monford Point Marine Association. Retrieved on 2006-12-30.
- News article on documentary. Retrieved on 2007-03-09.
- Bernard C. Nalty (1995). "Face-to-Face with Segregation", The Right to Fight: African-American Marines in World War II. United States Marine Corps. Retrieved on 2006-12-29.
[edit] External links
- Melton McLaurin. Montford Point Marines. University of North Carolina Wilmington. Retrieved on 2006-12-30.
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