Fort Custer Training Center
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| Fort Custer | |
|---|---|
| Outside of Augusta, Michigan | |
| Type | Army post |
| Built | 1917 |
| In use | 1917-present |
| Controlled by | United States |
| Commanders | LTC Dennis Nadrasik |
Fort Custer Training Center, often known simply as Fort Custer, is a federally-owned and state-operated Michigan Army National Guard training facility, but is also used by other branches of the armed forces and armed forces from Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio.
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[edit] History
Camp Custer was built in 1917 for military training during World War I. Named after Civil War cavalry officer General George Armstrong Custer, more than 100,000 troops trained or demobilized there during the war.
In the years following World War I, the camp was used to train the Officer Reserve Corps and the Civilian Conservation Corps.
[edit] World War II
On August 17, 1940, Camp Custer was designated Fort Custer and became a permanent military training base. During World War II, more than 300,000 troops trained there, including the famed 5th Infantry Division (also know as the "Red Diamond Division") which left for combat in Normandy, France, in June 1944. Fort Custer also served as a prisoner of war camp for 5,000 German soldiers until 1945.
[edit] Cold War
Fort Custer became home to units of the Navy Reserve in 1949 and to a Marine Corps Reserve Tactical Bridge Company in 1952. Also during that time, approximately 17,000 troops were trained for the Korean War. Beginning in 1959, Fort Custer served for a decade as part of the North American Air Defense system.
[edit] References
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