Fort Carson

History

Camp Carson

Camp Carson was established in 1942, following Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor. The city of Colorado Springs, Colorado purchased land south of the city and donated it to the War Department. Construction began immediately and the first building, the camp headquarters, was completed on January 31, 1942. Camp Carson was named in honor of the legendary Army scout, General Christopher "Kit" Carson, who explored much of the West in the 1800s.

At the construction's peak, nearly 11,500 workers were employed on various construction projects at the new camp. Facilities were provided for 35,173 enlisted men, 1,818 officers, and 592 nurses. Almost all of the buildings were of mobilization-type construction, with wood-sided exteriors. The hospital complex was constructed of concrete block, considered semi-permanent, and had space for 1,726 beds, expandable to 2,000 beds.

The 89th Infantry Division was the first major unit to be activated at Camp Carson. During World War II, over 100,000 soldiers trained at Camp Carson. Along with three other infantry divisions – the 71st Infantry Division, 104th Infantry Division and 10th Mountain Division – more than 125 units were activated at Camp Carson and more than 100 others were transferred to the mountain post from other installations.

Nurses, cooks, mule packers, tank battalions, a Greek infantry battalion, and an Italian ordnance company trained at Camp Carson during the war years. Camp Carson was also home to nearly 9,000 Axis prisoners of war – mostly Italians and Germans. The internment camp at Camp Carson opened on the first day of 1943. These POWs alleviated the manpower shortage in Colorado by doing general farm work, canning tomatoes, cutting corn, and aiding in logging operations on Colorado's Western Slope.

Between 1942 and 1956, pack mules were a common sight at Camp Carson. The first shipment arrived by train from Nebraska in July 1942. The mules were used by Field Artillery (Pack) battalions to carry equipment, weapons, and supplies over mountainous terrain. The most famous of these animals was Hambone, the pride of the 4th Field Artillery Battalion. For 13 years, he carried the first sergeants up Ute Pass to Camp Hale. Camp Hale, located near Leadville, Colorado, was where the Army conducted cold weather and mountain warfare training. Hambone died in March 1971 and was buried with full military honors.

By April 1946, the post-war military strength at the camp was around 600 and on 16 December 1949, Strategic Air Command opened a survival school at Camp Carson for training in mountainous terrain (moved to Stead Air Force Base, Nevada, in 1952.)

Designated Fort Carson

Camp Carson was designated Fort Carson in 1954. In the 1960s, mechanized units were assigned to the fort and it was expanded to the present 137000 acre. Butts Army Air Field at the fort was constructed between 1963 and 1966 with a 4573 ft runway for light fixed-wing aircraft (cf. USAF C-130s at the nearby Peterson Air Force Base.)

Throughout its history Fort Carson has been home to nine divisions. An additional training area, comprising 235,000 acre, was purchased in September 1983. Named the Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site, this training area is located approximately 150 mi road miles to the southeast, and is used for large force-on-force maneuver training. Comprehensive maneuver and live fire training also occurs downrange at Fort Carson.

Exercises and deployments continually hone the skills of Fort Carson soldiers. When not deployed, soldiers train annually at Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site and the National Training Center near Barstow, California. Additionally, units participate in joint exercises around the world, including Central and South Africa, Europe, and Southwest Asia. In 2003, most Fort Carson units were deployed in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. Troops from the 984th Military Police CO, 759th Military Police BN were also sent in support of the guard mission at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba. President George W. Bush addressed soldiers and family members at the post on November 24, 2003, in praise of the soldiers' determination and the sacrifices their families have made.

Construction in 2007 and 2008 preceded the return of the 4th Infantry Division (4ID) from Fort Hood after their 2008 Operation Iraqi Freedom deployment (~5,000 additional soldiers).

Controversy

On February 14, 2007, the U.S. Army announced it was moving forward with a plan to expand the Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site in southeastern Colorado. If expanded, Piñon Canyon would be the Army's largest single training area in the nation, tripling the size of the current site by adding 418000 acre of private ranch land. At 650,000 acres (2630 km), it would be nearly the size of the state of Rhode Island.

Many in the local civilian population are opposed to this plan, because much of the land in rural areas that would be added to the training site is civilian-owned ranch land, and many current landowners are unwilling to be supplanted, regardless of the compensation that may be offered. The Pinon Canyon Expansion Opposition Coalition, an activist group opposing the plans, says that former maps it obtained from the Army showed a "future expansion area" significantly greater than is now being contemplated. The Army's position is that expansion is essential for preparing soldiers for battle in evergrowing theaters such as Afghanistan and the Middle East.

On November 25, 2013, the U.S. Army announced that its plan to expand the Piñon Canyon Maneuver site had been cancelled.

In response to a Congressional ban on Army funding for an expansion plan, the United States Air Force moved in with a plan to use the area for V-22 Osprey flights.

Notable former Fort Carson soldiers

• John E. Butts (1922–1944), Medal of Honor recipient for whom the Fort Carson airfield is named
• Wesley Clark (1944- ), Supreme Allied Commander Europe
• Martin Dempsey (1952- ), Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
• Harold K. Johnson (1912–1984), US Army Chief of Staff
• Andrew Maynard (1964- ), gold medalist boxer (1988 Summer Olympics)
• Boyd Melson (1981- ), boxer
• Colin Powell (1937–2021), Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and U.S. Secretary of State
• Dennis Reimer (1939- ), US Army Chief of Staff
• Lionel Rivera (1956- ), mayor of Colorado Springs
• Bernard W. Rogers (1921–2008), US Army Chief of Staff, and NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe, and Commander in Chief, US European Command
• John William Vessey, Jr. (1922–2016), US Army general and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, 1982–1985
• Matthew C. Carson (1973-), US Military 1993-2018

Census-designated place

The Fort Carson census-designated place (CDP) includes the developed portion of Fort Carson located in El Paso County, Colorado, United States. The CDP is a part of the Colorado Springs, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area. The Colorado Springs post office (Zip Codes 80902 and 80913) serves Fort Carson postal addresses. At the 2020 United States census, the population of the Fort Carson CDP was 17,693.

Geography

The Fort Carson CDP has an area of 72.515 km2, including 0.075 km2 of water.

Demographics

The population density was 1,126.8 /mi2. There were 2,664 housing units at an average density of 196.8 /mi2. The racial makeup of the CDP was 62.8% White, 20.0% African American, 2.1% Asian, 1.7% Native American, 0.8% Pacific Islander, 7.9% from other races, and 3.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 15.4% of the population.

There were 1,679 households, out of which 84.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 85.4% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 3.5% were non-families. 3.2% of all households were made up of individuals, none of whom were 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.70 and the average family size was 3.74.

In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 27.5% under the age of 18, 37.1% from 18 to 24, 34.2% from 25 to 44, 1.2% from 45 to 64, and 0.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 22 years. For every 100 females, there were 195.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 251.7 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $34,883, and the median income for a family was $34,385. Males had a median income of $19,865 versus $17,582 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $12,772. About 7.8% of families and 9.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.1% of those under the age of 18 and none of those 65 and older. -- The United States Census Bureau initially defined the Fort Carson CDP for the 1970 United States census. |1970|19,399 |1980|13,219 |1990|11,309 |2000|10,566 |2010|13,813 |2020|17693

Education

Fountain-Fort Carson School District 8 operates K-12 schools on post. Elementary schools on post are:

• Abrams Elementary
• Mountainside Elementary
• Patriot Elementary
• Weikel Elementary

The middle school, Carson Middle School, is on post. Fountain Fort Carson High School is off post.

Notable people

--

• Charley Pride, Country singer, guitarist, and professional baseball player
• Michael T. Voorhees, engineer, designer and geographer

References

References

1. link. (January 17, 2022 ." [[Colorado Springs, Colorado]]. Retrieved on December 10, 2017.)
2. [https://web.archive.org/web/20110522075401/http://www.history.army.mil/html/forcestruc/lineages/branches/fa/0004fa02bn.htm Branches] history.army.mil
3. "History".
4. Air Education and Training Command history, p. 146
5. "Butts Aaf (Fort Carson) Airport(Fcs) | Fort Carson Airports". PilotOutlook.
6. John Pike. "Butts Army Air Field (AAF)". Globalsecurity.org.
7. McPhee, Mike. "Ft. Carson expansion OK'd". Denver Post.
8. [https://web.archive.org/web/20071106063802/http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21617003/ "Army site expansion angers ranchers"], MSNBC. Nov 4, 2007 [https://web.archive.org/web/20080421204750/http://www.msnbc.msn.com/?search=MSNBC&q=%22pinon+canyon%22&id=11881780&FORM=AE&os=0&gs=1&p=1]
9. "Mark Udall Welcomes the U.S. Army's Decision on the Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site", https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o94-Jd5L7DM, accessed 29 July 2015
10. Roper, Peter. [http://www.chieftain.com/news/local/article_fec2f4d0-f074-11df-98d3-001cc4c03286.html "Air Force the new Pinon Canyon foe."] ''[[The Pueblo Chieftain]]'', November 15, 2010
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12. "Colorado Counties". [[Colorado Department of Local Affairs]].
13. "State of Colorado Census Designated Places - BAS20 - Data as of January 1, 2020". [[United States Census Bureau]].
14. United States Census Bureau. "Fort Carson CDP, Colorado".
15. "ZIP Code Lookup". [[United States Postal Service]].
16. "U.S. Census website". [[United States Census Bureau]].
17. [http://mcdc.missouri.edu/webrepts/pl94trends/Colorado_stplace2.html Colorado Trend Report 2: State and Complete Places (Sub-state 2010 Census Data).] {{Webarchive. link. (2012-07-11 Missouri Census Data Center. Accessed 2011-02-25.)
18. "Fort Carson Education". [[Militaryonesource]].