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In 1942, the minimum wage was 30 cents per hour, a gallon of gas cost 19 cents and there were only 48 stars on the American Flag.
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Nearly 75 years ago, 108,000 acres of central Texas land was transformed from rural farming land into Camp Hood, home of the Tank Destroyer Tactical and Firing Center.
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World War II was blazing and tank destroyers, mobile anti-tank guns on armored half-tracks, were developed to go against the Germans who were over running Europe.
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These destroyers needed space and the central Texas location could provide that needed space.
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The roughly 300 families that resided in the chosen area were relocated and replaced with nearly 38,000 troops. The number of Soldiers multiplied until it peaked at almost 95,000 in less than one year's time.
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A shift in Camp Hood's mission brought about by the end of the war caused the number of Soldiers to drop.
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Eight years after its official opening, Camp Hood became a permanent installation and was renamed Fort Hood.
Fort Hood is now the largest active duty armored post in the U.S. Armed Forces. There are nearly 40,000 Soldiers who work on Fort Hood. The Soldiers of
Fort Hood are infantrymen, cavalrymen, and tankers. They are engineers, mechanics and health care professionals. They are the life of Fort Hood. Their
training gives Fort Hood its purpose, just as Camp Hood troops did back in 1942. They are part of what has made Fort Hood "The Great Place" for more than
seven decades.
GARRISON HISTORY
The history of the Garrison Command goes back to the beginnings of Fort Hood when it was created as Camp Hood in 1942. The mission of the Garrison Command is to control the infrastructure that trains, maintains, sustains, and enables the combat units on post.
The Directorates comprising the Garrison Command perform the daily but vital support missions. The Directorate of Public Works plans for new construction, administers housing on the installation, protects the environment and maintains existing buildings, roads and grounds.
The Directorate of Family, Morale, Welfare, and Recreation provides a myriad of functions that support Soldiers and their families. The Directorate of Resource Management monitors the expenditure of funds for tenant units as well as the directorates, plus manages the size of the workforce. The Garrison Chaplain administers the spiritual life programs ongoing installation wide.
The Directorate of Aviation administers the airspace around Fort Hood as well as Hood Grey Army Airfield. The Directorate of Human Resources performs all personnel management functions for the civilian workforce on Fort Hood. The Directorate of Emergency Services provides fire and police services across the installation. The Directorate of Plans, Training, Mobility and Security is responsible for operating training facilities and ranges as well as providing the command and control for mobilizing and demobilizing Reserve and National Guard Soldiers to and from deployments. DPTMS is also involved with all security and force protection aspects concerning the installation. The Equal Employment Opportunity Office administers the Equal Opportunity program for civilian workers on Fort Hood. Local 1920 of the American Federation of Government Employees represents the civilian workforce on Fort Hood and is full and equal partner in Fort Hood's Labor Partnership.
The Army and Air Force Exchange and the Defense Commissary Agency are tenant organizations that supports the installation's community of Soldiers, Family members, and retirees, while also contributing to the Morale, Welfare and Recreation Fund on Fort Hood.
In 1994, Garrison Commands were designated as Brigade level Commands, to include the provision of the Garrison Colors. A July 10, 1996 ceremony marked the first time the Fort Hood Garrison Colors were passed to symbolize the change in Garrison Commanders.
The Installation Management Agency (IMA), a single organization with seven regional offices worldwide, was implemented on Oct. 1, 2002, to reduce bureaucracy and apply a uniform business structure to manage U.S. Army installations. That agency, originally headquartered in Arlington, Va., became the Installation Management Command in 2006 and eventually relocated its headquarters to Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. IMCOM oversees all facets of installation management, such as construction; family care; food management; environmental programs; well-being; logistics; public works and installation funding.
The readiness and quality of life for the Army is dependent on installations. The installations are where Soldiers train for war; where Soldiers and their Families establish homes and live; and where Soldiers depart for and return from contingency operations.
Since September 11, 2001, Fort Hood has been a primary force projection platform for the Army and remains so to this day.
III CORPS HISTORY
III Corps' colorful history dates from 1918 when the Corps served in World War I, winning battle streamers for the Aisne-Marne, Lorraine and the Meuse-Argone campaigns.
Inactivated in 1919, the Corps was reactivated in 1940 to train combat divisions. During World War II the Corps was deployed to the European Theater of Operations and earned the name "Phantom Corps" by hitting the enemy when least expected. It won campaign streamers in Northern and Central Europe and established the Remagen Bridgehead, enabling the Allies to secure a foothold in Germany.
Inactivated in 1946, III Corps was reactivated in 1951 and served on active duty until 1959. Inactivated that year, it quickly returned to duty at Fort Hood during the Berlin Crisis in 1961. In 1962 III Corps was designated as part of the U.S. Army Strategic Army Corps.
During the Vietnam conflict, III Corps trained and deployed two field force headquarters and many combat and combat service support units totaling more than 100,000 Soldiers.
III Corps forces have fought in and supported operations worldwide, to include Grenada, Panama, Honduras, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Afghanistan and Iraq. It has also provided humanitarian support for Operation Restore Hope in Somalia. III Corps elements provided support for Operation Joint Endeavor in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well.
As the world, and the U.S. Army have changed, III Corps has also changed over the decades and broadened its focus to be ready to deploy anywhere, anytime … and win.
FORT HOOD THROUGHOUT THE CENTURIES