- Fort Hamilton
Infobox Military Unit
unit_name=Fort Hamilton
caption=Fort Hamilton Seal
country=USA
allegiance=
type=US Army Garrison
branch=Regular Army
dates=1825 - Present
specialization=
command_structure=
size=
current_commander=Col.Tracey E. Nicholson
garrison=Brooklyn ,New York
ceremonial_chief=
nickname=
patron=
motto=
colors=
march=
mascot=
battles=
notable_commanders= CPTRobert E. Lee ; 1LTThomas "Stonewall" Jackson ; CPTAbner Doubleday
anniversaries=Historic Fort Hamilton is located in the southwestern corner of theNew York City borough ofBrooklyn surrounded by the communities of Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights and Bensonhurst, and is one of several posts that are part of the region which is headquartered by theMilitary District of Washington . Its mission is to provide theNew York metropolitan area with Military Installation support for theArmy National Guard and theUnited States Army Reserve .Old Fort Hamilton
On
July 4 ,1776 , a small American battery on the site of today's Fort Hamilton (the east side ofthe Narrows ) fired into one of the British men-of-war convoying troops to suppress theAmerican Revolution . HMS "Asia" suffered damage and casualties, but opposition to the immense fleet could be little more than symbolic. The very significant event however marked one of the earliest uses of the site for military purposes.Without ever firing a shot, the forts at
the Narrows held a British fleet at bay during theWar of 1812 and perhaps saved New York City from the fate of the Nation's capital, burned by invaders. The War of 1812 underscored the importance of coast defense and helped to promote a new round of fort building. The cornerstone for Fort Hamilton was set in place onJune 11 ,1825 . Six years and a half million dollars later, the fort was ready to receive its garrison.Though references to the structure as Fort Hamilton occur as early as 1826, it was not officially named for the first Secretary of the Treasury,
Alexander Hamilton , until the twentieth century. CaptainRobert E. Lee , who served as Fort Hamilton's post engineer from 1841 to 1846, was among the officers assigned to the post during its early history. Lieutenant Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson also served at Fort Hamilton and CaptainAbner Doubleday served as the post commander in 1861.During the Civil War, Fort Hamilton's garrison expanded. A ship barrier across the Narrows assisted Fort Hamilton and its sister forts on
Staten Island in protecting the harbor against Confederate raiders. The forts also provided troops to help put down theNew York Draft Riots of 1863. Rifled cannon made vertical-walled masonry fortifications obsolete during the Civil War, and in the last decades of the nineteenth century great advances in military technology brought a whole new generation of long-range guns mounted in inconspicuous emplacements.In the two World Wars, Fort Hamilton served as a major embarkation and separation center. At present, the United States Army Fort Hamilton Garrison is the home of the New York City Recruiting Battalion, the Military Entrance Processing Station, the
North Atlantic Division Headquarters of theUnited States Army Corps of Engineers , the1179th Transportation Brigade and the722nd Aeromedical Staging Squadron . Fort Hamilton also supports many Reserve and National Guard units. In October 1997, Fort Hamilton came under the command of theMilitary District of Washington and in October 2002, under Army Transformation, Fort Hamilton became part of theInstallation Management Agency Northeast Region. Fort Hamilton proudly serves as the Army's Ambassador to the Greater New York Metropolitan Area.Construction of the
Verrazano-Narrows Bridge in the early 1960s destroyed several historic structures, includingFort Lafayette , which was located near the Brooklyn shore where the bridge tower now rises from the water. But in the same period efforts toward saving the historical heritage of the Narrows increased. Part of the Army's contribution to preserving this heritage is in theHarbor Defense Museum at Fort Hamilton.The original fort later became the Officer's Club and now houses the Community Club. The
caponier (a miniature fort guarding the main fort's gate) now houses the Harbor Defense Museum. Other notable landmarks include theRobert E. Lee House, where Lee (then a colonel) resided while commander of the garrison, and Colonel's Row, six historic townhouses used to house senior officers. All of these structures are listed on theNational Register of Historic Places .In the 2000's, the historic parade field (that once lay behind the old New York Area Command (NYAC) Headquarters Building and the Military Personnel Office), former site of numerous ceremonies and festivities, was developed into swiftly built privatized housing. The historic flag pole and cannon are still present at the site of it near the old headquarters building and across from the Post Exchange barber shop. In 2007, the historic brick barracks that formerly housed the New York Area Command's Ceremonial Platoon and Military Police Company was demolished. The ceremonial platoon (consisting of all Infantry personnel) once performed funeral honors and ceremonial functions (such as Color Guards and numerous New York City parades) in the New York area, including Long Island, New York City, and parts of New Jersey, along with an Army Band unit, similar to the Old Guard in Washington, D.C. The last of the NYAC Ceremonial Platoon left in 1995-1996.
Units Established At Fort Hamilton
#12th Infantry Regiment:
October 20 ,1861
#21st Infantry Regiment:May 20 ,1862 In the 1970's, Fort Hamilton also served as the home for the United States Army Chaplain and Chaplain Assistant school. During that time, hundreds of Army and National Guard Chaplains and their assistants were trained for active duty and reserve ministries to soldiers and their dependents. The school was later moved to Fort Jackson, South Carolina where it now resides.
In fiction
Fort Hamilton is the setting for nearly all of
Nelson DeMille 's novel, "Word of Honor ".External links
* [http://www.hamilton.army.mil/ Fort Hamilton (U.S. Army Garrison)]
* [http://www.harbordefensemuseum.com/ Harbor Defense Museum]
* [http://www.forthamiltonfamilyhousing.com/ Fort Hamilton Family Housing]
* [http://www.nad.usace.army.mil/fh.htm North Atlantic Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers]
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