Camp Gordon Johnston

Last updated

Camp Gordon Johnston
Big Bend, Florida
Chow line at Camp Gordon Johnston, Florida, during World War II.jpg
Soldiers lined up for chow at Camp Gordon Johnston
Site information
TypeMilitary training base
Controlled by United States Army
Camp Gordon Johnston
Site history
Built1942
In useSeptember 1942 – 1946
Garrison information
Past
commanders
Brig. General Frank Keating
Men of an Engineer Port Construction and Repair Group at ASFTC Camp Gordon Johnston, Florida, build a floating dock from Navy pontoon gear. 9 May 1944. SC 190486 - Men of an Engineer Port Construction and Repair Group at ASFTC Camp Gordon Johnston, Fla., build a floating dock from Navy pontoon gear. 9 May, 1944.jpg
Men of an Engineer Port Construction and Repair Group at ASFTC Camp Gordon Johnston, Florida, build a floating dock from Navy pontoon gear. 9 May 1944.

Camp Gordon Johnston was a World War II United States Army training center located in Carrabelle, Florida, United States. The site's history is featured at the Camp Gordon Johnston Museum.

Contents

History

Camp Gordon Johnston [1] opened in September 1942 as Camp Carrabelle and was later named after Colonel Gordon Johnston, a well-decorated soldier who served in the Spanish–American War in Cuba with the Rough Riders, in the Philippine–American War, and in World War I. [2] [3]

The camp at 165,000 acres (670 km2) served as an amphibious training base housing around 10,000 troops at one time and rotating between 24,000 and 30,000 soldiers from 1942 through 1946. The nearby islands of Dog Island and St. George Island were used as landing points for exercises.

Units

Units stationed at Camp Gordon Johnston:

In 1946, many buildings, facilities and the land was sold as war surplus. Officers quarters later became the retirement community of Lanark Village. Live munitions had been used in exercises, as well as dummies. In 2001, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers found that specially trained technicians were needed to clear certain areas that had been sold into private hands. [4]

References

  1. "Home". campgordonjohnston.com.
  2. "Col. Johnston Dies of Injury at Polo" (PDF, fee required). The New York Times. March 9, 1934. p. 19. Retrieved 2008-04-04.
  3. "U.S. Army: Johnson, Gordon". Archived from the original on 2009-12-31. Retrieved 2009-07-13.
  4. "Camp Gordon Johnston". www.saj.usace.army.mil. Archived from the original on July 12, 2022. Retrieved 2024-05-21.

29°54′43″N84°32′30″W / 29.9120°N 84.5418°W / 29.9120; -84.5418