This is a list of forts and camps in California, established by military, commercial and other interests.
Name | Location | County | Date Founded | Date Abandoned | Founded by |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fort Alcatraz [1] | San Francisco Bay | San Francisco | November 6, 1850 | 1934 | United States Army |
Camp Alert | Pioneer Race Course | San Francisco | 1862 | 1865 | Union Army |
Fort Anderson | Redwood Creek | Humboldt | 1862 1864 | 1862 1866 | Union Army |
Fort Baker | near Bridgeville | Humboldt | March 23, 1862 | November 1863 | Union Army |
Lime Point Military Reservation Fort Baker Fort Barry Fort Cronkhite | Golden Gate National Recreation Area | Marin | 1850 1897 | 1897 2002 | United States |
Bolsa Chica Military Reservation | Huntington Beach | Orange | 1942 | 1948? | United States |
Benicia Arsenal [2] Benicia Barracks Benicia Quartermaster Depot | Benicia | Solano County | April 9, 1849 | 1964 | United States Army |
Fort Bragg [3] [4] Camp Bragg | Fort Bragg | Mendocino | Summer 1857 | 1864 | United States Army |
Camp Burlington [5] Camp Burlington-Humboldt Camp Stephens Grove Camp Dyerville | near Dyerville on the Eel River | Humboldt | 1933 | 1942 | Civilian Conservation Corps |
Camp Cap Eele | |||||
Drum Barracks Camp Drum | Wilmington | Los Angeles | 1861 | 1871 | Union Army |
Fort Emory | Coronado | San Diego | 1942 | 1947 | United States Army |
Cantonment Far West [6] Camp Far West Fort Far West | Marysville (Bear Creek) | Yuba | September 28, 1849 | May 4, 1852 | United States Army |
Fort Funston | Lake Merced Military Reservation | San Francisco | 1939 | 1963 | United States Army |
Fort Gaston | Hoopa Valley Indian Reservation | Humboldt | December 4, 1859 | June 29, 1892 | United States Army |
Camp Grant [7] | near Dyerville on the Eel River | Humboldt | October 1863 | about 1865 | Union Army |
Fort Humboldt | Eureka | Humboldt | 1853 | 1866 | United States Army |
Fort Hunter Liggett | North of the San Luis Obispo County line, bounded by Pfeiffer Big State Park to the north | Monterey | 1940 | - | United States Army |
Fort Iaqua | Iaqua | Humboldt | August 5, 1863 | 1866 | Union Army |
Fort Irwin | near Barstow | San Bernardino | 1940 | United States Army | |
Fort Jones | Fort Jones | Siskiyou | October 18, 1852 | June 23, 1858 | United States Army |
Camp Lincoln | just west of Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park | Del Norte County, California | September 1862 | 1870 | Union Army United States Army |
Camp Low | San Juan Bautista | San Benito | 1864 | 1865 | Union Army |
Fort MacArthur White Point Military Reservation | San Pedro | Los Angeles | 1888 | (Still in use) | United States Army |
Fort McDowell | Angel Island | San Francisco | 1901 | 1962 | United States Army |
Fort Miley Military Reservation | Point Lobos, San Francisco | San Francisco | 1898 | 1949 | United States Army |
Camp Barbour [8] Camp Miller Fort Miller | Millerton Lake | Fresno | May 26, 1851 | December 1, 1866 | United States Army |
Presidio of Monterey | Monterey | Monterey | 1768 | still in use by US | New Spain |
New San Diego Depot San Diego Barracks | New San Diego | San Diego | 1850 April 5, 1879 | 1879 | United States Army |
Camp No. 27 | |||||
Fort Ord | Monterey | Monterey | 1917 | September, 1994 | United States Army |
Camp NacimientoCamp Roberts | foothills of Santa Lucia Range, between Lake Nacimiento, Bradley, Valleton, and San Miguel | San Luis Obispo - Monterey | 1940 | - | United States Army |
Fort Ross | Jenner | Sonoma | 1812 | 1841 | Russian-American Company |
Fort Sacramento | |||||
Presidio of San Diego | San Diego | San Diego | 1769 | 1835 | Spain |
Presidio of San Francisco | San Francisco | San Francisco | 1776 | 1994 | Spain |
Camp Merriam Camp San Luis Obispo | halfway between the cities of Morro Bay and San Luis Obispo | San Luis Obispo | 1928 | - | United States Army |
Presidio of Santa Barbara | Santa Barbara | Santa Barbara | 1782 | 1846 | Spain |
Fort Point | San Francisco | San Francisco | 1794 | 1970 | Spain |
Fort Reading | Redding | Shasta | May 26, 1852 | April 6, 1870 | United States Army |
Fort Rosecrans | San Diego | San Diego | 1852 | United States Army | |
Fort Seward | Fort Seward | Humboldt | September 25, 1861 | April, 1862 | Union Army |
Fort Tejon | Grapevine Canyon | Kern | June 24, 1854 | September 11, 1864 | United States Army |
Fort Ter-Waw | Klamath Glen | Del Norte | October 12, 1857 | June 10, 1862 | United States Army |
Camp Wessels | |||||
Camp at Nome Cult Indian Agency Fort Wright Camp Wright | Round Valley Reservation | Mendocino | 1858 1862 1875 | 1861 1866 1875 | United States Army Union Army United States Army |
Fort Winfield Scott | San Francisco | San Francisco | 1852 | 1995 | United States Army |
Fort Yuma | across the Colorado River from Yuma, Arizona | Imperial | November 27, 1850 | 1885 | United States Army |
Fort Bragg is a city along the Pacific Coast of California along Shoreline Highway in Mendocino County. The city is 24 miles (39 km) west of Willits, at an elevation of 85 feet (26 m). Its population was 6,983 at the 2020 census.
Fort Liberty, formerly Fort Bragg, is a military installation of the United States Army in North Carolina, and is one of the largest military installations in the world by population, with over 52,000 military personnel. The military reservation is located within Cumberland and Hoke counties, and borders the towns of Fayetteville, Spring Lake, and Southern Pines.
Harold Gregory Moore Jr. was a United States Army lieutenant general and author. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the U.S. Army's second-highest decoration for valor, and was the first of his West Point class (1945) to be promoted to brigadier general, major general, and lieutenant general.
The XVIII Airborne Corps is a corps of the United States Army that has been in existence since 1942 and saw extensive service during World War II. The corps is designed for rapid deployment anywhere in the world and is referred to as "America's Contingency Corps." Its headquarters are at Fort Liberty, North Carolina.
Fort Humboldt State Historic Park is a California state park, located in Eureka, California, United States. Its displays interpret the former U.S. Army fort, which was staffed from 1853–1870, the interactions between European Americans and Native Americans in roughly the same period, logging equipment and local narrow gauge railroad history of the region. Within the collection, there are trains, logging equipment, including a fully functional Steam Donkey engine, and an authentic Native American dug-out canoe. The Fort overlooks Humboldt Bay from atop a bluff. The North Coast regional headquarters of the California State Parks system is located onsite.
The Department of the Pacific or Pacific Department was a major command (Department) of the United States Army from 1853 to 1858. It replaced the Pacific Division, and was itself replaced by the Department of California and the Department of Oregon.
California's involvement in the American Civil War included sending gold east to support the war effort, recruiting volunteer combat units to replace regular U.S. Army units sent east, in the area west of the Rocky Mountains, maintaining and building numerous camps and fortifications, suppressing secessionist activity and securing the New Mexico Territory against the Confederacy. The State of California did not send its units east, but many citizens traveled east and joined the Union Army there, some of whom became famous.
Robert Frederick Sink was a senior United States Army officer who fought during World War II and the Korean War, though he was most famous for his command of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, part of the 101st Airborne Division, throughout most of World War II, in France, the Netherlands, and Belgium.
Fort Douglas was established in October 1862, during the American Civil War, as a small military garrison about three miles east of Salt Lake City, Utah. Its purpose was to protect the overland mail route and telegraph lines along the Central Overland Route. It was officially closed in 1991 pursuant to BRAC action. A small portion of the fort remains in active military use as the Stephen A. Douglas Armed Forces Reserve Center, although it is expected the reserve center will be relocated in the next few years, after the state of Utah provided funds for the purpose in 2023.
The Pacific coast theater of the American Civil War consists of major military operations in the United States on the Pacific Ocean and in the states and Territories west of the Continental Divide. The theater was encompassed by the Department of the Pacific that included the states of California, Oregon, and Nevada, the territories of Washington, Utah, and later Idaho.
Fort Yuma was a fort in California located in Imperial County, across the Colorado River from Yuma, Arizona. It was Established in 1848. It served as a stop on the Butterfield Overland Mail route from 1858 until 1861. The fort was retired from active military service on May 16, 1883, and transferred to the Department of the Interior. The Fort Yuma Indian School and the Saint Thomas Yuma Indian Mission now occupy the site. It is one of the "associated sites" listed as Yuma Crossing and Associated Sites on the National Register of Historic Places in the Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area. In addition, it is registered as California Historical Landmark #806.
Fort Grant is a state prison and a former United States Army fortification in the U.S. state of Arizona. Fort Grant is located on the southwestern slope of Mount Graham in what is now Graham County. The post is named for Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th President of the United States.
During the American Civil War, Army reorganization created the Department of the Pacific on January 15, 1861. On December 12, 1861, the District of Humboldt was created, consisting of the counties of Sonoma, Napa, Mendocino, Trinity, Humboldt, Klamath, and Del Norte in Northern California. The district was headquartered at Fort Humboldt, located on a bluff above the central portion of Humboldt Bay south of Eureka, California, which is now a California State Historic Park located within the City of Eureka. The District's efforts were directed at prosecuting the ongoing Bald Hills War against the Indians in the northern, coastal area of the large district. A peace was achieved in August 1864.
Iaqua is a former settlement in Humboldt County, California. It was located 5.5 miles (8.9 km) south of Kneeland.
Fort Miller, also known as Camp Barbour, was a fort on the south bank of the San Joaquin River in what is now Fresno County, California. It lay at an elevation of 561 feet. The site is now under Millerton Lake, formed by the Friant Dam in 1944. It is registered as California Historical Landmark #584.
The 2nd Regiment California Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It spent its entire term of service in the western United States. Organized at San Francisco and Carson City September 2, 1861, to December 30, 1862, and attached to Department of the Pacific. The regiment was first assembled at the Presidio, San Francisco, and after completing its organization, five companies were sent to Oregon and Washington Territory, to relieve the regular troops, and two companies were sent to Santa Barbara. The troops of this regiment sent to Oregon were afterwards returned to California. It was mustered out during the month of October, 1864.
The District of California was a Union Army command department formed during the American Civil War. The district was part of the Department of the Pacific, the commander of the department also being District commander. The district was created as a separate command on July 1, 1864, after Irvin McDowell took command of the Department of the Pacific, relieving General Wright, who then remained as District of California commander. The District comprised the state of California and the areas of the Rogue River and Umpqua River in Southern Oregon. Its headquarters were in San Francisco, co-located with those of the Department of the Pacific. On March 14, 1865, the District of Oregon was extended to include the entire state of Oregon, removing the Rogue River and Umpqua River areas from the District.
The Department of California was an administrative department of the United States Army. The Department was created in 1858, replacing the original Department of the Pacific, and it was ended by the reorganizations of the Henry L. Stimson Plan implemented in February 1913. As with the preceding organization, headquarters were in San Francisco. Its creation was authorized by General Orders, No. 10, of the War Department, Adjutant-General's Office, September 13, 1858.
Pacific Division of the U. S. Army was one of its superior administrative organizations that existed during the early 19th century and for a short time in the early 20th century.
John Francis Campbell is a retired United States Army general who was commander of the Resolute Support Mission and United States Forces – Afghanistan. He was the 16th and last commander of the International Security Assistance Force. Prior to this, he served as the 34th Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Army. He is currently a member of the board of directors of IAP, and BAE Systems, and serves on the advisory board of Code of Support Foundation.