Fort Cavazos
By population, Fort Cavazos is the second largest active duty Army post in the United States, with some 52,000 uniformed personnel, , a population second only to Fort Bragg. Fort Cavazos is the only post in the United States that is capable of supporting two full armored divisions. In addition to the 1st Cavalry Division and the 4th Infantry Division, Fort Cavazos is also home for the Headquarters Command III Corps, 3d Personnel Group, 3d Signal Brigade, 13th Corps Support Command (COSCOM), 13th Finance Group, 89th Military Police Brigade, 504th Military Intelligence Brigade, the 21st Cavalry Brigade (Air Combat), the Dental Activity (DENTAC), the Medical Support Activity (MEDDAC), Army Operational Test Command (AOTC) formerly TEXCOM, and various other units and tenant organizations.
Today Fort Cavazos is a three hundred and forty square mile installation. The cantonment area of Fort Cavazos is adjacent to Killeen, Texas in the beautiful "Hill and Lake" country of the Great State of Texas. The post stretches 26 miles from east to west and 24 miles from north to south. Fort Cavazos location: approximately 60 miles north of the capital city of Austin and 50 miles south of Waco. The city of Killeen borders Fort Cavazos to the east and Copperas Cove borders Fort Cavazos to the west. Access to the post is from IH-35 to U.S.Highway 190 West, at Belton, toward Killeen.
Fort Cavazos is located approximately: - 50 miles Southwest of Waco, Texas - 60 miles Northeast of Austin, Texas - 150 miles Northeast of San Antonio, Texas - 160 miles South of Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas - 180 miles Southeast of Abilene, Texas - 180 miles Northwest of Houston, Texas - 230 miles South of Wichita Falls,Texas/Oklahoma border - 245 miles Southwest of Marshall,Texas/Louisiana border - 275 miles Northeast of Del Rio, Texas/Mexico border - 280 miles Southwest of Texarkana, Texas/Arkansas border - 280 miles Northeast of Laredo, Texas/Mexico border - 290 miles West of Orange, Texas/Louisiana border - 315 miles East of the Midland-Odessa, Texas - 340 miles Southeast of Lubbock, Texas - 385 miles North of Brownsville, Texas/Mexico border - 425 miles Southeast of Amarillo, Texas - 575 miles East of El Paso, Texas/New Mexico border.
Old has given way to new as Fort Cavazos facilities undergo a major upgrade. Throughout post, the original World War II-era wooden buildings have been mostly torn down to make room for modern brick and stone buildings. On an annual basis, Congress funds millions of dollars of construction programs on Fort Cavazos. Programs in progress include the Soldier Development Center, an improved rail loading area, a vehicle maintenance facility at West Fort Cavazos, additional family housing at West Fort Cavazos and barracks rebuilding.
There are more than 5,000 sets of quarters for enlisted soldiers and their families, and an additional 634 quarters are set aside for officers and their family members. During the next five years, more than $200 million will be spent renovating and replacing the post's family housing as part of the Residen-tial Communities Initiative. The post also has nearly 100 barracks for enlisted soldiers, 75 guest quarters and more than 340 transient quarters.
In its arsenal, the post has an array of modernized warfighting equipment. There are more than 500 tanks, including the most modern - the M1A2 System Enhancement Program Abrams tank - almost 500 Bradley fighting vehicles, about 1,600 other tracked vehicles, almost 10,000 wheeled vehicles and close to 200 fixed and rotary-winged aircraft includ-ing the high-tech AH-64D Longbow Apache.
Being the first in the digitized warfare arena and having the most modern equipment, Fort Cavazos soldiers also use state-of-the art training facilities. Housed in the Close Combat Tactical Trainer are exact replicas of tank and Bradley fighting vehicle crew compart-ments, which allow troops to play realistic video-game type scenarios to familiarize them-selves with the equipment and how to interact as a unit before taking the high-dollar equip-ment to the field.
Once in the field, soldiers find themselves in a semi-arid terrain that has 413 miles of paved roads and 449 miles of dirt roads. Live-fire exercises take place on 50 ranges and two scaled-down ranges located throughout the post's maneuver area.
The overall post population is estimated at about 71,000, of which are almost 42,000 soldiers. The rest are family members living on post, employees of the Army Air Force Exchange Service, volunteers and other employees. The 1st Cavalry Division is staffed with more than 17,000 soldiers, while the 4th Infantry Division has more than 11,000. The 13th Corps Support Com-mand has about 5,600, the 3rd Signal Brigade has 1,600 and the 89th Military Police Brigade has almost 1,000. Also: the Headquarters Command has about 850 soldiers; the 3rd Personnel Group with almost 800; the 21st Cavalry Brigade with more than 300; the 21st Replacement Company with more than 150; and other units at Fort Cavazos have about 1,200 soldiers. There are more than 37,000 enlisted soldiers and more than 3,700 officers. In addition, more than 300 Air Force airmen pull duty at the post.
Darnall Army Community Hospital officially received U.S. Army medical center status during a rededication ceremony on May 1, 2006. As a consequence, it was renamed the Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center. The name change was meant to signify the facility's ability plan for expanded new facility requirements, specialty care services and vital training programs in the future. In addition, medical centers generally provide a greater depth of clinical support, particularly with respect to specialty care services, and also normally host a broader range of graduate medical education programs. As of April 2006, the hospital had approximately 2,500 military, civilian and contracted personnel supporting more than 150,000 TRICARE beneficiaries living within the hospital's catchment area. On an average day, there were 3,867 outpatient visits, 26 surgeries, seven newborn deliveries, 170 visits to the emergency department and nearly 5,000 prescriptions filled.
Naming
What was then called Camp Hood officially opened in 1942 as part of the rapid U.S. military expansion for World War II. The base is named after John Bell Hood, a prominent Confederate Officer of the Civil War. While serving as an officer in the U.S. Army, he offered his services to his adopted state of Texas and fought with the Confederate Army. He is one of the most rapidly promoted leaders in the Confederate Army with a reputation as an aggressive commander who was willing, eager, and often led his troops into battle. While he initially achieved some battlefield victories, several later battles were met with defeat and suffered significant casualties, in particular the late 1864 devastating and crippling Battle of Franklin and Battle of Nashville.
Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment William A. LaPlante on 05 January 2023 directed all Department of Defense organizations to begin full implementation of the Commission on the Naming of Items of the Department of Defense ("Naming Commission") recommendations to remove the names, symbols, displays, monuments, and paraphernalia that honor or commemorate the Confederate States of America.
The Commission recommended Fort Hood be changed to Fort Cavazos after GEN Richard E. Cavazos. Fate brought Richard E. Cavazos into the American Century. But valor and leadership characterized his career of military service within it. Born to a veteran of World War I, Cavazos grew up on a Texas ranch during the Great Depression and came of age during World War II. Eager to join the Army, he enrolled in the ROTC program at Texas Technical University right out of high school, and was commissioned into the Army right after graduation in 1951.
When the Vietnam War began, then LTC Cavazos was ready to bring men into battle once more: he commanded an infantry battalion, often fighting in the field – and frequently leading from the front. In 1967, he was once again awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for rallying his men through an ambush, organizing a counterattack, and leading several maneuvers to repulse and destroy extensive enemy defenses, repeatedly exposing himself to enemy fire in the process.
Becoming the first Hispanic-American promoted to brigadier general in 1973 and continuing to rise throughout the decade, Cavazos commanded the 9th Infantry Division, and III Corps back in central Texas. In 1982, he became the first Hispanic-American to pin on four stars. His final assignment as head of the U.S. Army Forces Command fittingly summarized his career of service.
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