Renaming Military Installations

I try to stay clear of politics and focus on policy when I write publicly. The debate over changing base names straddles this line, but I thought it was worth weighing in on, because I have a proposed approach I haven’t seen presented elsewhere. I am also a long way from the Space subjects I normally discuss... so, please forgive me if I am missing some element of this discussion. I just thought there might be a solution amenable to all. Bottom line, I am not trying to make a political point or judge those on either side of this debate…because, candidly, I find both arguments compelling.

On the one hand, it is totally inane having military bases named for traitors who fought to keep men and women enslaved. On the other hand, most of those bases now have long histories which define their communities and the experiences of many of the soldiers who have passed through them. The Fort Bragg experience is not associated with the traitor in the mind of the average soldier, but the bonding and lessons learned while assigned there.

Also, to be clear, I don’t think renaming bases is “cancel culture” in the way tearing down statues is. Statues tell us about history and can remind us of heroes and villains who shouldn’t be forgotten. They can also remind us that sometimes many people will celebrate and venerate villains and traitors…something always worth remembering. And, installation names, in fact, have changed a lot over the years...they are not set in stone.

I also think it is worth noting that not every military installation is named after some famous or heroic individual. Many are named for their location (eg. 29 Palms) or for some local servicemember. A lot of Air Force Bases are named after young pilots who crashed their aircraft during training, who died in the local area or were from the local area around where the base is located. 

Finally, military installations are places that service members live (often with their families), train and sometimes even fight (Hickam Field). So, I do think they should be named for individuals worthy of admiration…even if those people aren’t perfect. No one is. At least, the namesake should be someone we can point to and say, “They did their duty to our nation.”

With all that in mind, why not find soldiers worth naming the base after who share the surname of the base’s original namesake. I have thrown together a renaming example for each of the ten bases named for confederate soldiers. I don’t think my proposed renames should serve as anything more than an example, as they are the product of about 15 minutes of google searching and not an in-depth study. I use them simply to illustrate the point.

Below, the original installation name, namesake and my proposed re-designation:

Camp Beauregard (Louisiana) – P.G.T. Beauregard. Re-designate it after Bronze Star winner Sergeant Robert L. Beauregard a World War II tanker.

Fort Benning (Georgia) – Henry Benning. Re-designate: Fort Benning for World War II Coastal Artillery officer, Lieutenant Bernard Benning.

Fort Bragg (North Carolina) – Braxton Bragg. Re-designate: Fort Bragg for Union Civil War Brigadier General Edward Bragg.

Fort Gordon (Georgia) – John Brown Gordon. Re-designate: Fort Gordon for Medal of Honor winner Master Sergeant Gary Gordon (awarded posthumously for the battle of Mogadishu in Somalia.)

Fort Hill (Virginia) – Ambrose Powell Hill Jr.  Rename: Fort Hill for the Union Medal of Honor winner, Corporal Henry Hill who fought in the Battle of the Wilderness in the Civil War

Fort Hood (Texas) – John Bell Hood. Re-designate: Fort Hood for Army Private and American politician Morris Hood Jr.

Fort Lee (Virginia) – Robert E. Lee. Re-designate: Fort Lee for Medal of Honor winner Private Fitz Lee (awarded for the Battle of Tayacoba in the Spanish-American War)

Fort Pickett (Virginia) – George Pickett. Re-designate: Fort Pickett for SSgt Tyler Pickett, who was killed in action in Iraq.

Fort Polk (Louisiana) – Leonidas Polk. Re-designate: Fort Polk for American Revolutionary war soldier and ranger Lt Col Ezekiel Polk (who also happens to be the grandfather of the 11th US President.)

Fort Rucker (Alabama) – Edmund Rucker. Re-designate: Fort Rucker for Sergeant John Rucker who posthumously was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for valor at Tuy Hoa during the Vietnam War.

This approach allows military installations to keep their recognizable names and the important parts of their heritage and legacy while jettisoning any connection to traitors who do not exemplify the best qualities of military service now or even in their own times. Incidentally, it also celebrates many junior folks who haven't traditionally had bases named for them.

Again, this list is neither comprehensive or well researched and is intended only to illustrate the point, that perhaps there is an acceptable middle ground.

Timothy Cox is a retired Air Force officer and defense professional with decades of military space experience. He generally writes on space issues and will probably stick to those in the future. He works in the aerospace industry and lives in the National Capital Region. His opinions are entirely his own.