. Fort Jackson was founded in 1917 at Camp Jackson as the US entered
World War I. At the conclusion of World War I, Camp Jackson was shut down and the Camp was abandoned 25 April 1922, pursuant to General Orders No. 33, War Department, 27 July 1921. Camp Jackson was reactivated for
World War II, where
Franklin D. Roosevelt and
George C. Marshall hosted a demonstration of the combat-readiness of several divisions for
Winston Churchill and
Alan Brooke in preparation of the abandoned
Operation Roundup. At the conclusion of World War II, the post was to have been deactivated by 1950; however, the outbreak of the
Korean War caused the post to remain active and it is still functioning in the early 21st Century. Fort Jackson is the largest and most active initial entry training center in the U.S. Army, training 50 percent of all soldiers entering the Army each year. Providing the Army with new soldiers is the post's primary mission. 35,000 potential soldiers attend basic training and 8,000 advanced individual training soldiers train at Fort Jackson annually. The training is provided by the
165th and
193rd Infantry Brigades Monday through Sunday for a ten-week period. The post has other missions as well. While some military installations have experienced downsizing and closure in past years, Fort Jackson has added several new schools and training institutions since 1995, including the U.S. Army Soldier Support Institute, the Department of Defense Chaplain Center and School, and the
National Center for Credibility Assessment, part of the
Defense Intelligence Agency. In 2007, the Army consolidated all of its training facilities for drill sergeants at Fort Jackson, and in 2009,
Command Sergeant Major Teresa King became the first woman to head what is now the sole drill sergeant school for the U.S. Army. Fort Jackson encompasses more than of land, including 100 ranges and field training sites and more than 1,000 buildings. Soldiers, civilians, retirees and family members make up the Fort Jackson community that continues to grow in numbers and facilities. An additional 10,000 soldiers attend courses at the Soldier Support Institute, Chaplain Center and School, and Drill Sergeant School annually. Close to 3,500 civilians are employed at Fort Jackson and 46,000-plus retirees and their families receive services from this base. Located in the heart of the
Midlands of South Carolina, Fort Jackson was incorporated into the city of
Columbia in October 1968 and is midway between New York City and Miami. Columbia has direct access to three interstate highways,
I-20,
I-26 and
I-77, and indirect access to two additional interstates within ,
I-95 and
I-85. Average temperatures in the region range from a high of 90+ °F (32 °C) in July to a low of 34 °F (1 °C) in January. Annual rainfall averages around . The fort has a significant economic impact on the local area. Annual expenditures by Fort Jackson exceed $716.9 million for salaries, utilities, contracts and other services. In addition, over 100,000 family members visit the Midlands area each year to attend basic training graduation activities, using local hotels, restaurants and shopping areas. In 2020, the reception battalion barracks were renovated. == Incidents ==