Origins , the namesake of Fort Riley The early history of Fort Riley is closely tied to the movement of people and trade along the
Oregon Trail and
Santa Fe Trail. These routes, a result of the then-popular United States doctrine of "
manifest destiny" in the middle of the 19th century, prompted increased American military presence for the protection of American interests in this largely unsettled territory. In the 1850s, the United States established several military posts at strategic points to safeguard these emigration and commerce routes. In the fall of 1852, a surveying party under the command of
Captain Robert H. Chilton,
1st U.S. Dragoons, selected the junction of the
Republican and
Smoky Hill Rivers as a site for one of these forts. This location, approved by the
War Department in January 1853, offered an advantageous location from which to organize, train, and equip troops to protect the overland trails. The site was named Camp Center because surveyors believed it was near the center of the United States. In late spring, three companies of the 6th Infantry occupied the camp and began construction of temporary quarters. loaded with materials, craftsmen, and laborers. The first territorial legislature met there in July 1855. Slavery was a fact of life and an issue within the garrison just as it was in the rest of the country. The seeds of sectional discord were emerging that would lead to "
Bleeding Kansas" and, eventually, Civil War.
Post-Civil War and the Custer Era The conclusion of the Civil War in 1865 saw Fort Riley again assume an important role in providing protection to railroad lines being built across Kansas. The summer and fall of 1866 witnessed the mustering in of the
7th Cavalry Regiment at Riley and the arrival of the
Union Pacific Railroad at the fort. In December, Brevet Major General
George A. Custer arrived to take charge of the new regiment. Soldiers from the Kansas Volunteer regiments, "Jenison's Jayhawks," that were wounded in the
Battle of Westport were brought to Fort Riley for recovery. In 1889, Summerall Hall was constructed as the second permanent hospital at Fort Riley and was later converted into the garrison command headquarters following the hospital's relocation. It was renamed in 1956 in honor of General
Charles P. Summerall, who commanded the 1st Infantry Division during the late 1910s to early 1920s. Fort Riley was also used by state militia units for encampments and training exercises. The first such maneuver occurred in the fall of 1902, with subsequent ones held in 1903, 1904, 1906–1908, and 1911. These exercises gave added importance to the fort as a training facility and provided reserve units a valuable opportunity for sharpening their tactical skills. Several men from Haskell County who may have been exposed to influenza then traveled to Camp Funston at Fort Riley in the following weeks. Shortly after their arrival at Camp Funston, on either March 4 or March 11, 1918 (depending on the account), an army cook named Albert Gitchell reported sick to the infirmary with flu-like symptoms in the morning before breakfast. By midday, 107 soldiers at the camp exhibited similar symptoms, and within days, 522 men had fallen ill. This outbreak at Fort Riley was later hypothesized to be the starting point of the Spanish flu pandemic.
Interwar years Following the war, the War Department directed service schools be created for all arms of service. As a result, in 1919, the Mounted Service School, as it was known since 1907 and which had ceased to function during the war, was re-designated as the United States Army Cavalry School. The change was sudden and abrupt. The new school met the need for courses both broader in scope and more general in character. The cavalry unit at Camp Funston was the 2nd cavalry regiment, which provided the training and cavalry tactics to new cavalry officers. In 1921, the Smoky Hill Flats portion of the fort was designated as the location for a new airfield, initially referred to as Fort Riley Flying Field. The new airfield commenced operations in August of that year and served as the base for the 16th Observation Squadron. Built primarily as a refueling station for cross-country flights, the airfield featured metal hangars, underground fuel storage tanks, and lighting for night operations. Following the completion of the facility in 1923, the airfield was renamed Marshall Army Airfield in honor of Brigadier General
Francis C. Marshall, who was killed in a plane crash the year before. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, Marshall Army Airfield's primary role was to support aircraft engaged in observation and photography during tactical exercises at Fort Riley, as well as to host aerial demonstrations, with no known aircraft training activities occurring during this period.
World War II during artillery practice at Fort Riley in 1942. Increasing conflict in Europe and Asia during the late 1930s caused some military planners to prepare for possible U. S. involvement. This led to several important developments at Fort Riley. The first was the rebuilding of Camp Funston and the stationing of the 2nd Cavalry Division there in December 1940. Barracks were built in the area known as Republican Flats and renamed Camp Forsyth. In addition, 32,000 acres (13,000 ha) were added to the post for training purposes. These efforts were brought into sharp focus with America's entry into World War II. Over the next four years, approximately 125,000 soldiers were trained at these facilities. Notable trainees included heavyweight boxing champion,
Joe Louis, Indy car driver
Walt Faulkner, and motion picture stars such as
Mickey Rooney. The post also received a presidential visit by Franklin Roosevelt on Easter Sunday 1943. The arrival of victory in Europe and Japan during the spring and summer of 1945 were joyous occasions, but they also spelled new realities and directions for the Army and Fort Riley. The 16-week basic military program conducted by this division prepared soldiers for infantry combat and duty with other infantry units.
Vietnam Increased guerrilla insurgency in South Vietnam during the mid-1960s, led to the deployment of the 1st Infantry Division to Southeast Asia. The leading element, the 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry, left in July 1965, with the Division Headquarters arriving in South Vietnam in September. During this same year, a provisional basic combat training brigade was organized at Fort Riley, and in February 1966, the
9th Infantry Division was reactivated and followed the 1st Infantry Division into combat.
Return of the 1st Infantry Division to grant Ian's wish to become a soldier On August 1, 2006, the 1st Infantry Division returned to Fort Riley, and the
24th Infantry Division was inactivated. In October 2006, the 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, assumed command and control of the
Military Transition Team training mission. The entire division took the lead on this mission for the military. The mission was moved from Fort Riley to Fort Polk, LA, in the summer of 2009. ==Facilities==