Camp Fremont was aWorld War I-eramilitary base located nearPalo Alto, California. Construction started in July 1917 and the post closed in September, 1919. The post was named forJohn C. Frémont, a US Army officer and government official who was prominent in California during the 1850s.

Camp Fremont was constructed on vacant land in and around the area ofPalo Alto andMenlo Park.^[1][2] Camp Fremont consisted of slightly more than 7,200 acres (29 km²) and contained approximately 1,125 structures, mostly temporary buildings constructed of wood.^[3] During preparation for possible entry intoWorld War I, theU.S. Army determined a need existed for a post on the west coast of the United States to trainNational Guard units for combat.

Construction started on July 24, 1917, and the new installation was named in honor ofMajor GeneralJohn C. Fremont, an early hero ofCalifornia.^{[4][5][6][7][8]}

Camp Fremont served as a training site for theNational Guard's41st Infantry Division, which included soldiers fromWashington,Oregon,Idaho, andWyoming. The41st Division was later moved toCamp Greene, where it completed its training before departing for fighting inFrance.^{[9][10][11][12]}

In August, 1918, Camp Fremont was home to the 12th Infantry. In the autumn of 1918, theflu pandemic hit Camp Fremont and killed 147.^[13]

The8th Infantry Division then occupied Camp Fremont. Slated for combat inFrance, the8th Division was later assigned the mission of fighting inRussia during theSiberian Intervention.^[14][15][16]

Camp Fremont was also home to the 332nd Auxiliary Remount Depot, part of theU.S. Army Veterinary Corps. The depot was authorized 5,000 animals, and averaged about 2,300.Remount depots were organized to procure, train and condition horses and mules, and then dispatch them to the units that required them.^[17]

• Major GeneralWilliam S. Graves assumed command of the 8th Infantry Division at Camp Fremont in 1918.^[18]
• Lieutenant GeneralLaurin L. Williams served at Camp Fremont as asecond lieutenant.^[19]
• Brigadier GeneralJames Edward Wharton was stationed at Camp Fremont at the start of his career duringWorld War I.^[20]
• GeneralJohn K. Cannon completed his initial military training at Camp Fremont.^[21]
• Warren Grimm, All-American football player and Army officer, completed his training at Camp Fremont before taking part in theSiberian Intervention.^[22]
• Philip Johnston, one of the organizers of theWorld War IINavajocode talkers, was aWorld War I veteran who had trained at Camp Fremont.^[23]

After the end ofWorld War I combat, there was no longer a use for Camp Fremont, and the Army ordered the post closed.^[24] The base hospital was acquired by thePublic Health Service from the War Department and opened as "United States Public Health Service Hospital No. 24" on April 2, 1919. The 90 acre facility was operated as a tuberculosis sanitorium, with a capacity of 570 beds.^[25] The remaining buildings were sold at auction, and the camp was abandoned in January 1920.^[26]

Several new businesses were begun inMenlo Park andPalo Alto to provide goods and services to soldiers at Camp Fremont, many of which stayed in existence after the post closed. Menlo Park received its first paved streets and its first municipal water and gas services during World War I, both of which were constructed by the 8th Division engineers.^[27]

The post hospital on Willow Road inMenlo Park later became the site of aVeterans Administration hospital. It is now also the location ofStanford University's Arbor Free Clinic.^[28]

Two popular restaurants, MacArthur Park (which once housed Palo Alto's community center) and the Oasis Beer Garden (now closed) are both located in former Camp Fremont buildings.^[29][30]

Camp Fremont gained a new degree of fame when it was referenced as the military base to whichMaster Sergeant Ernie Bilko was assigned (played byPhil Silvers) in the 1950s television sitcomThe Phil Silvers Show.^[31]

37°26′56″N122°11′11″W / 37.4488275°N 122.1863539°W /37.4488275; -122.1863539^[32]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toCamp Fremont.

• Camp Fremont Documentary atYouTube.com
• World War I Army Training by San Francisco Bay: The Story of Camp Fremont. Book by Barbara Wilcox, History Press, 2016.

• Former installations of the United States Army
• History of San Mateo County, California
• Buildings and structures in San Mateo County, California
• Menlo Park, California
• Palo Alto, California
• United States Marine Hospitals

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