 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Fort Ord" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(December 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| Fort Ord National Monument | |
|---|---|
| Monterey Bay area,California | |
.jpg) Abandoned Army barracks at Fort Ord | |
| Site information | |
| Type | Army Post |
| Controlled by | United States Army |
| Website | Fort Ord National Monument |
| Location | |
  Fort Ord National Monument  Fort Ord National Monument | |
| Coordinates | 36°38′N121°44′W / 36.64°N 121.74°W /36.64; -121.74 |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1917 (1917) |
| In use | 1917–1994 |
| Battles/wars | None |
| Garrison information | |
| Current commander | None; post closed in 1994 |
Fort Ord is a formerUnited States Army post onMonterey Bay on thePacific Ocean coast inCalifornia, which closed in 1994 due toBase Realignment and Closure (BRAC) action. Most of the fort's land now makes up theFort Ord National Monument, managed by the United StatesBureau of Land Management as part of theNational Conservation Lands, while a small portion remains an active military installation under Army control, designated theOrd Military Community.
Before construction and official designation as a fort in 1940, the land was used as a maneuver area and field-artillery target range beginning in 1917. Fort Ord was considered one of the most attractive locations of any U.S. Army post, because of its proximity to the beach and California weather. The7th Infantry Division was its maingarrison for many years. When Fort Ord was later converted to civilian use, space was set aside for the firstnature reserve in the United States created for conservation of an insect, theendangeredSmith's blue butterfly. Additional endangered species are found on Fort Ord, includingContra Costa goldfields and the threatenedCalifornia tiger salamander.
While much of the old military buildings and infrastructure remain abandoned, many structures have been torn down for anticipated development.California State University, Monterey Bay (CSUMB) andFort Ord Dunes State Park, along with some subdivisions, theVeterans Transition Center, a commercialstrip mall, a recreational skydiving facility,[1] military facilities, and a nature preserve occupy the area today.[2]
On April 20, 2012, PresidentBarack Obama signed a proclamation designating a 14,651-acre (5,929 ha) portion of the former post as theFort Ord National Monument.[3][4] In his proclamation, the President stated "The protection of the Fort Ord area will maintain its historical and cultural significance, attract tourists and recreationalists from near and far, and enhance its unique natural resources, for the enjoyment of all Americans."
After theAmerican entry into World War I, land was purchased just north of the city ofMonterey along Monterey Bay for use as an artillery training field for theUnited States Army by theU.S. Department of War. The area was known as theGigling Reservation, U.S. Field Artillery Area,Presidio of Monterey and Gigling Field Artillery Range. Although military development and construction was just beginning, the war only lasted for another year and a half until thearmistice on November 11, 1918.
Despite a great demobilization of the U.S. Armed Forces during the inter-war years of the 1920s and 1930s, by 1933, the artillery field became Camp Ord, named in honor ofUnion ArmyMaj. Gen.Edward Otho Cresap Ord (1818–1883). Primarily, horse cavalry units trained on the camp until the military began to mechanize and train mobile combat units such astanks,armored personnel carriers and movable artillery.
By 1940, the 23-year-old Camp Ord was expanded to 2,000 acres (810 ha), with the realization that the two-year-old conflict ofWorld War II could soon cross theAtlantic Ocean to involve America. In August 1940, it was re-designated Fort Ord and the7th Infantry Division was reactivated, becoming the first major unit to occupy the post. Sub-camps were built around the Fort to support the new training of Troops,Camp Clayton. Camp Clayton was built near CA Highway 1, theSouth Dakota National Guard 147th Artillery were the first unit to train at the new camp.
In 1941, Camp Ord became Fort Ord. Soon the first threat came from the west as theImperial Japanese Navy struck the island ofOahu,Hawaii atPearl Harbor nearHonolulu in an unannounced air attack, Sunday, December 7. In a few days the otherAxis powers, such asAdolf Hitler'sNazi Germany, along withFascist Italy ofBenito Mussolini, declared and spread war inEurope againstGreat Britain, France and theLow Countries to the U.S.
The end of the war came with the surrenders ofGermany, in May, and Japan, in September 1945. The subsequent onset of theCold War against theSoviet Union caused increased tensions which continued for the next forty some years into the early 1990s. In 1947, Fort Ord became the home of the 4th Replacement Training Center. During the 1950s and 1960s, Fort Ord was a staging area for units departing for war in theKorean War and later peacetime/occupation duty in Japan,South Korea, thePhilippines andThailand. Then, whenSoutheast Asia became a war zone withVietnam (and later involving, by the 1970s,Cambodia andLaos), the United States had, at one time, 50,000 troops on the installation. The194th Armored Brigade was activated there under Combat Development Command in 1957, but departed forFort Knox inKentucky in 1960.
Between 1952 and 1954 theDel E. Webb Construction Company was hired to construct some 42 new permanent buildings to make Fort Ord a permanent Army post. The total cost of construction was more than $20,000,000. The first buildings completed were dormitories followed by a guard house and stockade. Additional buildings constructed as part of the plan were an administrative headquarters building, quartermaster warehouses, and an improved water storage system. There were a total of 31 dormitory buildings that could house 7,000 men.[5]
In 1957, land on the eastern side of the post was used to create theLaguna Seca Raceway which served to replace thePebble Beach road racing course that ceased operations for safety reasons in that same year.
The post continued as a center for instruction of basic and advanced infantrymen until 1976, when the training area was deactivated and Fort Ord again became the home of the 7th Infantry Division, following their return fromSouth Korea after twenty-five years on theDMZ ("demilitarized zone").
On July 14, 1989, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed placement of Fort Ord on the National Priorities List (NPL). The site contained leaking underground petroleum storage tanks, a 150-acre (61 ha) landfill that was primarily used to dispose of residential waste and small amounts of commercial waste generated by the base, a former fire drill area, motor pool maintenance areas, small dump sites, small arms target ranges, an 8,000-acre (3,200 ha) firing range, and other limited areas that posed threats from unexploded ordnance. NPL status was finalized on February 21, 1990.[6]
The final basic training classes were held in 1975.[7]
TheBase Realignment and Closure Commission of 1991 recommended closing the post and moving the units stationed at Fort Ord toFort Lewis,Washington. On May 2, 1992, Army elements from Fort Ord along with Marines fromMarine Corps Base Camp Pendleton participated in quelling the1992 Los Angeles riots. In 1994, Fort Ord was finally closed. Most of the land was returned to the State of California for further public use and became the home of the new California State University, Monterey Bay (CSUMB). The remainder was given to theUniversity of California, Santa Cruz to be developed into the "UC MBEST" (Monterey Bay Education, Science and Technology) Center. The MBEST Center is a regional economic development effort focused on developing collaborative research-business opportunities in the Monterey Bay region.
The Fort Ord Reuse Authority (FORA) is responsible for the oversight of Monterey Bay area economic recovery from the closure of and reuse planning of the former Fort Ord. The military base was located on the California coastline near the Monterey Peninsula, consisting of 28,000 acres (44 sq mi; 11,000 ha) of land. FORA implements this legislatively mandated mission by overseeing replacement land use; assuring compliance with adopted measures; removing physical barriers to reuse; financing and constructing major components of the required infrastructure and base wide demands; and protecting identified environmental reserves. FORA exercises its planning, financing, and monitoring responsibilities under state law authority to meet these objectives in the best interest of the northern Monterey Bay community.
FORA is small multi-governmental body, composed of elected officials at the local, state, and federal levels, as well as representatives from theUnited States Armed Forces and educational bodies such as CSUMB at the primary, secondary, anduniversity levels.[8][9] Voting members are made up of representatives from the cities ofCarmel-by-the-Sea,Del Rey Oaks,Marina,Sand City,Monterey,Pacific Grove,Salinas, andSeaside as well as two representatives from the County of Monterey[10] Ex-officio members are composed of representatives from theMonterey Peninsula Community College District, theMonterey Peninsula Unified School District,California's 17th congressional district,California's 15th State Senate district,California's 27th State Assembly district, the United States Army, theChancellor of the California State University, thePresident of the University of California, the Monterey County Water Resources Agency, and the Transportation Agency of Monterey County.[11]
This legislatively mandated mission is directed by FORA's 1997 Fort Ord Base Reuse Plan (Reuse Plan). In 2012, FORA performed a comprehensive Reuse Plan Reassessment to assess remaining work.[12]
.jpg)
The Army's environmental cleanup of the former Fort Ord has been underway since the base was closed and is separated into two programs – the Soil and Groundwater Contamination Cleanup Program, and the Munitions and Explosives of Concern (MEC) Program. A Federal Facility Agreement was signed by the Army, EPA, California Department of Toxic Substances Control and the California Regional Water Quality Control Board Central Coast Region in 1990.[6][13] Additionally, the Army provides oversight on FORA's cleanup program, called the Environmental Services Cooperative Agreement (see below).
In May 2007, the Fort Ord Reuse Authority voluntarily entered into an Administrative Order on Consent with EPA and the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) for the cleanup of 3,484 acres (1,410 ha) of Fort Ord land. The Army and EPA provide the necessary oversight on the project, referred to as FORA's Environmental Services Cooperative Agreement (ESCA). Under this privatized cleanup scheme, FORA received these properties through early transfer and is responsible for the cleanup of these specific areas of Fort Ord. The Administrative Order on Consent requires FORA to clean up the parcels to an extent that would protect human health and environment.[6]
.jpg)
Fort Ord's former military golf courses, Bayonet and Black Horse, are, as of January 16, 1997,[14] public golf courses. They have hostedPGA golf events and were renovated in the mid-2010s.[15]
California State University, Monterey Bay opened on the Fort's former ground shortly after Fort Ord's closing in 1994 as part of 42nd PresidentBill Clinton's "peace dividends" program. The university has currently enrolled approximately 6,700 students.[16] TheLeon Panetta Institute (named for the formerU.S. Representative andSecretary of Defense) is located on its campus. Schoonover, Frederick and Frederick II are housing developments located in the former Fort Ord created for students and families who are associated with CSUMB, Monterey Peninsula Unified School District and local school districts. All three parks are accessible off of Abrams Drive.
TheVeterans Transition Center (VTC) is located on the site of the former Fort Ord. Since its inception it has served 4,155 single veterans and 351 veterans with families. As of 2009[update] the center was looking to expand by adding more housing units and a non-profit store (to be run by partner company, Vocational Rehabilitation Specialists Incorporated) with the express purpose of employing as many veterans as possible.[17][18]
.jpg)
In 2009, a coastal strip overlooking Monterey Bay became California's newest state park,Fort Ord Dunes State Park.[19] At the end of Gigling Road, where the Department of Defense Building is located, there is one of many entrances to the Fort Ord National Monument; the land underwent comprehensive remediation that involved an extensive munitions clean-up. There are more than 91 miles (146 km) of recreational trails available. They are used by the trail communities on foot, on bicycles, and on horseback. All open trails are available to all non-motorized trail user groups. A small number of trails are fenced along their edges because of possibleunexploded ordnance.
On January 13, 2012,United States Secretary of the InteriorKen Salazar visited Fort Ord, addressed a crowd of 200 supporters and announced that he was proposing to President Obama that Fort Ord be elevated tonational monument status. On April 20, 2012, Barack Obama signed a Presidential Proclamation establishing Fort Ord National Monument.[20]
Fort Ord National Monument refers to that land on the former Fort Ord that is administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and is open to the general public. The BLM currently manages 7,200 acres and will manage 14,650 acres after the U.S. Army finishes environmental restoration on the remaining parcel.[21]
As of May 2018, Fort Ord National Monument has extended its trail system to add bypass and spur trails to popular areas.
A small portion of the former Fort Ord still remains under U.S. Army control, originally called the Presidio of Monterey (POM) Annex. It is now called the Ord Military Community (described below).
The military is still present at Fort Ord, in the form of severalCalifornia Army National Guard units, facilities administered by the Presidio of Monterey, theDefense Manpower Data Center, and the continued operation of theCommissary catering to the active duty military personnel stationed in the Monterey area as well as reservists, national guardsmen, and military retirees who chose to settle in the area and are entitled to shop at such facilities. Management of the military housing has been outsourced to private firms, but the homes are still occupied by personnel stationed at the Presidio of Monterey and theNaval Postgraduate School. The Ord CommunityAAFES Main Exchange ("PX") closed in the summer of 2023, but the AAFES service station remains open.
 | This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(October 2025) |
The nearby city ofMarina is developing a large parcel of land from the former Fort Ord within its city limits, building more than 1,000 new homes. A large commercialstrip mall alongHighway 1 at the former 12th Street Gate entrance to Fort Ord opened in late 2007, and houses retail stores. The City of Marina is planning a 13-mile recreation trail to run through Fort Ord to the Fort Ord National Monument, the Salinas River, and through Fort Ord Dunes State Park.
As of December 2014, some of the land for a proposed development project (Monterey Downs) will not be officially clear ofunexploded ordnance until at least late 2017.[2][22]
TheFort Ord Station Veterinary Hospital (SVH) at the Marina Equestrian Center Park in Marina was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2014, by the Friends of the Fort Ord Warhorse. This is the first such designation on Fort Ord. The history is detailed at the Fort Ord Equestrian Center.[24] The Fort Ord SVH was built for the Army Veterinary Corps as an equine veterinary hospital in 1941 to serve the 1400 horses of the76th Field Artillery Regiment, cavalry, and quartermaster mule-train units. This is the only remaining example of a major World War II-construction medical facility for warhorses. Twelve of the original twenty-one World War II stables for the horses and mules were about 200 yards away, on Fourth Avenue and General Jim Moore Boulevard, but were demolished by CSUMB in 2011.
Stilwell Hall was an immense, 52,000-square-foot (4,800 m2) building that stood on a precipice at the edge of thePacific across from the former Fort Ord military installation.[25]
The building was constructed between November 1940 and September 1943 under the initiative of GeneralJoseph W. Stilwell. It served as a recreational facility for military members for just over fifty years before Fort Ord was closed in 1994. Abandoned, Stilwell Hall fell into disrepair and was torn down in 2003 after severecoastal erosion threatened to cause the structure, filled with asbestos and lead paint, to collapse into theMonterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
Municipalities and communities ofMonterey County, California,United States | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cities |  | |
| CDPs | ||
| Unincorporated communities |
| |
| CCDs | ||
| Ghost towns | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county | |
| Campuses |  | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governance | |||||||
| Research |
| ||||||
| Vessels |
| ||||||
| History | |||||||
Motto (Latin):Vox Veritas Vita,lit. 'Voice, Truth, Life.' | |||||||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
