Camp Swift is a
census-designated place
A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only.
CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...
(CDP) in
Bastrop County
Bastrop County is located in the U.S. state of Texas. It is in Central Texas and its county seat is Bastrop.
As of the 2020 census, the population was 97,216. Bastrop County is included in the Austin–Round Rock, Texas, metropolita ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, United States. The population was 7,943 at the 2020 census.
Camp Swift began as a
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
training base built in 1942. It is named after
Major General
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
Eben Swift
Eben Swift (May 11, 1854 – April 25, 1938) was a major general in the United States Army who served as the first commander of the 82nd Division, now the 82nd Airborne Division.
Military career
Swift was born on May 11, 1854, at Fort Chad ...
.
History
The Army signed a $25 million contract in January 1942 to build a training camp on 56,000 acres north of
Bastrop, Texas
Bastrop () is a city and the county seat of Bastrop County, Texas, United States. The population was 9,688 according to the 2020 census. It is located about southeast of Austin and is part of the Greater Austin metropolitan area.
History
Span ...
. The contract stipulated the project was to be completed in 108 working days. 2700 buildings were built during World War II, but none of those remain on the site today. At the end of the war, they were sold or donated and relocated. The gymnasium was relocated to Whitney Texas. It is still in use today by the school district.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, German
prisoners of war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold priso ...
began arriving and at peak numbered 10,000. At the same time, the camp held 90,000 GIs, making it "one of the largest army training and transshipment camps in Texas" according to Krammer.
In December 1942,
Sgt Walter Springs was gunned down by a White military police officer following a dispute as Springs was reporting to Camp Swift. Springs was shot in the back, but the case remains largely unsolved to this day. A memorial scholarship in his honor has been active at his alma mater,
Regis University
Regis University is a private Jesuit university in Denver, Colorado.
Founded in 1877 by the Society of Jesus, the university offers more than 120 degrees through 5 colleges in a variety of subjects, including education, liberal arts, business, nu ...
, for most of the period since 1952 and has the backing of former NBA All Star
Chauncey Billups
Chauncey Ray Billups (born September 25, 1976) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played 17 seasons in the NBA. Afte ...
.
The
10th Mountain Division
The 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) is a light infantry division in the United States Army based at Fort Drum, New York. Formerly designated as a mountain warfare unit, the division was the only one of its size in the US military to re ...
trained at Camp Swift in 1944. The
2nd Infantry Division trained there mid 1945 to early 1946. The camp also trained
nurse
Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health c ...
s under battlefield conditions. The camp trained some 300,000 soldiers before the war ended.
Camp Swift is currently owned by the United States Government but is managed by the Texas Military Forces headquartered on Camp Mabry in Austin and acts as a training center for the National and State Guard, active armed forces, law enforcement, high school
ROTC
The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC ( or )) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces.
Overview
While ROTC graduate officers serve in all ...
and the
Civil Air Patrol
Civil Air Patrol (CAP) is a congressionally chartered, federally supported non-profit corporation that serves as the official civilian auxiliary of the United States Air Force (USAF). CAP is a volunteer organization with an aviation-minded mem ...
. The camp is also the primary emergency staging area for
Central Texas
Central Texas is a region in the U.S. state of Texas surrounding Austin and roughly bordered by San Saba to Bryan and San Marcos to Hillsboro. Central Texas overlaps with and includes part of the Texas Hill Country and corresponds to a ph ...
.
Civil Air Patrol
The Texas Wing of the Civil Air Patrol, the Auxiliary of the
Air Force
An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...
has held its encampment, a one-week high intensity simulated military training program for Cadet (leaders in training) members in Camp Swift since 2011.
Geography
Camp Swift is located north of the center of Bastrop County at .
It is about east of
Austin
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...
and north of Bastrop.
Texas State Highway 95
State Highway 95 (SH 95) is a state highway which connects the cities of Yoakum and Temple in the U.S. state of Texas.
Route description
SH 95 runs northward from Alt. US 77 at the northern edge of Yoakum. It travels through Shiner ...
forms the western edge of the community, connecting Bastrop to the south with
Elgin to the north.
According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the CDP has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.65%, is water.
Demographics
As of the
2020 United States census
The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...
, there were 7,943 people, 1,444 households, and 1,025 families residing in the CDP.
As of the
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...
of 2000, there were 4,731 people, 1,127 households, and 849 families residing in the CDP. The
population density
Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...
was 396.2 people per square mile (153.0/km
2). There were 1,231 housing units at an average density of 103.1/sq mi (39.8/km
2). The racial makeup of the CDP was 73.28%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 8.84%
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 1.16%
Native American, 0.25%
Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 0.06%
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...
, 13.11% from
other races
Other often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack
* ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 3.30% from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
or
Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race were 37.88% of the population.
There were 1,127 households, out of which 40.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.2% were
married couples
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...
living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.6% were non-families. 19.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.98 and the average family size was 3.40.
In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 22.6% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 42.5% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 5.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 185.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 224.0 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $41,833, and the median income for a family was $44,352. Males had a median income of $30,572 versus $25,044 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population.
Per capita i ...
for the CDP was $12,829. About 9.2% of families and 11.6% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including 9.6% of those under age 18 and 25.7% of those age 65 or over.
Government and infrastructure
Federal Correctional Institution Bastrop, a prison of the
Federal Bureau of Prisons
The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Justice that is responsible for the care, custody, and control of incarcerated individuals who have committed federal crimes; that i ...
(BOP), is in Camp Swift.
Education
Camp Swift is served by the
Bastrop Independent School District.
[District Boundary/Attendance Maps]
Archive
. Bastrop Independent School District. Retrieved on January 23, 2017. The zone map shows most of Camp Swift as being within the Lost Pines Elementary zone with a segment in the Mina zone. "Bastrop feeder pattern: Bastrop High School, Bastrop Middle School, Bastrop Intermediate School, ..ost Pines Elementary, .. Most residents are zoned to Lost Pines Elementary School, while a small southern section is zoned to Mina Elementary School. All residents are zoned to Bastrop Intermediate School, Bastrop Middle School, and
Bastrop High School.
[Bastrop ISD Attendance Boundaries]
" Bastrop Independent School District. Retrieved on January 23, 2017.
See also
*
Texas Military Forces
The Texas Military Forces (TXMF) are the principal instrument through which the Texas Military Department (TMD) executes security policy for Texas, which has the second-largest population and border in the United States, and the 9th-largest econ ...
*
Texas Military Department
The Texas Military Department (TMD) is an executive branch agency of the Texas government. Along with the Texas Department of Public Safety, it is charged with providing the security of Texas, which has the second largest population, border, and ...
*
List of conflicts involving the Texas Military The history of conflicts involving the Texas Military spans over two centuries, from 1823 to present, under the command authority (the ultimate source of lawful military orders) of four governments including the Texas governments (3), American gov ...
*
Awards and decorations of the Texas Military
Awards and decorations of the Texas Military are medals, ribbons, badges, tabs, trophies, plaques, certificates, memorials, and monuments that recognize service and achievement while serving in the Texas Military Forces.
Regulation
The Texas Mil ...
*
References
External links
*
{{authority control
Census-designated places in Bastrop County, Texas
Census-designated places in Texas
Census-designated places in Greater Austin
Texas Military Department
Texas Military Forces