Camp Dodge is a military installation in the city of Johnston,

Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

. Centrally located near the capital of Iowa, it currently serves as the headquarters of the

Iowa National Guard The Iowa National Guard consists of the: *Iowa Army National Guard and the * Iowa Air National Guard The Iowa National Guard headquarters is at Camp Dodge in Johnston, several miles north of the state capital Des Moines. The facility serves do ...

History

Original construction of the post began in 1907, to provide a place for the National Guard units to train. In 1917, the installation was handed over to national authorities and greatly expanded to become a regional training center for forces to participate in the First World War. The name Camp Dodge comes from Brigadier General

Grenville M. Dodge Grenville Mellen Dodge (April 12, 1831 – January 3, 1916) was a Union Army officer on the frontier and a pioneering figure in military intelligence during the Civil War, who served as Ulysses S. Grant's intelligence chief in the Western The ...

, who organized Iowa's first National Guard unit in 1856. Although not a native-born Iowan, he became a well-known figure and resided within the state for most of his adult life. He is considered a War hero for his service and also served a term as a U.S. Congressman representing the state. Camp Dodge Postcard 1918

In June 1917, the 163rd Depot Brigade was formed at Camp Dodge. The brigade was the base unit for the 88th Division, which processed new draftees and provided basic training. Later it appears the brigade despatched soldiers to multiple divisions, as two African American soldiers were sent to the 163rd Depot Brigade at Camp Dodge, before being posted to a front-line Pioneer Infantry Battalion in 92nd Division, the "Buffalo Soldiers Division". The 163 Bgde was still at Dodge in April 1918. Upon the end of the war, the post was downsized and turned back over to state authorities. Similarly, with the outbreak of the

Second World War 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 opposi ...

, Camp Dodge was again handed over to the federal government; however, this time the post was used only as an induction center for new service members. Camp Dodge has served as a Guard and Reserve installation since the end of the Second World War. During World War II the Camp Dodge was defined as being at the town of Herrold, so many documents reference this name as its post office address. Herrold was surrounded by the camp. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers purchased the town in 1990 to use as a training range. The nearby city of Johnston eventually became the new camp address. Along with the numerous National Guard units located at Camp Dodge, the post is also home to the Sustainment Training Center (formerly the National Maintenance Training Center), Mission Training Complex-Dodge (MTC-Dodge), Joint Forces Headquarters, Iowa's emergency operations center, the operations center for the ICN, a

MEPS A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, it ...

installation, Iowa Law Enforcement Academy, and the State Police academy. The camp is the home of the Iowa Gold Star Military Museum, a member of the Army Museum System.Army Museum System

United States Army Center of Military History The United States Army Center of Military History (CMH) is a directorate within the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command. The Institute of Heraldry remains within the Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Ar ...

Notes

References

* Swanson, Robert ''Domestic United States Military Facilities of the First World War 1917-1919''

External links

Camp Dodge Homepage

Iowa Gold Star Military Museum
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Iowa National Guard

WW1 Our Sons at Camp Dodge 1917 (Photographs) {{Authority control Military installations in Iowa Buildings and structures in Polk County, Iowa Installations of the United States Army National Guard 1907 establishments in Iowa Johnston, Iowa