Fort Monmouth is a former installation of the Department of the Army in

Monmouth County, New Jersey Monmouth County () is a county located on the coast of central New Jersey. The county is part of the New York metropolitan area and is situated along the northern half of the Jersey Shore. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population wa ...

. The post is surrounded by the communities of Eatontown,

Tinton Falls Tinton Falls is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 17,892,Oceanport,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, and is located about from the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

. The post covers nearly of land, from the

Shrewsbury River The Shrewsbury River is a short stream and navigable estuary. The stream is approximately 8 mi (13 km) long and is located in Central New Jersey. It extends east-northeast from its head of navigation at Oceanport to its confluence with ...

on the east, to Route 35 on the west; this area is referred to as 'Main Post'. A separate area (Camp Charles Wood) to the west includes post housing, a golf course, and additional office and laboratory facilities. A rail line, owned by Conrail, runs through Camp Charles Wood and out to

Naval Weapons Station Earle Naval Weapons Station Earle is a United States Navy base in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. Its distinguishing feature is a pier in Sandy Hook Bay where ammunition can be loaded and unloaded from warships at a safe distance from heavi ...

. The post is like a small town, including a Post Exchange (PX), health clinic, gas station and other amenities. Until the

September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...

the post was open to the public to drive through; after that time, the post was closed to all but authorized personnel. The main road through the fort was reopened to the public in 2017. The post was home to several units of the U.S. Army Materiel Command and offices of the Army Acquisition Executive (AAE) that research and manage Command and Control, Communications, Computing, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) capabilities and related technology, as well as an interservice organization designed to coordinate C4ISR, an academic preparatory school, an explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) unit, a garrison services unit, an Army health clinic, and a Veterans Administration health clinic. Other agencies, including the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...

Federal Emergency Management Agency The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Ex ...

and the

National Security Agency The National Security Agency (NSA) is a national-level intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense, under the authority of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI). The NSA is responsible for global monitoring, collect ...

, have presences on the post. The post was selected for closure by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission in 2005. Most Army functions and personnel were required to be moved to Army facilities in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

—such as

Aberdeen Proving Ground Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG) (sometimes erroneously called Aberdeen Proving ''Grounds'') is a U.S. Army facility located adjacent to Aberdeen, Harford County, Maryland, United States. More than 7,500 civilians and 5,000 military personnel work a ...

—and

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

by 2011. The post officially closed on September 15, 2011. However, it was temporarily reopened on December 2, 2012, for the evacuation of the borough of Paulsboro's residents to be temporarily resettled until it was deemed safe for them to move back to Paulsboro, following a freight train derailment on November 30, 2012.

History

:For more information, see the official U.S. Army CECOM Life Cycle Management Command (LCMC) / Fort Monmouth Historical Office websit

or Fort Monmouth Timelin

(

Microsoft Word Microsoft Word is a word processor, word processing software developed by Microsoft. It was first released on October 25, 1983, under the name ''Multi-Tool Word'' for Xenix systems. Subsequent versions were later written for several other pla ...

document) The installation began with the lease of a defunct Monmouth Park Racecourse (later re-opened at another site in 1946) by the Army for a training site for officers. The location near Eatontown, with rail sidings out of

Hoboken Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58,69 ...

and proximity to the port of Little Silver, was ideal. Known temporarily as Camp Little Silver, it was renamed Camp

Alfred Vail Alfred Lewis Vail (September 25, 1807 – January 18, 1859) was an American machinist and inventor. Along with Samuel Morse, Vail was central in developing and commercializing American telegraphy between 1837 and 1844. Vail and Morse were the f ...

shortly after in September 1917. The Chief Signal Officer authorized the purchase of Camp Vail in 1919. The Signal Corps School relocated to Camp Vail from

Fort Leavenworth Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., and the oldest perma ...

that year. The Signal Corps Board followed in 1924. In August 1925 the installation was granted permanent status and was renamed Fort Monmouth. It was named in honor of the soldiers of the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

who died in the Battle of Monmouth; aptly, it is also located in Monmouth County. The first permanent building was built in 1928. Other structures were built to house units the Army consolidated at Fort Monmouth. In 1928 the first radio-equipped meteorological balloon reached the upper atmosphere, a forerunner of weather sounding techniques universally used today. In 1938 the U.S. Army's first radio-based aircraft detection and ranging system (later called

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...

) was developed on post. A production model of this equipment detected the oncoming Japanese air

attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii ...

, but the warning it provided was discounted. In 1946 celestial communication was proved feasible, when the radar developed by the

Project Diana Project Diana, named for the Roman moon goddess Diana, was an experimental project of the US Army Signal Corps in 1946 to bounce radar signals off the Moon and receive the reflected signals. This was the first experiment in radar astronomy ...

team was used to bounce radio signals off the moon. During the late 20th century Fort Monmouth was home to the US Army Chaplain Center and School (USACHCS). Enlisted soldiers, non-commissioned officers (NCOs) and officers training to become Chaplain Assistants and Chaplains were trained at Fort Monmouth.

World War II

Additional property was purchased in 1941 for Camp Coles near Red Bank, Camp Charles Wood in Tinton Falls, and

Camp Evans Camp Evans Historic District is an area of the Camp Evans Formerly Used Defense Site in Wall Township, New Jersey. The site of the military installation () is noted for a 1914 transatlantic radio receiver and various World War II/Cold War labo ...

in Wall Township. At its peak 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 opposing ...

, Fort Monmouth measured , and had billeting space for 1,559 officers and 19,786 enlisted personnel. The Eastern Signal Corps Training Center consisted of the Eastern Signal Corps Schools (enlisted, officer candidate, and officers) and the Replacement Training Center at Camp Charles Wood. The Signal Corps Officer Candidate School (OCS), the major activity on the main post, graduated 21,033 new Signal Corps second lieutenants between 1941 and 1946. More communications units, including the Pigeon Breeding and Training Center, were consolidated into Fort Monmouth after the war ended. The pigeon service was discontinued in 1957; the birds were either sold at auction or donated to zoos.

Special effects Special effects (often abbreviated as SFX, F/X or simply FX) are illusions or visual tricks used in the theatre, film, television, video game, amusement park and simulator industries to simulate the imagined events in a story or virtual wo ...

artist Harry Redmond, Jr. designed and constructed a new film studio for the Army Film Training Lab at Fort Monmouth during World War II.

Rosenbergs

Julius Rosenberg Julius Rosenberg (May 12, 1918 – June 19, 1953) and Ethel Rosenberg (; September 28, 1915 – June 19, 1953) were American citizens who were convicted of spying on behalf of the Soviet Union. The couple were convicted of providing top-secret i ...

had worked as a radar inspector at Fort Monmouth in 1942 and 1943. It is from the fort that he was accused and convicted of stealing proximity fuze plans and passing them on to the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

. Documents released by Russia after the Cold War showed that Julius Rosenberg was indeed a spy. Joseph McCarthy claimed in October 1953 that Julius Rosenberg had set up a wartime spy ring at Fort Monmouth, and that the ring might still be in operation. Two Fort Monmouth scientists,

Joel Barr Joel Barr (January 1, 1916 – August 1, 1998), also Iozef Veniaminovich Berg and Joseph Berg, was part of the Soviet Atomic Spy Ring. Background Born Joyel Barr in New York City, to immigrant parents of Ukrainian Jewish origin. He attended C ...

and

Alfred Sarant Alfred Epaminondas Sarant, also known as Filipp Georgievich Staros and Philip Georgievich Staros (September 26, 1918 – March 12, 1979), was an engineer and a member of the Communist party in New York City in 1944. He was part of the Rosenbe ...

, fled to the

. The hysteria surrounding Fort Monmouth and the Rosenbergs was not limited to Julius and Ethel; others with the last name Rosenberg (or Kaplan) lost their security clearance for no reason other than sharing a name with communists.

Final years as an Army post

Before its BRAC closing was announced, Fort Monmouth was the home to the CECOM Life Cycle Management Command (CECOM LCMC). CECOM LCMC was a lead command for the Army in the area of C4ISR development, acquisition and sustainment. Though no longer the home of the US Army Signal Corps (after its move to Fort Gordon, Georgia in the 1970s), Fort Monmouth is sometimes referred to as the "Soul of the Signal Corps". It housed the official

Time capsule A time capsule is a historic cache of goods or information, usually intended as a deliberate method of communication with future people, and to help future archaeologists, anthropologists, or historians. The preservation of holy relics dates ...

of the Army Signal Corps until June 21, 2010, when it was removed for relocation to the U.S. Army Signal Center & School at Fort Gordon, Georgia. The fort also hosts the Avenue of Memories, a set of trees and monuments dedicated to Signal Corp soldiers who died in World War II. The memorial is a part of the main road through the Eatontown side of the fort. Fort Monmouth hosted the following CECOM LCMC subordinate organizations: * Communications-Electronics Command (CECOM), which supported and sustained C4ISR systems. Functional support centers of CECOM included the Software Engineering Center (SEC); Information Systems Engineering Command (ISEC); Logistics and Readiness Center (LRC); Central Technical Support Facility (CTSF) and Tobyhanna Army Depot (TYAD).Army Team C4ISR Knowledge Center * CECOM Contracting Center (CCCE), which performed market research, solicited, awarded and administered contracts, grants, cooperative agreements and other transactions for communications and electronics systems. * Communications-Electronics Research, Development and Engineering Center (CERDEC) which performed research and development in all areas of C4ISR, including Night Vision Goggles (NVGs), countermeasure equipment against Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), Shortstop Electronic Protection Systems (SEPS), and sensor systems that provided soldiers with a safe method for rapidly inspecting wells and underground locations. * Two subordinate offices of the Army Acquisition Executive (AAE); the Program Executive Office for Command, Control, Communications Tactical (PEO C3T); the Program Executive Office for Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors (PEO IEW&S); and elements of the Program Executive Office for Enterprise Information Systems (PEO EIS). Also located on the post were: * the Joint Interoperability Test Command (JITC), a suborganization of

Defense Information Systems Agency The Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), known as the Defense Communications Agency (DCA) until 1991, is a United States Department of Defense (DoD) combat support agency composed of military, federal civilians, and contractors. DISA pro ...

which coordinated joint interoperability between the Army, Navy, Marines, Coast Guard, Air Force, Special Operations Forces and Combatant Commands (COCOMs); * the

United States Military Academy Preparatory School The United States Military Academy Preparatory School (USMAPS), sometimes referred to as West Point Prep, is a preparatory school for the United States Military Academy (USMA). Located in West Point, New York, its official mission is "to provi ...

, which trained 250 cadet candidates each year for admittance and entrance as plebes (freshmen) into the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

West Point, NY West Point is the oldest continuously occupied military post in the United States. Located on the Hudson River in New York, West Point was identified by General George Washington as the most important strategic position in America during the Amer ...

. The school was relocated to West Point in 2011. * the 754th Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) unit, which provided emergency response to state and federal authorities throughout New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine and Pennsylvania, and, * the Patterson Army Health Clinic which served DoD service members and their families, including those stationed at NWS Earle and USCG Sandy Hook, NJ. It also served more than 7,000 veterans and their families, in support of the Veterans Administration (VA). Most of the personnel located on the post were civilians employed by DoD, or employees of companies under contract with the DoD. Fort Monmouth was also noted for its SunEagles

Golf Course A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". ...

, one of the most prominent DoD golf courses in the nation. It is now open to the public. School-aged children residing on post in grades 9 through 12 attended

Monmouth Regional High School Monmouth Regional High School is a regional, four-year public high school and public school district based in Tinton Falls, Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States, that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Eatontown, Shre ...

Tinton Falls Tinton Falls is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 17,892,Monmouth Regional High School District Monmouth Regional High School is a regional, four-year public high school and public school district based in Tinton Falls, Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States, that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Eatontown, Shre ...

Closure by BRAC

Fort Monmouth was recommended for closure by

the Pentagon The Pentagon is the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense. It was constructed on an accelerated schedule during World War II. As a symbol of the U.S. military, the phrase ''The Pentagon'' is often used as a meton ...

in May 2005. BRAC voted in August 2005 to close the post; its decision was upheld by President George Bush and Congress. An appeal headed by U.S. Representatives

Frank Pallone Frank Joseph Pallone Jr. (; born October 30, 1951) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the U.S. representative for , serving since 1988. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district, numbered as the 3rd district from 1988 to ...

and

Rush D. Holt, Jr. Rush Dew Holt Jr. (born October 15, 1948) is an American scientist and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 1999 to 2015. He is a member of the Democratic Party and son of former West Virginia U.S. Senator Rush D. Holt Sr ...

to remove the post from the list was made to the BRAC commission, but was rejected. In particular, BRAC recommended: * Relocate the US Army Military Academy Preparatory School (USMAPS) to

. * Relocate the Joint Network Management System (JNMS) program, part of the Product Management Office for Network Operations - Current Force (PM NetOps-CF) to Fort Meade, MD. The Joint Network Management System (JNMS) program was cancelled by the Headquarters, Department of the Army (HQDA) prior to scheduled relocation of the program to Ft. Meade. * Relocate the Budget/Funding, Contracting, Cataloging, Requisition Processing, Customer Services, Item Management, Stock Control, Weapon System Secondary Item Support, Requirements Determination, Integrated Materiel Management Technical Support Inventory Control Point functions for Consumable Items to Defense Supply Center Columbus, OH, and reestablish them as Defense Logistics Agency Inventory Control Point functions. * Relocate the procurement management and related support functions for depot level repairables to Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG), MD, and designate them as Inventory Control Point functions, detachment of Defense Supply Center, Columbus, OH, and * Relocate the remaining integrated materiel management, user, and related support functions to

Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG) (sometimes erroneously called Aberdeen Proving ''Grounds'') is a U.S. Army facility located adjacent to Aberdeen, Harford County, Maryland, United States. More than 7,500 civilians and 5,000 military personnel work at ...

, along with Information Systems, Sensors, Electronic Warfare, and Electronics Research and Development & Acquisition (RDA). * Relocate the elements of the Program Executive Office for Enterprise Information Systems (PEO EIS) and consolidate into the existing PEO EIS facilities at

Fort Belvoir, Virginia A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

. The DoD estimated the closure of Fort Monmouth would cause the loss of 9,737 jobs (5,272 direct and 4,465 indirect jobs) between 2006 and 2011, leading to a 0.8% increase in unemployment. DoD also calculated the closure and other changes would save it about $1 billion in the long run. However, in June 2007, an investigation by the '' Asbury Park Press'' revealed that the projected cost of closing Fort Monmouth and moving its research functions to

Aberdeen, Maryland Aberdeen is a city located in Harford County, Maryland, United States, northeast of Baltimore. The population was 16,254 at the 2020 United States Census. Aberdeen is the largest municipality in Harford County. Aberdeen is part of the Baltimor ...

, had doubled from $780 million to $1.5 billion. To this was to be added the $3.3 billion loss to New Jersey’s economy, coupled with the estimated $16 billion it would cost Maryland for needed infrastructure improvements to accommodate the largest job influx since World War II. In addition, recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) findings uncovered substantial errors in the Army estimation of BRAC cost savings—in one case turning a projected saving of $1 billion into one of just $31 million. In light of these issues, the House Armed Services Committee was to hold a hearing on the BRAC 2005 legislation. The final closure ceremony was held on September 15, 2011.

Redevelopment

On April 28, 2006,

Governor of New Jersey The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The official r ...

Jon Corzine Jon Stevens Corzine ( ; born January 1, 1947) is an American financial executive and retired politician who served as a United States Senator from New Jersey from 2001 to 2006 and the 54th governor of New Jersey from 2006 to 2010. Corzine ran fo ...

signed into law the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Act, which established the Fort Monmouth Revitalization Planning Authority, to plan the redevelopment of Fort Monmouth once it closed. The legislation creating the commission, proposed by State Senators Joseph Kyrillos and

Ellen Karcher Ellen Karcher (born February 28, 1964) is an American Democratic Party politician, who served in the New Jersey State Senate from 2004 until 2008, where she represented the 12th Legislative District. Career In the 2007 general election, Karcher ...

, received bipartisan support, but only after wrangling in the legislature over its composition and authority. FMERPA completed the Fort Monmouth Reuse and Redevelopment Plan in 2008, although an appellate court threw out the portion of the plan concerning affordable housing. FMERPA is no longer active following the creation of the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority (FMERA) to provide investment, continuity and economic growth to the communities impacted by the federal government's decision to close Fort Monmouth. The bill was sponsored by Sen. Jennifer Beck (R-Monmouth) and Assembly members

Joseph Cryan Joseph P. Cryan (born September 1, 1961 in East Orange, New Jersey) is an American Democratic Party politician who has served in the New Jersey Senate since 2018, representing the 20th Legislative District. He previously served in the New ...

(D-Union), Albert Coutinho (D-Essex),

Angel Fuentes Angel Fuentes (born August 2, 1961) is an American Democratic Party politician who was elected to serve in the New Jersey General Assembly from 2009 until June 2015, where he represented the 5th legislative district. Fuentes was the president ...

(D-Camden), Annette Quijano (D-Union) and Upendra Chivukula (D-

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

) and signed into law by Gov.

Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician, lawyer, political commentator, lobbyist, and former federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. Christie, who was born in N ...

Tuesday, August 17, 2010. FMERA was to advance FMERPA's Reuse and Redevelopment Plan for economic development, growth and planning, with a focus on technology-based industries, for the of real estate at Fort Monmouth following the base closure in September 2011. The authority holds meetings at their headquarters, located in the former post library in Oceanport. As mandated by federal law, the authority must advertise for notices of interest from any state, county, municipal, or private, non-profit agency which would provide homeless assistance to Monmouth County residents. In December 2016, the Monmouth County

Board of Chosen Freeholders In New Jersey, a Board of County Commissioners (until 2020 named the Board of Chosen Freeholders) is the elected county-wide government board in each of the state's 21 counties. In the five counties that have an elected county executive, the ...

issued $33 million in bonds to allow FMERA to purchase outright of land on the base from the Army. As a condition of the bonds, the county reconstructed the main road through the base to allow for public travel between Route 35 / CR 537 and Oceanport Avenue for the first time since 2001. The road reopened on January 17, 2017 and subsequently became an extension of CR 537. In October 2022,

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fi ...

signed to build a production complex at Mega Parcel.

Footnotes

External links

*
Fort Monmouth
at

Flickr Commons Flickr ( ; ) is an American image hosting and video hosting service, as well as an online community, founded in Canada and headquartered in the United States. It was created by Ludicorp in 2004 and was a popular way for amateur and professional ...

*
Fort Monmouth website
- connection failed 2012-01-26
Information BRACFMERA websiteBattle for Fort Monmouth, a series of articles on the closing of Fort Monmouth by BRAC and the unsuccessful attempt to keep it open
published in the '' Asbury Park Press'', accessed May 19, 2009 * {{authority control Buildings and structures in Monmouth County, New Jersey Monmouth United States Army Signals Intelligence Service installations Research installations of the United States Army Closed installations of the United States Army Historic American Engineering Record in New Jersey Eatontown, New Jersey Oceanport, New Jersey Tinton Falls, New Jersey 1917 establishments in New Jersey