Fort Benning Renamed to FORT MOORE

In 2021, Congress established the Commission on Naming of Items of the Department of Defense (“Naming Commission”) to assign, modify, or remove names, symbols, and other assets that commemorate the Confederate States of America or anyone who served with the Confederate States of America. In September 2022, the eight-member Naming Commission recommended changing Fort Benning’s name to Fort Moore, and this recommendation was subsequently approved by Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III. Nine Army installations were listed in this recommendation, including Fort Benning. The new names are “rooted in their local communities” and “honor American heroes whose valor, courage, and patriotism exemplify the very best of the US Military.”

Fort Benning’s name has been changed to Fort Moore after Lt. Gen. Harold Moore, Jr. and Mrs. Julia Moore. Known popularly for his book, We Were Soldiers Once…And Young, Moore commanded the first large-scale battle of the Vietnam War, where his forces were significantly outnumbered and 79 soldiers were killed and 121 wounded. As families waited to hear news of their loved ones, Army policy at the time relayed news of death or injury by telegram. Julia Moore, living with her children at that time on Fort Benning, accompanied the taxi drivers delivering the telegrams to give her condolences. Her experience delivering casualty notifications caused her to advocate for reforms, and this led to the creation of the casualty notification teams that exist today. For these and many other reasons, the Moores are commemorated together to acknowledge how “families serve right alongside their service members.”

2023

Sources: The Naming Commission, Final Report to Congress (2022); DOD Begins Implementing Naming Commission Recommendations, US Department of Defense (Jan. 5, 2023).