Spanish American War Camps

SPANISH AMERICAN WAR CAMPS

1898-99 PERIOD

By Fred M. Greguras

THE CAMPS A-G

Camp Alva Adams, Denver, CO

· Alva A. Adams was a three-term governor of Colorado, including during the Spanish American War.

· This was the camp of the Colorado volunteers before they were sent west to the Philippines. It was established April 28, 1898 and abandoned about May 17, 1898. Governor Adams reportedly personally purchased each soldier’s identification tags.

· The camp was located east of Colorado Boulevard between 26th and 27th Streets, north and east of City Park.

· The May 2, 1898 Rocky Mountain News reported that the camp was located near City Park because the state troops were denied use of the barracks at Fort Logan.

Camp Alger, Chickamauga Park, GA

· Named after Russell A. Alger, Secretary of War

Camp Alger, Dunn Loring, VA

· Named after Russell A. Alger, Secretary of War

· Established May 18, 1898

· Book on this camp: Harrison, City of Canvas; Camp Russell A. Alger and The Spanish American War, published by the Falls Church Historical Commission and FairFax County Historical Commission, 1988

Camp Atkinson, Atlanta, GA.

· William Yates Atkinson was governor of Georgia during the Spanish American War

· According to Garrett, Atlanta and Environs, published by Lewis Historical Publishing Company, Inc., Vol. II, 1954, page 355: "On April 23rd, President McKinley called on Governor Atkinson for two regiments of infantry and two batteries of light artillery. On May 4th Camp Northern was established at Griffin on the State camp grounds, and on the 7th the first detachment of Georgia volunteers, 49 in number, left Atlanta for the camp, . . . Four hospital stewards "arrived on the vestibule over the Southern from Washington" to set up a hospital at Fort McPherson."

· Part of the 2nd Georgia Vol. Inf. and was brought back to Atlanta for muster out in November 1898. Camp Atkinson may have been either this muster out camp or the short muster in camp in May 1898.

· According to Gail E. Parnelle of the Historical Society of the Georgia National Guard, Inc., the 1st Georgia Vol. Cav. held its 1897 camp of instruction at Camp Atkinson near Meldrim. Meldrim is about 18 miles southwest of Savannah. Meldrim is named after Judge P. W. Meldrim who financed the site’s development for the cavalry encampment in 1895 according to the 1895 Georgia Adjutant Generals Report. Judge Meldrim held the rank of major in the Georgia volunteers in 1895. This Camp Atkinson may have been a case of naming the annual encampment after the sitting governor.

Camp Atkinson, Charleston, W. VA (See Camp Lee).

· Named for George Wesley Atkinson, whose birthplace was Charleston, who was governor of West Virginia from 1897-1901.

· Site of the assembly/muster in of the 2nd W. V. Vol. Inf. in response to the President’s second call for volunteers.

· Camp Atkinson was located in the west end of Charleston, near what is now the Patrick Street Plaza. The first troops to be stationed there set up camp on June 27, 1898, and the regiment departed from the camp on August 19, 1898.

· From The West Virginia Heritage Encyclopedia, Vol. 9, The Soldiery of West Virginia, published by Jim Comstock, 1974, page 236: "On May 25, 1898, the President of the United States requested Governor Atkinson to send forward a Second Regiment of Infantry. The Governor hastened to issue a call, and the companies hastily formed in various parts of the State, rendezvoused at "Camp Atkinson" on the north bank of the Great Kanawha, about half a mile below the mouth of Elk River, say about five squares above where the Kelly Axe Factory now stands."

· From The June 24, 1898 Charleston Daily Gazette: "The citizens are glad to know that the camp will be pitched just below the city, over Elk, instead of Kanawha City. Good order is promised, and there will be no repetition of the disgraceful scenes which characterized the first day at Camp Lee. The authorities have learned many valuable lessons from the experience they acquired in mobilizing and mustering in the first regiment, and the work this time will proceed with much less friction, delay and expense than was the case at Camp Lee."

· From the June 28, 1898 Charleston Daily Gazette: "Camp Atkinson, as the new camp will be called, is situated at the lower end of Glenwood, behind the village of Petersburg and not far from the folding bed factory. The location is almost an ideal one. It is an open common stretching back to the river, with ample room for drilling purposes and within convenient access of town. The spot on which the tents will be pitched slopes slightly toward either side, thus affording proper drainage. . . . Three rows of tents were pitched yesterday evening, for the Charleston, Hinton and Point Pleasant companies. The Charleston company will occupy the farthest row on the side of the camp next to the hill. The officers’ tents will look towards the folding bed factory."

· From the August 20, 1898 Charleston Daily Gazette: "Camp Atkinson is now part of the history of Charleston, and one of the prides of its past … On those who, no doubt out of habit, drove to Glenwood yesterday evening, the scene that met them at the end of their drive must have produced a strange impression. Where, twenty hours before, had been visible the bustle of a thousand men, lay only a wreck - a field of mud strewn with rubbish - a deserted village - the remains of what had been pretty Camp Atkinson."

Camp Bacon, Walker, MN

· According to Hampton Smith, Reference Librarian for the Minnesota Historical Library, based on research in Holbrook, Minnesota in the Spanish-American War and the Philippine Insurrection, published by Minnesota War Records Commission, 1923, [hereinafter referred to as Holbrook] the establishment of Camp Bacon was not directly related to the war with Spain but was established as a result of an incident between the U.S. Army and the Leech Lake band of Ojibway known as the battle of Sugar Point on October 5 and 6, 1898. Company G of the 3rd U.S. Infantry was posted at Walker to try to keep peace.

Camp Tom Ball, Houston, TX

· Likely named after Tom H. Ball, a U.S. Congressman from Texas, first elected in 1896, who served until 1903.

· The 4thTexas Vol. Inf. was organized and mustered in at Houston from July 8-30, 1898. The unit remained in Houston until late September 1898.

· Houston Public Library could not find any information on this camp.

Camp Barrett, Fruitvale, CA

· Named after the then California Adjutant General Andrew W. Barrett, 1845-1905, a Civil War veteran. Barrett resigned as Adjutant General on December 23, 1898.

· Camp of the 8th regiment of the California National Guard (8th California Vol. Inf.), comprised of companies from Northern California, according to articles in the Oakland Enquirer newspaper. The 8th was called up in response to the second call for volunteers.

· Established in late June 1898 and abandoned about September 14, 1898 when the last troops left for Vancouver Barracks. The companies of the 8th were assigned to army posts on the west coast, apparently to allow the regulars to be deployed overseas. The 8th was mustered out by February 6, 1899.

· Located near Sather station according to newspaper articles, "Sather station, Cal." William Sturm, Librarian of the Oakland Library History Room, indicates Sather station was a Southern Pacific local railroad station located at present High Street and San Leandro Street in Oakland. "The camp proper is to the southeast of Merrill Avenue and the open space to the north will be the drill ground," according to the June 28, 1898 Oakland Enquirer.

Camp Battery Point, Delaware City, DE

· Delaware City is on the west bank of the Delaware River adjacent to Pea Patch Island on which Fort Delaware is located. Fort Delaware’s purpose was to defend the Delaware River and surrounding coastline. Fort Mott, NJ is directly across from Fort Delaware on the east bank of the Delaware River.

Camp Black, Hempstead, Long Island, NY (see Camp Townsend)

· Named after wartime governor of New York.

· Camp Black and Camp Townsend, the state national guard camp at Peekskill, were the primary New York muster in sites.

· Described in State Historian, History of the Empire State Regiments in the War with Spain, published under the Direction of the State Historian, 1903 (hereafter referred to as Empire State) in several places.

· From Empire State, pages 155-156: "The Seventy-first Regiment was given the place of honor at the extreme right of the State camp, subsequently named in honor of the Governor, at which were mobilized at one time some 14,000 troops. Detraining one mile east of Garden City and marching about one half mile to the entrance of the camp, Colonel Greene had the companies march to the site of their respective streets. The tents, poles and pegs were duly distributed in their proper place, and orders were at once given to pitch tents and put the camp in proper condition. By four o’clock the work was completely finished and declared well done, and the regiment settled down to its life on the tented field."

· According to web site of the 69th New York in the Spanish American War: "Camp Black was formed on the Hempstead Plains, in March 1898, in support of the Spanish-American War. Camp Black was bounded on the north by Old Country Road, on the west by Clinton Road, and on the south by the Central Line rail. Camp Black was opened on April 29, 1898. The first regiment to occupy Camp Black was Co. H of the 71st Regiment. The Camp officially closed on September 28, 1898."

· From the Long Island History Web Site: The Mitchel Field area of the Hempstead Plains has been site of training camps in almost every war, including Camp Black. Original plains covered 60,000-70,000 acres. The area outlined above includes the Mitchel Field area.

· Kester, Transformation of Citizen into Soldier, Cosmopolitan Magazine, June 1898, page 12, is about Camp Black and contains many photos.

Camp Boynton, Chickamauga Park, GA

· Henry V. Boynton, 1835-1905, a regimental commander in the Army of the Cumberland during the Civil War and later a Washington journalist, conceived the idea for the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park which was created in 1890.

Camp Bradley, Lexington, KY (See Camps Collier and Corbin)

· Named after Kentucky Governor Bradley

· Muster in site for 1st Ky. Vol. Inf.

· At the Woodland Park Chautauqua Grounds. Woodland Park still exists and is southeast of the Lexington downtown area, to the east of the corner of Kentucky and Highway 1974 on present day maps.

· From "A Splendid Little War": The Spanish American War and Kentucky, Kentucky Historical Society, 1998 (also available on the Kentucky Historical Society’s web site): "At the outbreak of hostilities, the Kentucky State Guard consisted of three regiments of infantry and two troops of cavalry. . . . Adjutant General Daniel R. Collier was instructed to assemble the State Guard at Lexington. . . . The Lexington Chamber of Commerce failed to secure a racetrack property as expected, when the thoroughbred industry insisted that there were ‘other places in Lexington more suitable for camping purposes.’ When General Collier threatened to move the muster to Louisville, a compromise was reached whereby the Second and Third Regiments would be encamped at Tattersall’s Fairgrounds and the First Regiment at the Chautauqua grounds (Woodland Park). The encampment at Tattersall’s became known as Camp Collier, while that of the First Regiment was named in honor of Governor Bradley. . . . Orders finally arrived for the Kentuckians to move to Chickamauga, Tennessee. On June 10 at 7:00 a.m., a signal from each regimental bugler was sounded and the tents all simultaneously fell . . . and the Lexington camps [were] abandoned. On June 21, the War Department had directed Governor Bradley to enroll a fourth regiment of infantry . . . . their point of mobilization was also designated as Lexington, where they began arriving during the last week of June. Their camp was established in Loudoun Park and named Camp Hobson, which the men quickly changed to Camp Corbin. . . . [After the war ended,] Rotten food, crowded conditions, poor sanitation, improper clothing, and continuous rains had led to outbreaks of typhoid fever and dysentery among the demoralized troops left behind. . . . To alleviate overcrowded conditions, the War Department established Camp Hamilton in Lexington to supplement the one at Chickamauga. The two troops of cavalry were also held up at Chickamauga. . . . then transferred to Lexington when the new camp there opened. Shortly after their arrival they, too, were mustered out without reaching the war zone."

· From Wright, Lexington Heart of the Bluegrass, published by Lexington-Fayette County Historic Commission, 1982, page 158, "The second regiment of the Kentucky State Guard mobilized on the Fairgrounds. Some troops camped at Woodlands, and a resident on Ashland Avenue later recalled how, as a young girl, she made and sold cakes to the soldiers. Later the Army established two major camps: one at James Clark’s farm on the Bryan Station Road, the other at the Weil farm on the Versailles Road."

· Lexington newspaper of May 1, 1898 indicated the Chautauqua tabernacle was converted into sleeping quarters.

· The camp was abandoned June 11, 1898

Camp Briggs, Fargo, ND

· Frank A. Briggs was governor of North Dakota Territory when the Spanish American War began and died at Bismarck, North Dakota on August 9, 1898.

· Staging and training area for 1st N.D. Vol. Inf. during the approximate period May 2-26, 1898.

· According to the Fargo Forum newspaper, soldiers started arriving in Fargo on May 2, 1898. The camp was abandoned on May 26, 1898. The camp was in the Huntington Addition, in the south part of Fargo at "the end of Eighth Street, away down at Seventeenth and Eighteenth Avenues. . . .The campgrounds will be on the west side of Eighth Street and the drill grounds on the east side."

Camp Brooke, Newport News, VA (See Camp Warburton)

· Probably named for General John R. Brooke. See page 101 of source (7) for a brief biography. He was the initial commanding officer of the First Army Corps.

· From a photograph caption in a 1995 Newport News Daily Press newspaper: "In 1898, when war with Spain broke out, National Guard regiments were billeted in Newport News and the Huntington Rifles were called to active duty. Tent encampments were erected along 23rd Street, a block away from the Hotel Warwick, and on the Casino Grounds and along the James River between 45th Street and 50th Street. The city was one of the chief ports of embarkation for American troops going to Cuba. The battleships Kearsarge and Kentucky and three Navy gunboats were launched that year at the shipyard." This initial assembly camp could have been Camp Brooke.

Camp Burdett, near Fort Preble, ME

· Two companies (F and K) of the lst Conn. Vol. Inf. were at Fort Preble in June-July, 1898 on coast reserve duty according to Official History of First Regiment, Connecticut Volunteers, Spanish American War, City Printing Company, 1900.

· Named in honor of Col. Charles L. Burdett, Commanding Officer of the 1st Conn.

Camp Bushnell, Columbus, OH

· Asa S. Bushnell was governor of Ohio during the Spanish American War

· From Moore, History of Franklin County, Ohio, Historical Publishing Company, 1930, page 233: "A camp site was procured on the east bank of Alum Creek at what was then known as Bullitt Park, now a part of Bexley. A five hundred acre tract of ideally located land was quickly transformed into Camp Bushnell, with drainage, water, lighting, tentage and commissary supplies, so that as fast as the soldiers came, they were cared for without confusion or inconvenience of any kind. This preliminary work was so well done as to deserve and win the praise of all army officers who had business with Ohio’s rendezvous." Bexley is a suburb of Columbus, east of Alum Creek and north of U.S. 40 in the east part of Columbus.

· Established April 28, 1898 and abandoned May 29, 1898

· Bacheller, Lover’s Day at State Camp, Cosmopolitan Magazine, June 1898, page 153, is about Camp Bushnell and contains many photos.

· Souvenir booklet published on this camp

Camp Caffery, Covington, LA

· According to source (8), the camp was in St. Tammany Parish on the Tchefuncta River, about a mile above Covington. It was established on May 18, 1898 for the early recruits of Colonel Duncan H. Hood’s regiment of immunes. The camp was named for U.S. Senator Donelson Caffrey who facilitated authorization of the organization of the regiment, which was mustered in on June 15, 1898.

· The 2nd U.S. Vol. Inf. left Covington for New Orleans on July 25, 1898.

Camp Allyn Capron, Fort Thomas, KY (see Camp Wetherill at Fort Thomas)

· There were two Allyn Caprons (father and son). Capt. Allyn Kissam Capron of the 1st U.S. Vol. Cav. (Rough Riders) was KIA at the battle of Las Guasimas on June 24, 1898. See his photo at page 232 of source (7). His father was born in Florida and was appointed to the USMA from NC September 1, 1863; became a second lieutenant 1st artillery June 17, 1867; first lieutenant August 19, 1873; captain December 4, 1888; participated in the artillery operations around Santiago during the SAW: died September 18, 1898 near Fort Myer, Virginia, aged 52 years. See pages 218, 259 of Empire State.

· This may have been the name for the 8th U.S. Vol. Inf. camp discussed under Camp Wetherill since Captain Capron had been killed about two weeks before the unit arrived at Fort Thomas. The 8th U.S. Vol. Inf. left Fort Thomas for Chickamauga, Georgia, on October 7, 1898.

Camp Allyn Capron, Puerto Principe, Cuba

· Occupation camp

Camp Carpenter, Puerto Principe, Cuba

· Occupation camp

Camp Churchman, Albany, GA

· Probably named after 2nd Lt. Clark Churchman, 13th U.S. Inf., KIA at Santiago, Cuba.

Camp Clark, Carson City, NV (See Camp Sadler)

· Named after Captain Charles Edgar Clark of the battleship U.S.S. Oregon in the naval battle of Santiago Bay.

· Second camp of the 1st Nev. Vol. Inf.

Camp Clark, Mobile, AL

· Possibly named after Captain Charles Edgar Clark of the battleship U.S.S. Oregon in the naval battle of Santiago Bay.

· Muster in camp "near" Mobile for 1st and 2nd Ala. Vol. Inf. Abandoned about June 24, 1898.

· "Clarke" spelling also used.

· 3rd Ala. Vol. Inf., a Black regiment, also was in camp in Mobile.

Camp Cobb, Fredericksburg, VA

· Named after Confederate General Thomas R. R. Cobb, who was killed near Fredericksburg in December, 1862.

· Camp of the 4th U.S. Vol. Inf. from June 24, 1898 until August 18, 1898.

· Described in Harrison, Reconciliation on the Rappahannock: Fredericksburg during the Spanish-American War, published by Beck’s Antiques and Books, 1994.

· Located near the south end of Gunnery Road and west of Highway 17.

Camp Collier, Lexington, KY (See Camps Bradley and Corbin)

· Named after the Kentucky adjutant general at the time the war started.

· Muster in site for 2nd and 3rd Ky. Vol. Inf. regiments. The 2nd left for Chickamauga, GA about May 25 and the 3rd on June 1, 1898.

· At Tattersall’s Fairgrounds. Troops were housed in buildings including a stable according to the May 4, 1898 Lexington Daily Leader.

· Lexington paper of May 1, 1898 refers to it as Tattersalls Sales Mart. "Huge Barns" used to quarter troops.

Camp Columbia, Havana, Cuba

· Also listed as at Buena Vista, Cuba

· Occupation camp

· 3rd Neb. Vol. Inf. was here after war was over (January to April 1899). William Jennings Bryan, the regiment’s initial commanding officer, had resigned immediately after the war was over so did not go to Cuba.

Camp Conrad, Columbus, GA

· According to source (10), at page 31, Camp Conrad was named in honor of Major Conrad who “displayed such remarkable bravery before Santiago but unfortunately was not permitted to return to his native land to enjoy the distinction of bravery, death overtaking him as he was coming home.”

· Also according to source (10), at page 32, the camp was originally named Camp Davis for Colonel Davis “who won fame at Santiago but Col. Davis being a living man” the name was changed to Camp Conrad.

· Established October 25, 1898; abandoned February 4, 1899

· Winter camp and training for possible occupation troops

· Located north of 29th Street between Hamilton Road and 2nd Ave., North Highlands. Source (8) says the camp was in the area between 3rd and 6th Avenues and 29th and 33rd Streets. A map comparison indicates these are the same area.

· According to source (10), at page 31, the camp was about 2 miles from the city “on the bank of the Chattahoochee River near the historic ‘Lover’s Leap’.” This is slightly to the west of the area described above.

Camp H. C. Corbin, Lexington, KY (See Camps Bradley and Collier)

· First named Camp Hobson, probably after Richmond Hobson.

· Named after General Henry C. Corbin, Adjutant General, U.S. Army, at the time the war started in April 1898.

· At Loudoun Park

· Muster in site for 4th Ky. Vol. Inf. At Lexington from about July 4 to September 17, 1898.

· Marching distance from Camp Corbin to Camp Hamilton was 4 miles, according to one account.

Camp H. C. Corbin, New Orleans, LA (See Camp Foster)

· According to Casey, Encyclopedia of Forts, Named Camps, and other Military Installations in Louisiana, 1700-1981, Claitor’s Publishing Division, 1983, page 50, this was a camp at the New Orleans fairgrounds where Col. Crane’s 1st Regiment of Immunes trained in 1898. The regiment was later sent to Cuba as the 9th U.S. Vol. Inf.

· The 9th U.S. Vol. Inf. was at New Orleans from June 18, 1898 until about August 17, 1898.

· An 1898 map of New Orleans indicates the fairgrounds was in the center of the city just to the east of City Park. A current map places the fairgrounds in the same location.

Camp H. C. Corbin, Richmond, VA

· Mobilization Camp of the 6th Virginia Col. Inf., a Black regiment formed in response to the second call for volunteers.

· Located "ten miles east of the city," according to Lutz, A Richmond Album, published by Garrett & Massie, 1937, page 160. "On the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway about ten miles south-east of Richmond," according to the Report of the Adjutant General of Virginia, 1898-1899, 1899, page 50.

Camp Cuba Libre, Jacksonville, FL

· Established May 26, 1898; abandoned October 23, 1898. Established because the staging area around Tampa was overcrowded.

· Assembly point for Maj. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee’s Seventh Corps.

· 3rd Neb. Vol. Inf. here

· According to W. J. Bryan’s report at page 137 of the 1897-98 Report of the Adjutant General of Nebraska, the camp was at Panama Park, Florida, near Jacksonville. "We are located at Panama Park, a high, sandy, well drained piece of timberland, situated about six miles north of Jacksonville."

· Booklet Souvenir of Camp Cuba Libre, 1898 published by the Florida Times - Union and Citizen.

· In a souvenir booklet, Souvenir, Second Mississippi Regiment Volunteer Infantry, published by J. C. Coovert, Vicksburg, Mississippi, 1898, there are a number of photos of Camp Cuba Libre. There are also several photos of W. J. Bryan, Colonel of the 3rd Neb., Vol. Inf., which was at Camp Cuba Libre at the same time.

Camp Dalton, South Framingham, MA (See Camp Dewey)

· Named after Major General Samuel Dalton, the state’s adjutant general for many years, including in 1898.

· South Framingham was the site of state military camps beginning about 1873. All Massachusetts volunteer infantry regiments were mustered in for Spanish American War service at the state military encampment grounds at South Framingham. The South Framingham site was abandoned in the 1920s because of size limitations. The site of the camp is the current location of the Massachusetts State Police Headquarters and Massachusetts Civil Defense Headquarters (MEMA) at 400-470 Worcester Road.

· Muster in location for 5th Mass Vol. Inf.

Camp Dewey, South Framingham, MA (See Camp Dalton)

· Named for Admiral George Dewey

· Muster in location for 2nd Mass. Vol. Inf.

· Source (8) indicates this camp was also named Camp McGuiness.

Camp Dewey, Philippine Islands

Camp George Dewey, Sioux Falls, SD

· The 1st S.D. Vol. Inf. mustered in at Sioux Falls from May 12-19, 1898 and left Sioux Falls for San Francisco on May 29, 1898.

Camp Dodge, Little Rock, AR

· Named for Dr. Roderick Dodge, to whose estate the site of the camp belonged and whose heirs donated the use of the site for the camp, according to Arkansas State Guard General Order No. 2 dated May 2, 1898.

· Assembly and muster in site for 1st and 2nd Ark. Vol. Inf.

· Was located at the corner of College Avenue and Seventeenth Street. This is in southeast Little Rock.

Camp Douglas, Camp Douglas, WI

· Camp for volunteers responding to the President’s second call according to Biennial Report of the Adjutant General of Wisconsin for 1898, 1899. Mobilization began about June 29, 1898.

· This was the Wisconsin National Guard training camp which was established about 1889. The camp still exists as Camp Williams and Volk Field.

Camp Dyer, Augusta, GA

· Possibly named for Captain N. Mayor Dyer of the U. S. S Baltimore in the Battle of Manila Bay.

Camp Dyer, Quonset Point, RI

· Named for wartime governor Elisha Dyer on May 7, 1898.

· Muster in site for 1st R.I. Vol. Inf. from about May 10-26, 1898.

· According to source (8), located on Quonset Point, in Warwick, the camp of the Rhode Island militia because of the state militia’s summer maneuvers there. The camp area was later encompassed into the U.S. Naval Air Station which opened in July 1941 according to source (8).

· In existence from about May 4 to November 19, 1898, according to Annual Reports of the Adjutant General, Quartermaster General and Surgeon General of Rhode Island for 1898, 1899.

Camp Eaton, Island Lake, MI

· Possibly named for Commander J. G. Eaton of the U. S. S. Resolute in the naval battle of Santiago, Cuba.

· Muster in site for the Michigan National Guard beginning about April 26, 1898.

· Camp Eaton was created and named by Gov. Hazen Pingree and he lived there with the troops.

· This was also the site of the Michigan National Guard annual encampment in 1900.

· Located south of Brighton and north of Ann Arbor (east of Highway 23 and south of Interstate 96) probably near the state recreation area in Livingston County.

Camp at Fernandina, FL

· Near Tampa

· Successor to Camp at Palmetto Beach because of unhealthy conditions at Palmetto Beach. See Empire State pages 138-140.

· Occupied July 3 to middle of August, 1898

Camp Fontana Barracks, San Francisco, CA

· According to a curator at the Presidio Archives, this camp was located in the Fontana warehouse building at Van Ness and North Point Streets, east of and adjacent to Fort Mason. This is just behind (south) of Aquatic Park. This was a 4 story brick warehouse, apparently leased, which was used as a military warehouse up into the 1960s. It is now the site of high rise apartment buildings named Fontana Apartments.

Camp Fornance, Macon, GA (See Camp Haskell)

· Probably named for Capt. James Fornance, 13th U.S. Inf., KIA at Santiago, Cuba.

Camp Fornance, Columbia, SC

Camp Albert G. Forse, Huntsville, AL (See Camp Wheeler)

· Named after Major Albert G. Forse, 1st U.S. Cavalry, who was KIA at San Juan Hill, July 1, 1898.

· Demobilization camp for 69th N.Y. Vol. Inf.

· Described in Empire State pages 146,151.

· A caption on a photo in the Huntsville-Madison County Public Library states: "Regular army soldiers camped on Monte Sano, 1898." Monte Sano Mountain is on the east side of Huntsville.

· According to Record, A Dream Come True, 1978, published by James Record, page 95: "The war ultimately brought about 14,000 soldiers to Huntsville, AL, mostly from the Tampa, Florida area. . . . The main body of soldiers arrived in August 1898. During the stay of the soldiers, the ante bellum Robinson homestead on Meridian Pike, Oaklawn, along with the Sullivan Home on Greene and Randolph were turned into military facilities. Soldiers were stationed all over the city. The Fifth Ohio Cavalry was at Brahan Spring; the Sixty-Ninth New York nearby; the Tenth and Second Cavalry was at West Huntsville; and the Second Georgia was on the William Moore place.

The Eighth Cavalry, Third Pennsylvania, Seventh Cavalry and Sixteenth Infantry were located on the Chapman Farm, while the Fifth Maryland Engineers and the First Florida were on the Steele place, where main headquarters were located, and the Second Brigade Hospital was located in Moore’s Grove. Others were in the College Grove near Randolph Street, and Calhoun Grove, as well as McCalley Grove. The Medical Supply House headquarters was on Holmes Street. Generals S. Koppinger and Joe Wheeler were successive commanders of the post, Camp Wheeler. When Wheeler assumed command, he changed the name to Camp Albert G. Forse." The name change occurred about November 9, 1898.

· Camp was abandoned March 7, 1899 according to the Huntsville Weekly Mercury of March 8, 1899.

Camp at Fort Macon, NC (See Camps Dan Russell and Bryan Grimes)

· This was the assembly and training camp for the 3rd N.C. Vol. Inf., an all-Black regiment which was commanded by Black officers, including its CO, James H. Young of Raleigh.

· The camp was outside the fort as the fort had been temporarily occupied by regular artillery troops.

· The camp was occupied from late May 1898 until the middle of September 1898 when the 3rd was transferred to Camp Poland in Knoxville.

· The information above was derived primarily from Richard S. Barry, The History of Fort Macon, unpublished Masters Thesis, Duke University, 1950.

Camp Foster, New Orleans, LA (See Camp H.C. Corbin)

· Named for the wartime governor, Murphy J. Foster, according to Annual Report of the Adjutant General of Louisiana for 1898, 1899.

· Muster in location for 1st and 2nd Louisiana Vol. Inf.

· Established at the fairgrounds about May 1, 1898 according to the Report. The 1st left New Orleans about June 1 and the 2nd about May 30.

· A photo in Harpers Weekly, May 7, 1898, page 442, bottom left, shows the camp at the New Orleans fairgrounds.

· An 1898 map of New Orleans indicates the fairgrounds were in the center of the city just to the east of City Park. A current map places the fairgrounds in the same location.

Camp Frank, Ardmore, Ind. T. (OK)

· According to source (8), this was a temporary post established in September 1898 by 2nd Lieutenant T. E. Morrill, 1st Artillery, with Battery G, from Fort Point at Galveston, Texas. Camp Frank was located one mile southeast of Ardmore in Carter County.

Camp J. B. Gibbs, General Hospital, Lexington, KY

· Charles Bogart believes this was at Camp Hamilton. At its opening on August 23, 1898, Camp Hamilton is listed in the Lexington newspapers as having the second largest army hospital.

Camp Gilman, Americus, GA

· Winter encampment during November-December, 1898, according to source (8).

Camp Graham, Tybee Island, GA

· Named for Brig. General William Montrose Graham (Maj. Gen. U. S. V.), commander of Atlantic Coast defenses, according to Adams, A History of Fort Screven, Georgia, JMA2 Publications, 1996, pages 18-19.

· See Gaines, Fort Screven: The Modern System of Defense at Savannah, 1886-1946; Coast Defense Study Group Journal, Vol. 3, No. 3, page 30. Capt. John M. L. Davis and Battery F of the 1st U.S. Artillery were sent to Tybee Island where Capt. Davis established Camp Graham on March 18, 1898. On May 5, 1899, the military reservation on Tybee Island was renamed Fort Screven.

Camp Grant, Newport News, VA

· Named after General U.S. Grant, father of Brig General F. D. Grant, commanding the Third Brigade, Third Division, First Army Corps, according to source (10), pages 24-26.

· According to source (10), established July 30, 1898 “on the banks of the James River” and abandoned August 21, 1898. This was a temporary tent camp located on the sand.

Camp Bryan Grimes, Raleigh, NC

· Established about April 23, 1898 as the muster in location for the 1st N.C. Vol. Inf. The 2nd N.C. Vol. Inf. was camped at the fairgrounds according to S. O. No. 9 of the Adjutant General of N.C. dated May 15, 1898. It is not clear whether the 1st regiment was also camped at the fairgrounds.

· A photograph identified as “1st Reg. N.C. Volunteers U.S.A. Camp Grimes, May 1898” shows an outdoor scene with several rows of small tents in a grove of trees.

Table of Contents

Index

Memorial On-Line Library of Historical Publications

Chase County Nebraska USGenWeb & AHGP Project

Livingston Cty Michigan USGenWeb & AHGP Project

For more information about any of the sites included under the umbrella of the LivGenMI site please contact Pam Rietsch at: pam@livgenmi.com