Fort Lewis (Tacoma, Washington)

Tacoma · Washington · World War I

Quick BriefIn 1917, Pierce County voters approved a $2 million bond to purchase 70,000 acres for donation to the federal government, establishing Camp Lewis, named on July 18, 1917, in honor of Meriwether Lewis of the Lewis and Clark expedition. In 90 days, 757 buildings and 422 other structures were constructed for 60,000 men, making it the largest of the World War I cantonments at 70,000 acres with nearly 50,000 men at peak strength.

Active base today

History & Significance

Camp Lewis was the first military installation in the nation to be created as the direct result of an outright gift of land by citizens themselves. Construction quartermaster Captain David C. Stone arrived May 26, 1917, to initiate construction.

The first recruits arrived on September 5, 1917, with 37,000 officers, cadre, garrison, and trainees on post by December 31. Camp Lewis stood apart from the other 15 National Army cantonments by its great size and isolation, at 70,000 acres with nearly twice the territory of the next largest camp, giving it a unique frontier identity as soldiers from western states embodied the spirit of the 91st "Wild Western" Division and the 13th "Horseshoe" Division.

After nine months of training, the 91st Division, 27,000 strong, shipped out June 21–24, 1918, for Europe. In 1917, Pierce County took 3,370 acres of the Nisqually Indian Reservation through eminent domain for the Fort Lewis Military Reserve.

With the conclusion of World War I, activities at Camp Lewis ground to a standstill. In March 1926, Congress passed a 10-year building plan to revitalize Army posts, and on September 30, 1927, Camp Lewis was redesignated a fort. Fort Lewis was merged with McChord Air Force Base on February 1, 2010, to form Joint Base Lewis–McChord.