Everything about Fort Knox totally explained
Fort Knox is a
United States Army post in
Kentucky south of
Louisville and north of
Elizabethtown. The base covers parts of
Bullitt,
Hardin, and
Meade Counties. It holds the U.S. Army Armor Center, the U.S. Army Armor School and the U.S. Army Recruiting Command. It is also the site of the
U.S. Bullion Depository and the
General George Patton Museum, both located on or near the army post. Parts of the base in Hardin and Meade Counties form a
census-designated place (CDP), which had a population of 12,377 at the
2000 census.
Fort Knox has become an almost colloquial term in the English language, its name associated with high-tech security, impregnability and excess amounts of wealth. This occurrence has become proliferated due to the use of the site in media such as the 1959
James Bond novel
Goldfinger by
Ian Fleming, and the
1964 movie of the same name and its appearance in the
1981 comedy film
Stripes, both of which utilize the large-scale security of the fort in the main narrative. Fort Knox is also mentioned in the
System of a Down song, "B.Y.O.B."
For more information on the security and gold located at Fort Knox, see the article on the
Fort Knox Bullion Depository.
History
Fortification
Fortifications were constructed near the site in 1861, during the
Civil War when
Fort Duffield was constructed. Fort Duffield was located on what was known as
Muldraugh Hill on a strategic point overlooking the confluence of the
Salt and
Ohio Rivers and the
Louisville and Nashville Turnpike. The area was contested by both
Union and
Confederate forces. Bands of organized guerrillas frequently raided the area during the war.
John Hunt Morgan the 2nd Kentucky Cavalry for the confederate army raided the area before staging his famous raid on
Indiana and
Ohio known as
Morgan's Raid.
Post war
After the war, the area now occupied by the Army was home to various small communities. In October 1903, military maneuvers for the Regular Army and the National Guards of several states were held at
West Point, Kentucky and the surrounding area. In April 1918, field artillery units from
Camp Zachary Taylor arrived at West Point for training. 10,000 acres (40 km²) near to the village of Stithton were leased to the government and construction for a permanent training center was started in July 1918.
New camp
The new camp was named after
Henry Knox, the
Continental Army's chief of artillery during the
Revolutionary War and the country's first
Secretary of War. The camp was extended by the purchase of a further 40,000 acres (162 km²) in June 1918 and construction properly began in July 1918. The building program was reduced following the end of the war and reduced further following cuts to the army in 1921 after the
National Defense Act of 1920. The camp was greatly reduced and became a semi-permanent training center for the 5th Corps Area for Reserve Officer training, the National Guard, and Citizen's Military Training Camps (CMTC). For a short while, from 1925 to 1928, the area was designated as "Camp Henry Knox National Forest."
Mechanized military unit occupation
In 1931 a small force of the
mechanized cavalry was assigned to Camp Knox to use it as a training site. The camp was turned into a permanent
garrison in January 1932 and renamed Fort Knox. The
1st Cavalry Regiment arrived later in the month to become the 1st Cavalry Regiment (Mechanized).
In 1936 the 1st was joined by the 13th to become the 7th Cavalry Brigade (Mechanized). The site quickly became the center for mechanization tactics and doctrine. The success of the
German mechanized units at the start of
World War II was a major impetus to operations at the fort. A new Armored Force was established in July 1940 with its headquarters at Fort Knox with the 7th Cavalry Brigade becoming the
1st Armored Division. The Armored Force School and the Armored Force Replacement Center were also sited at Fort Knox in October 1940, and their successors remain located there today. The site was expanded to cope with its new role. By 1943, there were 3,820 buildings on 106,861 acres (432 km²). A third of the base has been torn down within the last ten years, with another third slated by 2010.
Current uses
The history of
George S. Patton's armor division can be found at the
General George Patton Museum which resides at Fort Knox.
Fort Knox is one of the places where the Army conducts
Basic Combat Training and it's home to the Army
ROTC Leader's Training Course, under the auspices of the
46th Infantry Regiment, and is used by both the Army and the
Marine Corps to train crews on the
M1 Abrams main battle tank. From 1967 to 1994, the post was home to the
194th Armored Brigade, a combat unit which, amongst other duties, assisted Armored School training. The 194th has been reactivated as the unit responsible for armor training.
The
U.S. Department of the Treasury has maintained the
Bullion Depository on the post since 1937. This facility is operated by the Treasury Department and is independent of the Army's operations there.
Current units
- 16th Cavalry Regiment
- 1st Squadron
- 2nd Squadron
- 3rd Squadron
194th Armored Brigade
- 81st Armored Regiment
- 1st Battalion
- 2nd Battalion
- 3rd Battalion
- 15th Cavalry Regiment
- 46th Infantry Regiment
- 1st Battalion
- 2nd Battalion
Ireland Army Community Hospital
46th Adjutant General Battalion
113th Band
34th Military Police Detachment
19th Engineer Battalion
Geography
Fort Knox is located at 37°53'34" North, 85°58'29" West (37.892809, -85.974709), along the Ohio River. The depository itself is located at 37°53'00" North, 85°57'56" West (37.883333, -85.965556).
According to the Census Bureau, the base CDP has a total area of 20.9 square miles (54.2 km²), of which 20.9 square miles (54.2 km²) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²), 0.14%, is water.
Communities near Fort Knox include Brandenburg, Elizabethtown, Hodgenville, Louisville, Radcliff, Sheperdsville, and Vine Grove, Kentucky
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 12,377 people, 2,748 households, and 2,596 families residing on base. The population density was 591.7 people per square mile (228.4/km²). There were 3,015 housing units at an average density of 144.1/sq mi (55.6/km²). The racial makeup of the base was 66.32% White, 23.08% African American, 0.73% Native American, 1.65% Asian, 0.44% Pacific Islander, 4.17% from other races, and 3.63% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.35% of the population.
There were 2,748 households out of which 77.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 86.0% were married couples living together, 6.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 5.5% were non-families. 4.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 0.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.49 and the average family size was 3.60.
The age distribution was 34.9% under the age of 18, 25.5% from 18 to 24, 37.2% from 25 to 44, 2.3% from 45 to 64, and 0.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 22 years. For every 100 females there were 155.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 190.3 males. These statistics are generally typical for military bases.
The median income for a household on the base was $34,020, and the median income for a family was $33,588. Males had a median income of $26,011 versus $21,048 for females. The per capita income for the base was $12,410. About 5.8% of the population and 6.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.6% of those under the age of 18 and 100.0% of those 65 and older.
Further Information
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