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Fort Benning renamed for one of its greatest heros
Fort Benning, Georgia, is no more. The U.S. Army’s premier training base for ground combat troops was officially renamed Fort Moore on Thursday in honor of the late Lt. Gen. Hal Moore and his wife Julia Moore. The change is part of the Department of Defense’s ongoing efforts to rename bases that were previously named after Confederate leaders.
Lt. Gen. Moore, a highly decorated Korean, and Vietnam War veteran, is best known for his heroic leadership during the Battle of Ia Drang Valley. The battle is considered a turning point in the Vietnam War and helped shape modern air assault tactics. The conflict marked the first significant employment of modern air attack tactics, such as soldiers being quickly inserted into action and wounded being retrieved by helicopters.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Georgia's Fort Benning renamed Fort Moore <br><br>Losing their local history, smh.<a href="https://t.co/yp2c0viUjK">https://t.co/yp2c0viUjK</a></p>— Moderate Conservative, Blue cities are Sad cities (@Moderat_Conserv) <a href="https://twitter.com/Moderat_Conserv/status/1657027306785742854?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 12, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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Beyond his battlefield accomplishments, Lt. Gen. Moore was also an initiator for equal opportunity in the Army. He implemented various policies and programs aimed at promoting diversity and inclusion, that too at a time, when the Army was integrating black soldiers into previously all-white units.
In the 1970s, Moore oversaw Army personnel policy and implemented the service’s first major equal opportunity policies, including having soldiers from racial minority groups serve on officer selection boards, efforts to recruit more Black officers and various race-relations training programs.
Julia Moore, his wife, was also a significant figure in the Army community. After her husband’s death, she pushed for changes in the way families of fallen soldiers were notified. Her efforts led to a procedure still in use today, in which a soldier in a dress uniform delivers the news of a loved one’s death, accompanied by a chaplain. She also worked as a volunteer at the Red Cross, on-base day-care centers, and hospitals.
Fort Moore, formerly Fort Benning, is one of nine Army bases being renamed to honor service members and their families. All the new names honor military figures, except for Fort Bragg, North Carolina, which will be renamed Fort Liberty on June 2.
The renaming of Fort Moore is an important step in acknowledging the contributions of military figures who embody the values of the Army and promote diversity and inclusion. The legacy of Lt. Gen. Hal Moore and Julia Moore will now be forever immortalized at Fort Moore, a fitting tribute to their service and sacrifice.
