Story by: Capt. Michael Meyer, 358th Public Affairs Detachment
MARYSVILLE, Wash. - On Feb. 25 2012, the U.S. Army Reserve officially closed Fort Lawton and ceremonially transferred the post colors to the city of Seattle. The public joined in honoring 111 years of Fort Lawton’s military history from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on the day of the ceremony.
An outdoor flag ceremony was held at 10 a.m. in Seattle at the 2nd Lt. Robert R. Leisy U.S. Army Reserve Center at 4570 Texas Way West with a reception followed at the Daybreak Star Indian Cultural Center, 3801 West Government Way.
Pictured: Alpha soldiers of the 1/377 Field Artillery out of Fort Lewis, Wash., prepare to take part in Fort Lawton's Decommissioning Ceremony Feb. 25.
Guest speakers included Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, Congressman Jim McDermott, Maj. Gen. William D. Frink Jr. the Commander of the 79th Sustainment Support Command, and special guest speaker, Maj. Gen. (Retired) James Collins the Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army for the state of Washington.
Fort Lawton has a long and storied history, as described in several books and newspaper articles over the past century. According to the official Seattle website, Fort Lawton was established on Feb. 9, 1900 on 2.8 square kilometers of land to honor Maj. Gen. Henry Ware Lawton, a veteran of the Civil War, Indian, and Spanish-American campaigns who died in the Philippines. During World War II, Fort Lawton was the second-largest deployment site on the West Coast, training and deploying nearly one million troops overseas. Fort Lawton also held more than 1,100 German prisoners of war, and sent more than 5,000 Italian POWs to Hawaii.
In 1964 the Secretary of Defense announced that at least 85 percent of Fort Lawton land would be declared surplus, and should be given back to the community at no cost to state and local agencies.
In 1972, and several times afterward, parcels of Fort Lawton land were returned to the Seattle community to become Discovery Park. The future of the last portion of land used by the military, known as the Fort Lawton Army Reserve Complex, will be determined by the federal government and the city of Seattle at some point in the future.
Over the years, numerous major Army Reserve headquarters have called Fort Lawton home. In 1968, the 124th Army Reserve Command was activated with a headquarters on Fort Lawton and was assigned the mission of preparing its subordinate units to mobilize and perform wartime tasks. The 364th Expeditionary Sustainment Command, a component of the 79th SSC, is the last Army Reserve unit to leave Fort Lawton and is now based in Marysville, Wash.
Fort Lawton has a long and storied history, as described in several books and newspaper articles over the past century. According to the official Seattle website, Fort Lawton was established on Feb. 9, 1900 on 2.8 square kilometers of land to honor Maj. Gen. Henry Ware Lawton, a veteran of the Civil War, Indian, and Spanish-American campaigns who died in the Philippines. During World War II, Fort Lawton was the second-largest deployment site on the West Coast, training and deploying nearly one million troops overseas. Fort Lawton also held more than 1,100 German prisoners of war, and sent more than 5,000 Italian POWs to Hawaii.
In 1964 the Secretary of Defense announced that at least 85 percent of Fort Lawton land would be declared surplus, and should be given back to the community at no cost to state and local agencies.
In 1972, and several times afterward, parcels of Fort Lawton land were returned to the Seattle community to become Discovery Park. The future of the last portion of land used by the military, known as the Fort Lawton Army Reserve Complex, will be determined by the federal government and the city of Seattle at some point in the future.
Over the years, numerous major Army Reserve headquarters have called Fort Lawton home. In 1968, the 124th Army Reserve Command was activated with a headquarters on Fort Lawton and was assigned the mission of preparing its subordinate units to mobilize and perform wartime tasks. The 364th Expeditionary Sustainment Command, a component of the 79th SSC, is the last Army Reserve unit to leave Fort Lawton and is now based in Marysville, Wash.
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