Way Back Wednesday in Calhoun County---September 19-25

The military has been part of Calhoun County since before the State of Alabama existed. Andrew Jackson stopped in the county to camp on his way to the Battle of Horseshoe Bend in 1814. The Confederate forces used the local iron mills for munitions manufacture during the Civil War. The Union Army came through the county, burning much of the valuable buildings and mills. After the Civil War, the U.S. Army took an interest in Anniston and Calhoun County as a training site.

When the United States entered the Spanish-American War, the federal government needed temporary camps in close proximity to the port of Mobile to house troops in preparation for deployment. Anniston was chosen as a quartering site in August 1898. Camp Shipp was established near Blue Mountain.

Col. William H. McKleroy, an Anniston resident, was largely responsible for the U.S. Army locating the camp near Seventeenth Street and Clydesdale Avenue. The Provost Marshal, the law enforcement branch, set up their camp at Thirteenth Street and Gurnee Avenue. Towards the end of the war, Camp Shipp became a hospital. The “Splendid Little War” was over so quickly, that Camp Shipp was closed by Spring 1899.

After the military camp closed in 1899, Alabama politicians campaigned to have the military return to Anniston. The military was pleased with the hospitality of the locals and Blue Mountain served as an able training ground. Working with the Alabama Congressional Delegation, the U.S. Army selected Anniston to host the Southern States Maneuvers in the Summer of 1912. Camp Pettus was a temporary camp, also known as a “tent camp”, set up near Blue Mountain to train troops from Alabama, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Florida, Georgia, and Kentucky in July and August 1912.

Camp Shipp and Camp Pettus were both positive experiences for the military. When the U.S. Army was scouting land to host an artillery training area in 1917, they selected Anniston. Just to the north of Anniston, in the area of Dark Corners, the military purchased the land from farmers to establish the camp. When World War I started, the purchase of the land was expedited. The farmers on the land were paid for both their land and planted crops in order for the U.S. Army to take custody of the land in July 1917.

The U.S. Army began construction on Camp McClellan, named for Union General George B. McClellan, in August 1917. The camp trained numerous soldiers during World War I. The camp retained permanent status in 1929 and was designated as Fort McClellan. The military and Calhoun County had a long history of working together for over 100 years. When Fort McClellan closed in 1999, the military retained a portion of the military base for the Alabama National Guard as well as the Anniston Ordnance Depot.

To learn more about the history of Calhoun County pick up a copy of Images of America: Calhoun County (ISBN 978-0738589985), Anniston (ISBN 978-0738506012), or Anniston Revisited (ISBN 978-1467114752) by Kimberly O’Dell.