US Army renames military base in honor of 2 pioneering Black officers

By Firdevs Bulut Kartal

TORONTO, (AA) - The US Army renamed Fort Lee military base in Virginia on Thursday in honor of two pioneering Black army officers, marking a first in US history.

In a ceremony marking the event, the base was renamed Fort Gregg-Adams in honor of Lt. Gen. Arthur Gregg and Lt . Col. Charity Adams.

Adams served as the highest-ranking Black woman officer during World War II. She was born in 1918 and passed away in 2022.

Gregg, 94, enlisted in the army in 1946, two years before President Harry Truman signed an executive order to desegregate the military. Upon his retirement as a three-star general in 1981, he was the highest-ranking Black officer in the US military. He also becomes the first living person in modern US history to have a base named after them.

“We are deeply honored to have Lt. Gen. Arthur Gregg and Lt. Col. Charity Adams as the new namesakes for our installation,” said Major General Mark Simerly, commanding general of the US Army Combined Arms Support Command and senior commander of Fort Lee.

"I want you to know how proud I am to share this very special honor with Lt. Charity Adams," said Gregg in his speech at the ceremony.

"I hope that this community will look with pride on the name Fort Gregg-Adams and that the name will instill pride in every soldier entering our mighty gates," he said.

In a press conference after the ceremony, Gregg described Fort Lee as his "professional home,” adding he has a longstanding history with the military base and is overwhelmed by the honor of his name being given to the facility.

Fort Lee was among nine facilities selected as part of the process of redesigning military bases named after Confederate leaders, said a statement from the US Army.