A Step Back in Time

Picture this- You are 17 years-old. Fresh out of high school and fresh bait for military recruiters. You enlist right after graduation and are called up to attend basic training that October to a base on the coast of California right outside Monterey, California.

Before it was California State University, Monterey Bay Fort Ord was a military base. A favorite station of many, filled with soldiers, some who would see fame, and buildings that would bring character for the future.

Fort Ord opened its gates in 1917. Formerly known as Camp Gigling, Fort Ord was renamed after Major General Edward Cresap Ord who distinguished himself during the Civil War and the capture of Fort Harrison, Virginia.

Catherine Whitney, author of Soldiers Once: My Brother and the Lost Dreams of America’s Veterans (2010), wrote that more than half a million troops were stationed at Fort Ord over the almost 80 years it was active. A few troops who were stationed at Fort Ord and would later become well-known celebrities included, Clark Gable, Clint Eastwood, and Jimmy Hendrix.

With the addition of thousands of soldiers after July 1940, multiple structures were built to accommodate the needs of these soldiers, since a majority of their time was spent on base grounds. The soldier’s service recreation complex began construction in 1940. According to nimst.tripod.com, the idea for the complex was the vision of General Joseph W. Stilwell. It was his belief that soldiers should have a place to go and relax on their off time. “This project was started on the basis that it was high time to stop talking about suitable recreational facilities for enlisted men....and doing something about it,” said Stilwell about the reason for installing the project. According to the website, the Soldiers’ Club, later renamed Stilwell Hall, ended being the first and only building to be included in the complex which originally called for a gymnasium, stadium, non-comissioned officers club, tennis courts and athletic fields, as well as a chapel.

Some of what was built during the same time as Stilwell Hall has been converted to what we see today as the CSUMB campus. The University Center and bookstore used to be the Fort Ord Pomeroy Recreation Center, a place where soldiers could relax during minimal free time they had. At the recreation center there were pool tables, ping pong tables, a library, and soundproof rooms where soldiers could check out records to listen to with fellow soldiers, while they day dreamed about home. The IT center used to be the headquarters of the 2nd Brigade, 7th Infantry Division. The central campus meeting house used to be one of the many chapels on the base. The classrooms and administration offices on 6th Avenue used to be some of the fort’s barracks. East Campus used to be home to married officers and sergeant’s stationed at the base. The second and third floors of the resident’s halls used to hold roughly a hundred plus soldiers and sergeants while the first floors were the mess halls where soldiers would get their daily chow.

According to Wayne Hulburt, a veteran who conducted basic training at Fort Ord from October to December of 1963, the cities of Monterey and Carmel was what made being stationed at the base so appealing to soldiers. The same of what often appeals to many students today making the decision to attend CSUMB. “The view of Monterey and Carmel was beautiful…I would have wanted to be stationed there [Fort Ord] more than anything.”

Fort Ord has a history that will live on as long as there is a campus to remember its legacy. For past and future graduates, CSUMB will be the place where they found their future. For past soldiers, Fort Ord will always be the place where they made their future. Sgt. Thomas Butler said it best, “I will always remember Ft. Ord as the place where I came of age as a career soldier.”