port of the soldiers in the seven-state area, with a particular focus on the Reserves, the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC), and the National Guard.6
which was smaller than the American arsenal, but still formidable. Americans were painfully aware after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor that the measure of security afforded by geographic separation from Europe and Asia was waning, but Hawaii was still a significant distance from the American mainland. The Soviet development of the TU-4 and their possession of nuclear weapons removed that remaining sense of security, because it meant for the first time that an adversary could decimate America’s largest cities from above.3 Faced with what it deemed to be an ideological threat and advances in technology that undermined the security historically provided by geographical separation, the United States abandoned isolationism as the fundamental guiding principle of its foreign policy. It adopted a policy of “containment,” which was intended to check the expansion of communism throughout the world. In order to enact its policy of containment, the United States developed a military that was able to project power worldwide in defense of liberty.4
Post-War Change in Fort McPherson’s Built Environment Fort McPherson had undergone an unprecedented construction boom during the war years. As wartime activities waned, the post was left with an abundance of new building stock. This allowed the post to repurpose many buildings rather than engage in extensive new construction.7
Post-War New Construction
With the exception of the new boiler plant (Building 208) constructed in 1948, new construction at Fort McPherson was intended to address the critical post-war housing shortage. It was the first new construction activity at the post since the building of the Reception Center and the expansion of the hospital complex. The army allocated approximately $800,000 for the 1947 construction of 22 two-story brick houses (Buildings 506-538 and 601-605) that served as quarters for officers and their families. Two years later, the Army provided two new quarters (Buildings 409 and 410) for non-commissioned officers.8
Fort McPherson in the late 1940s In the summer of 1945, the Fourth Service Command Headquarters began planning for the post-war period. The headquarters had occupied 147,929 square feet of office space in the old post office and six other downtown Atlanta office buildings since November 6, 1934. Among other options, the Fourth Service Command considered moving its headquarters to Fort McPherson, but it was unable to because the post buildings were fully utilized by Fort McPherson’s Separation Center. As Fort McPherson was the most desirable destination, the Fourth Service Command decided to postpone the relocation of its headquarters.5 On June 11, 1946, the Seventh U.S. Army returned from duty in Germany and assumed the duties and offices of the Fourth Service Command in downtown Atlanta. Fort McPherson’s Separation Center was deactivated on June 30, 1946, and the Seventh Army subsequently selected the post as the location for its new headquarters, with the move commencing in September of that year. The Seventh Army’s stay at Fort McPherson was brief, as it was replaced by the Headquarters, Third U.S. Army on March 15, 1947, when it returned from service in the European Theater. The Third Army contingent at Fort McPherson was the administrative headquarters for the Third Army’s area of geographic responsibility in the southeastern states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Its mission was to supervise the training and sup-
New Functions for Existing Buildings
In 1947, the Army spent $205,000 to prepare Building 210 and 22 other buildings that were part of the former Reception Center for occupation by the Headquarters, Third Army. Twenty barracks were converted to provide apartments for officers and non-commissioned officers. Part of the Reception Center’s large mess hall became the Post Exchange Cafeteria, while the remainder was set aside as office space for the headquarters’ Information Section. The following year, the Army converted the large reception center storehouse into the Civilian Personnel Office and the Civilian Club.9
Third Army Headquarters in Patton Hall (Building 210), c. 1950. Note the Encircled A that is the Symbol of Third U.S. Army.
102