During the 18th century, Great Britain was at the peak of colonizing lands and kingdoms, and America was one of their iconic colony. Back then, the soils of America are filled with British colonizers that settled mostly in the state of New York. New York’s neighboring states, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Vermont, are an integral part of American history in waging the war of independence against the British Empire.
In 1776, as part of the history of New York City, they declared their independence from the British Empire together with twelve British colonies in North America. Since then, the state of New York became the home of the nation’s vital military bases, with over eight hundred thousand veterans in residence dating today. This includes members of the US military in active service.
Having New York State as a significant part of the US military history, the nation installed five major military bases in the entire state. Feel free to check their description and domain below.
Fort Drum Army Base
Fort Drum is home to the Tenth Mountain Division, otherwise known as Team Mountain. Its military base is located in the Thousand Islands region of the Northern part of New York state. When it comes to deployment in the United States Army, Team Mountain is one of the most deployed units.
In most cases, the Tenth Mountain Division is deployed chiefly during the war in Iraq and Afghanistan to be both in service for Desert Shield and Storm, especially for military operations on the War on Terror. Other military operations include Haiti for upholding the country’s democracy, Somalia for hope restoration, and other peacekeeping operations that involved different countries. Team Mountain was also deployed for service during Hurricane Sandy for order restoration and search of livable conditions.
Fort Hamilton Army Base
This military base is one of the US bases located in a major urban area, which is in the center of Brooklyn in New York City. Fort Hamilton includes the Military Entrance Processing Station, and it’s a military base without a permanent host unit due to its location. At the same time, its servicemen are composed of combined active duty service members from different branches of the army, including the reserves and employees from the Department of Defense. Their primary mission includes military support to the Army National Guard and the United States Army Reserve.
US Military Academy Army Base
This is a short-term for the United States Military Academy (USMA), or more popularly known as The Academy. For New Yorkers, it is called The Point or simply as West Point, hence its location in New York. USMA is one of the four most prestigious military academies in the United States that upholds its mission to educate, train, and inspire cadets in serving the country while advocating its core values of duty, honor, and country immediately after graduation.
Enrollment to this academy is free of cost, but all applicants must receive a nomination from their US representative or even the Senate to enter. Payment for education provided by the academy is to serve the country for a certain number of years that depends entirely on your military program of study. Then after graduation from the academy, cadets will be commissioned to second lieutenants and will serve the country as officers of the United States Army.
NSA Saratoga Springs
This military base was only officially renamed NSA Saratoga Springs in October in the year 2010. But, it was initially known as the Naval Administrative Unit (NAU) by the time it was established in 1974. NSA Saratoga Springs’ primary objective is to support the Naval Nuclear Power Training Unit (NPTU) that is responsible for training sailors for nuclear equipment operations and onboarding the US Navy aircraft and submarines.
Watervliet Arsenal Army Base
Established in 1812, the Watervliet Arsenal Army Base is the single facility in the entire country that mass produces large-caliber cannons and the most advanced high-powered cannons, mortars, and howitzers. This army base is under the direct command of the United States Army. Its primary objective is to provide promptness and flexibility as a specialized weaponry manufacturer to the joint military force using precision engineering.