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WHAT A DIFFERENCE 50 years makes in security! As a kid, I rode my bike through the gate onto Fort Myer with a friendly wave from the MP on duty.
I thought about that a couple of days ago as I waited in a long line of cars to get into the base, undergoing a thorough search of my car from the MPs.
The little outpost the Army built to guard the nation's capital during the Civil War is still there; still holding the high ground overlooking downtown Washington, still home to the famed 3rd Infantry Regiment--the spit-and-polish Old Guard.
Fort Myer, long a showcase Army post, has changed a lot from those days just after World War II. It's busier, has many modern buildings and tons more vehicular traffic. And it is still a small military base, squeezed into the eastern corner of Arlington, smallest of America's counties, flanking the west side of Arlington National Cemetery.
The fort grew out of forts Whipple and Cass, two small artillery outposts guarding approaches to the bridge at Georgetown.
I knew that even as a kid, though I surely never thought of it in those words. Riding along the quiet, tree-lined avenue down "generals' row," we passed the stately homes of the Army's top brass. The list of names who have occupied those homes reads like a Who's Who of the 20th-century history of the U.S. Army: Leonard Wood, Douglas MacArthur, Dwight Eisenhower, George C. Marshall, Hugh Scott and many more. Just prior to the Second World War, the post commander was a colonel by the name of George S. Patton Jr.
Impressed as I was with the post, I little imagined as a bicycling boy that I would one day be a soldier and develop, well, a different view of the military and life in uniform.
I knew nothing of Fort Myer's past, not even that it was named for Brig. Gen. Albert J. Myer Jr., a physician who became the Army's first Chief Signal Officer. Two years before the Civil War, Myer developed the first practical signal system for the Army. A versatile and bright leader, he also created the precursor to the National Weather Service.
Renamed to honor Myer at his death, in 1881, the fort became home to the Signal Corps and, later, for the Army's mounted troops. When Army signal functions were transferred elsewhere in 1887, it became an all-mounted post, being home to the 3rd, 9th and 10th cavalries, the two last being units of the Buffalo Soldiers.
And while it has long since been neither a Signal nor Cavalry post for the Army, its stables remain even today, home to the service's ceremonial horses.
My childhood friend, Fred True, remembers that major horse shows were often held at the post. "My folks used to take me to the horse shows there, when I was 4 or 5," he recalled, and the arena where the shows were held still stands.
I learned from the Old Guard Museum, opposite the historic parade ground, that Fort Myer was, for 50 years or more, home to the U.S. Olympic Equestrian Team.
In 1949, President Truman reactivated the 3rd Infantry Regiment (Old Guard) at Fort Myer, where it has remained since. This is the oldest and arguably most historic unit in the Army, its origins dating to 1784, when its immediate predecessor was established by Congress to provide defense of the western Colonial frontier.
Since that time, the 3rd Infantry has played a major role in nearly every major conflict in which the country has been involved, through Vietnam.
I never imagined I could be so captivated by the history of a single military unit as I was by this one. But in the Old Guard Museum, I could scarcely believe the vital role played by the 3rd Infantry. From the French and Indian War through Vietnam, the story of the 3rd Infantry reads like the story of America. In this brief space I would not attempt to recount those episodes.
Today, the Old Guard is a key ceremonial and support element of the Army in the national capital area and the Military District of Washington. When an Army unit is seen at its best on display in Washington, it is almost always part of the 3rd Infantry.
Fort Myer, perhaps overshadowed by the world-famous Arlington National Cemetery immediately adjacent, is well worth a visit if you don't mind putting up with the security check.
I'd suggest visiting the museum first. Just ask the MPs for directions. At the museum, pick up a copy of the helpful brochure "Fort Myer, A Stroll Through Time." It includes a map and directions for a great walking tour of the post. Don't miss the century-old stables, which are still home to the Old Guard Caisson Platoon. Unfortunately, I missed the stable tours, held daily from noon until 4 p.m.
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I could say "correction" or "errata," but I'd rather say: I blew it.
Last week I wrote of Mary Washington College biology professor Joella Killian that "insects were not her field." Wrong. Having known Killian for at least a few years and gone on several field outings with her, I don't know how I could have made such a goof. Just for the record, she has a doctorate in entomology. Insects, in other words, are her field.
PAUL SULLIVAN, a former reporter with The Free Lance-Star, is a freelance writer living in Spotsylvania County. Contact him by mail at The Free Lance-Star, 616 Amelia St., Fredericksburg, Va., 22401; by fax at 373-8455; or by e-mail to PBSullivan2@cs.com.
