Camp Pendleton is a 325 acres (1.3 km²) state military reservation in Virginia Beach, Virginia

Virginia Beach, Virginia

Virginia Beach is an independent city located in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of Virginia, on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay...

, named after Brigadier General William N. Pendleton

William N. Pendleton

William Nelson Pendleton was an American teacher, Episcopal priest, and soldier. He served as a Confederate general during the American Civil War, noted for his position as Gen. Robert E. Lee's chief of artillery for most of the conflict...

, who served as Robert E. Lee

Robert E. Lee

Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....

's chief of artillery during the Civil War. It lies on the Atlantic coast adjoining Naval Air Station Oceana

Naval Air Station Oceana

Naval Air Station Oceana or NAS Oceana is a military airport located in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and is a United States Navy Master Jet Base. It is also known as Apollo Soucek Field, named after Lieutenant Apollo Soucek, a Navy Test Pilot who set the global altitude record in 1930 by flying a...

.

History

The facility was created in 1912 as the State Rifle Range for the use of the state militia. Between 1922 and 1942, it was named after the then serving Governor of Virginia. During both World Wars, the base was federalized. In World War I it was used by the U.S. Navy for coastal artillery training, and was controlled by Army during World War II, who first applied the name Camp Pendleton.

Current use

The operation and maintenance of Camp Pendleton is funded primarily by the federal government

Federal government of the United States

The federal government of the United States is the national government of the constitutional republic of fifty states that is the United States of America. The federal government comprises three distinct branches of government: a legislative, an executive and a judiciary. These branches and...

 through the National Guard Bureau, and its primary purpose is the training of personnel and organizations of the Virginia National Guard

Virginia National Guard

The Virginia National Guard consists of the Virginia Army National Guard and the Virginia Air National Guard. It is part of the Government of Virginia though the National Guard across the United States is mostly funded by federal monies. The Constitution of the United States specifically charges...

, as well as other states' National Guard units and components of the U.S. Armed Forces

United States armed forces

The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard.The United States has a strong tradition of civilian control of the military...

. When the facilities are not use by military organizations, state and local civilian agencies also conduct training at the site. Its facilities include a small arms

Small arms

Small arms is a term of art used by armed forces to denote infantry weapons an individual soldier may carry. The description is usually limited to revolvers, pistols, submachine guns, carbines, assault rifles, battle rifles, multiple barrel firearms, sniper rifles, squad automatic weapons, light...

 range, helicopter landing strip, classrooms, barracks, dining halls, maintenance garages, training fields, and a chapel. Other tenants include the 203rd RED HORSE

Rapid Engineer Deployable Heavy Operational Repair Squadron Engineers

United States Air Force Rapid Engineer Deployable Heavy Operational Repair Squadron Engineers units are the Service's equivalent of the USMC Combat Engineers and Navy Seabees....

 Air National Guard, and Military Sealift Command

Military Sealift Command

The Military Sealift Command is a United States Navy organization that controls most of the replenishment and military transport ships of the Navy. It first came into existence on 9 July 1949 when the Military Sea Transportation Service became solely responsible for the Department of Defense's...

, whose facilities are leased to the federal government by the State of Virginia.

Future

When the facility was created it was in a relatively remote, sparsely populated area, but since then, the City of Virginia Beach has grown and developed around it, leading to concerns over safety issues. The role of Camp Pendleton is also changing, as more National Guard training takes place at the much larger Fort Pickett

Fort Pickett

Fort Pickett, Virginia, is a Virginia Army National Guard installation, located near the town of Blackstone, Virginia. It is named for the United States Army officer and Confederate General George Pickett.- Beginnings :...

. This has led to repeated requests by the City authorities to convert it to other uses, including complete or partial conversion to a state park

State park

State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...

.

External links

• Camp Pendleton ~ State Military Reservation