The History of Fort Greely

Fort Greely is approximately 100 miles southeast of Fairbanks and 10 miles south of Delta Junction on the Richardson Highway. It lies at approximately 63° 58' N Latitude, 145° 45' W Longitude . The community is located in the Fairbanks Recording District. The area encompasses 26 sq. miles of land and 2 sq. miles of water.

In 1904 the U.S. Army Signal Corps completed the McCarthy Telegraph Station in this area. In 1942, in concert with the construction of the Alaska Highway, airfields were built as part of the lend/lease program with the Soviet Union. This program involved ferrying American-built fighter planes to Russia via a number of airfields in Canada and Alaska; one of these airfields later became Fort Greely. In 1948, Fort Greely became the Northern Warfare Training Center and the Cold Regions Test Center for the U.S. Army.

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History and map graphic used with permission from the Alaska Department of Community and Economic Development