Naval Support Activity, New Orleans
Encyclopedia
The Naval Support Activity, New Orleans was a former United States Navy
installation. During its time in operation, it was the largest military installation in greater New Orleans. It hosts activities for other branches of service
and federal agencies.
The installation met the needs of military personnel
, both in and behind the battle. Home to nearly 3900 active-duty and 2,700 civilian personnel, the facility spreads over both banks of the Mississippi River
.
The base was home to:
The base was previously home to Commander, Navy Reserve Forces Command
, until that command's relocation to Naval Station Norfolk
, Virginia in March 2009 pursuant to Base Realignment and Closure
2005.
Established in the early 1900s, but inactive for long periods, the facility was reborn in 1939. Between 1944 and 1966, the base progressed from a U.S. Naval Station
to the Headquarters, Support Activity, New Orleans. In 1966, the Army, which owned the property on the river's east bank, transferred ownership to the Navy, thus establishing the New Orleans Naval Support Activity command.
Base housing was limited to 300 units. Other amenities include a 22-unit Navy lodge, family service center, childcare center for 42, a medium-sized commissary
and base exchange
, and a healthcare clinic. Recreational activities include arts and crafts
, auto hobby center, and a library
.
, founder of New Orleans, in 1719 by the Compagnie des Indes. The land changed hands numerous times before being purchased by the United States government on 1849-02-14 for the site of a proposed Navy yard. The Navy yard was not built, however, and the land was leased off for farming. In May of that year, additional ground was purchased by the Navy to enlarge the original site.
In November 1901, the Naval Dry Dock
arrived and the US Naval Station was formally established. In 1902, the Commandant
, Eighth Naval District received almost $4 million for the new buildings and improvements to the station. Additional property was obtained in 1903 giving the Navy almost three-fourths of a mile of valuable river frontage
.
The original buildings, some of which still stand, were completed on the site in 1903. Also located on the grounds is the LeBeuf-Ott Country Retreat, built in 1840. Today, that home is known simply as Quarters "A" and is occupied by the area's senior Naval flag officer
.
The Naval Station remained open until September 1911. Following four years of inactivity, it was reopened in 1915 as an industrial Navy yard for repair of vessels. The station continued in full operation until June 1933, when it was placed in a maintenance status. During the Great Depression, the Louisiana Emergency Relief Administration and later, the WPA, operated the third largest transient camp in the United States on the Naval Station. Opened in May 1934, the transient camp sheltered, worked, and trained approximately 25,000 homeless men before it closed in March 1936. In December 1939, the station was reactivated and eventually became a base to handle transient naval personnel. In August 1940, the Navy transferred the YFD-2 to Pearl Harbor, where it was sunk during the attack on December 7, 1941 as it drydocked the .
In September 1944, the station was designated the US Naval repair base. However, just three years later, it was designated the US Naval Station, a name it held until January 1962, when it became the Headquarters, Support Activity, New Orleans. The latter name came about to reflect the fact that the Headquarters
, Eighth Naval District was aboard the station as a regular tenant.
The 30 acres (121,405.8 m²) of land and three buildings have a history that began in June 1919, when the buildings were constructed for the US Army Quartermaster Corps for use as a general logistical depot during World War I
.
These buildings were partially used by the QM Corps after completion until February 1931, when buildings 601 and 602 were leased to the Board of Commissioners, Port of New Orleans
.
With the advent of World War II
, the lease was canceled and the installation reverted to complete use by the military. After the QM Corps gave up the buildings, the official title became the New Orleans Port of Embarkation. In 1955, the tract of land was known as the New Orleans Army Terminal. In 1965 the name was changed to the New Orleans Army Base.
in the mid-1960s. In June 1966, the New Orleans Army Base transferred to the Navy. July 1966 saw the disestablishment of the Headquarters, Support Activity and the establishment of the Naval Support Activity to reflect the changing mission of the station. With this change in mission and designation, both sides of the river began serving as the Naval Support Activity for the first time.
Today, the Naval Support Activity is the host for the Headquarters of the nation's Marine Corps Reserve forces and a portion of its Navy Reserve
forces, along with approximately 40 other command serving all aspects of military life.
The following is taken from http://www.brac.gov/:
The Naval Support Activity New Orleans was on the list of proposed military bases to be closed, submitted to the 2005 Defense Base Closure and Realignment (BRAC) Commission. New Orleans, Louisiana, and Federal officials proposed that the base be converted to a "Federal City", housing regional Homeland Security offices and other federal agencies. This idea was considered favorably by the BRAC commissioners who were touring the base. Apparently this idea was accepted, because in the September 8, 2005 BRAC Commission Final Report Submitted to the President, the Naval Support Activity is not included in the list of facilities to be closed.
The base is currently scheduled to be closed on September 15th 2011. The base will be replaced with the New Orleans Federal City.
The base closed as scheduled on 15 September 2011.
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
installation. During its time in operation, it was the largest military installation in greater New Orleans. It hosts activities for other branches of service
Military of the United States
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...
and federal agencies.
The installation met the needs of military personnel
Military personnel
Military personnel is a blanket term used to refer to members of any armed force. Usually, military personnel are divided into branches of service roughly defined by certain circumstances of the deployment of the personnel. Those who serve in a typical large land force are soldiers, making up an...
, both in and behind the battle. Home to nearly 3900 active-duty and 2,700 civilian personnel, the facility spreads over both banks of the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
.
The base was home to:
- Commander, Naval Air Force Reserve
- Marine Forces Reserve
- 4th Marine Aircraft Wing4th Marine Aircraft WingThe 4th Marine Aircraft Wing is the reserve airwing of the United States Marine Corps. It is headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana but its subordinate units are scattered throughout the United States...
- 4th Marine Division
The base was previously home to Commander, Navy Reserve Forces Command
United States Navy Reserve
The United States Navy Reserve, until 2005 known as the United States Naval Reserve, is the Reserve Component of the United States Navy...
, until that command's relocation to Naval Station Norfolk
Naval Station Norfolk
Naval Station Norfolk, in Norfolk, Virginia, is a base of the United States Navy, supporting naval forces in the United States Fleet Forces Command, those operating in the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and Indian Ocean...
, Virginia in March 2009 pursuant to Base Realignment and Closure
Base Realignment and Closure
Base Realignment and Closure is a process of the United States federal government directed at the administration and operation of the Armed Forces, used by the United States Department of Defense and Congress to close excess military installations and realign the total asset inventory to reduce...
2005.
Established in the early 1900s, but inactive for long periods, the facility was reborn in 1939. Between 1944 and 1966, the base progressed from a U.S. Naval Station
U.S. Naval Station
The U.S. Naval Station in Key West, Florida, United States is a historic site. It is roughly bounded by Whitehead, Eaton, and Caroline Streets. On May 8, 1984, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.-References and external links:* at...
to the Headquarters, Support Activity, New Orleans. In 1966, the Army, which owned the property on the river's east bank, transferred ownership to the Navy, thus establishing the New Orleans Naval Support Activity command.
Base housing was limited to 300 units. Other amenities include a 22-unit Navy lodge, family service center, childcare center for 42, a medium-sized commissary
Commissary
A commissary is someone delegated by a superior to execute a duty or an office; in a formal, legal context, one who has received power from a legitimate superior authority to pass judgment in a certain cause or to take information concerning it.-Word history:...
and base exchange
Base exchange
A Base Exchange is a type of retail store operating on United States military installations worldwide...
, and a healthcare clinic. Recreational activities include arts and crafts
Arts and crafts
Arts and crafts comprise a whole host of activities and hobbies that are related to making things with one's hands and skill. These can be sub-divided into handicrafts or "traditional crafts" and "the rest"...
, auto hobby center, and a library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
.
Early history
The land underlying the Naval Support Activity is part of an immense West Bank concession given to Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de BienvilleJean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville
Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienvillepronounce] was a colonizer, born in Montreal, Quebec and an early, repeated governor of French Louisiana, appointed 4 separate times during 1701-1743. He was a younger brother of explorer Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville...
, founder of New Orleans, in 1719 by the Compagnie des Indes. The land changed hands numerous times before being purchased by the United States government on 1849-02-14 for the site of a proposed Navy yard. The Navy yard was not built, however, and the land was leased off for farming. In May of that year, additional ground was purchased by the Navy to enlarge the original site.
In November 1901, the Naval Dry Dock
Dry dock
A drydock is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform...
arrived and the US Naval Station was formally established. In 1902, the Commandant
Commandant
Commandant is a senior title often given to the officer in charge of a large training establishment or academy. This usage is common in anglophone nations...
, Eighth Naval District received almost $4 million for the new buildings and improvements to the station. Additional property was obtained in 1903 giving the Navy almost three-fourths of a mile of valuable river frontage
Frontage
Frontage is the full length of a plot of land or a building measured alongside the road on to which the plot or building fronts. This is considered especially important for certain types of commercial and retail real estate, in applying zoning bylaws and property tax...
.
The original buildings, some of which still stand, were completed on the site in 1903. Also located on the grounds is the LeBeuf-Ott Country Retreat, built in 1840. Today, that home is known simply as Quarters "A" and is occupied by the area's senior Naval flag officer
Flag Officer
A flag officer is a commissioned officer in a nation's armed forces senior enough to be entitled to fly a flag to mark where the officer exercises command. The term usually refers to the senior officers in an English-speaking nation's navy, specifically those who hold any of the admiral ranks; in...
.
The Naval Station remained open until September 1911. Following four years of inactivity, it was reopened in 1915 as an industrial Navy yard for repair of vessels. The station continued in full operation until June 1933, when it was placed in a maintenance status. During the Great Depression, the Louisiana Emergency Relief Administration and later, the WPA, operated the third largest transient camp in the United States on the Naval Station. Opened in May 1934, the transient camp sheltered, worked, and trained approximately 25,000 homeless men before it closed in March 1936. In December 1939, the station was reactivated and eventually became a base to handle transient naval personnel. In August 1940, the Navy transferred the YFD-2 to Pearl Harbor, where it was sunk during the attack on December 7, 1941 as it drydocked the .
In September 1944, the station was designated the US Naval repair base. However, just three years later, it was designated the US Naval Station, a name it held until January 1962, when it became the Headquarters, Support Activity, New Orleans. The latter name came about to reflect the fact that the Headquarters
Headquarters
Headquarters denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the top of a corporation taking full responsibility managing all business activities...
, Eighth Naval District was aboard the station as a regular tenant.
World War I and World War II
Located on the East Bank of the Mississippi River are the three largest buildings of the Naval Support Activity. The three giant buildings that tower six floors above the river each contain over one half million square feet of floor space and house a major part of NSA tenants.The 30 acres (121,405.8 m²) of land and three buildings have a history that began in June 1919, when the buildings were constructed for the US Army Quartermaster Corps for use as a general logistical depot during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
These buildings were partially used by the QM Corps after completion until February 1931, when buildings 601 and 602 were leased to the Board of Commissioners, Port of New Orleans
Port of New Orleans
The Port of New Orleans is a port located in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is the 1st in the United States based on volume of cargo handled, second-largest in the state after the Port of South Louisiana, and 13th largest in the U.S. based on value of cargo...
.
With the advent of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the lease was canceled and the installation reverted to complete use by the military. After the QM Corps gave up the buildings, the official title became the New Orleans Port of Embarkation. In 1955, the tract of land was known as the New Orleans Army Terminal. In 1965 the name was changed to the New Orleans Army Base.
In modern times
There was an expanding naval presence in the lower Mississippi DeltaMississippi Delta
The Mississippi Delta is the distinctive northwest section of the U.S. state of Mississippi that lies between the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers. The region has been called "The Most Southern Place on Earth" because of its unique racial, cultural, and economic history...
in the mid-1960s. In June 1966, the New Orleans Army Base transferred to the Navy. July 1966 saw the disestablishment of the Headquarters, Support Activity and the establishment of the Naval Support Activity to reflect the changing mission of the station. With this change in mission and designation, both sides of the river began serving as the Naval Support Activity for the first time.
Today, the Naval Support Activity is the host for the Headquarters of the nation's Marine Corps Reserve forces and a portion of its Navy Reserve
United States Navy Reserve
The United States Navy Reserve, until 2005 known as the United States Naval Reserve, is the Reserve Component of the United States Navy...
forces, along with approximately 40 other command serving all aspects of military life.
The following is taken from http://www.brac.gov/:
The Naval Support Activity New Orleans was on the list of proposed military bases to be closed, submitted to the 2005 Defense Base Closure and Realignment (BRAC) Commission. New Orleans, Louisiana, and Federal officials proposed that the base be converted to a "Federal City", housing regional Homeland Security offices and other federal agencies. This idea was considered favorably by the BRAC commissioners who were touring the base. Apparently this idea was accepted, because in the September 8, 2005 BRAC Commission Final Report Submitted to the President, the Naval Support Activity is not included in the list of facilities to be closed.
The base is currently scheduled to be closed on September 15th 2011. The base will be replaced with the New Orleans Federal City.
The base closed as scheduled on 15 September 2011.
External links
- NSA New Orleans (official website)