Fort Hood, formerly Fort Cavazos, is being renamed after a Distinguished Service Cross recipient from World War I.
FORT CAVAZOS, Texas — President Donald Trump and the U.S. Army have announced that the names of seven Army bases whose names were changed in 2023 will be renamed back to their previous names.
The bases, whose names were changed because they commemorated Confederate leaders, will now be named after different people with the same last names as the Confederate leaders they were previously named after.
Fort Hood, which was renamed as Fort Cavazos in 2023, is one such base who will once again be rebranded, with the Fort Hood name returning. The Army said Fort Hood will now be named after Col. Robert B. Hood.
So, who is Robert B. Hood? According to the U.S. Army, Col. Robert B. Hood served in World War I, earning the Distinguished Service Cross during his service.
Hood was born in Wellington, Kansas on April 8, 1891, graduating from Kansas State Agricultural College in 1914 with a degree in horticulture, according to the Army.
Hood reportedly received a commission in the regular Army on Aug. 8, 1917, shipping to France with the 12th Field Artillery. Hood was promoted to Captain on July 10, 1918.
While acting as executive officer of Battery E, 12th Field Artillery, 2nd Division, near Thiaucourt, France, the Army said Hood “brought the battery into action under fire, superintended the placing of guns and the unloading of ammunition and directed the fire of the battery under an intense enfilading fire.”
After the entire gun crew of his first piece was wiped out by enemy fire, Hood reportedly formed a supplementary gun squad and succeeded in getting the first piece into action again within four minutes. For his actions, Hood was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.
In 1919, Hood returned home as commander of Supply Company, 12th Field Artillery, 2nd Division, the Army stated. After the war, he reportedly married Hazel McMinn and had two daughters.
According to the Army, Hood and his family survived the Pearl Harbor attack while stationed at Schofield Barracks. Hood reportedly rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel during World War II and commanded an Artillery Training Unit at Fort Sill.
Hood retired from the Army in 1961 as a colonel, and died at the age of 73 on Oct. 12, 1964, the Army stated.
Fort Hood was originally named after John Bell Hood, a Confederate General from Kentucky who led forces from Texas during the Civil War, earning the rank of Brigadier General, according to the Texas State Historical Society and National Park Service.
Fort Hood was renamed in 2023 to Fort Cavazos, after Korean and Vietnam War veteran, Texas native and Medal of Honor recipient Richard E. Cavazos. Cavazos served as the III Corps commanding general from 1980 to 1982, and became the U.S. Army’s first Hispanic brigadier general and four-star general, according to the U.S. Army.
More information on the bases and the people they will now be named after can be found on the U.S. Army website at this link.