FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WNCN) — Amid rumors that Fort Liberty would be renamed to its former Fort Bragg name with the second term of the Trump administration, officials announced a name change Monday night that brings back “Bragg.”
A news release from the U.S. Department of Defense just after 9 p.m. said the base beside Fayetteville would be named slightly differently than the Fort Bragg of the past.
The massive post will now be called Fort Roland L. Bragg, after a World War II Silver Star and Purple Heart recipient.
The North Carolina base was originally named in 1918 for Gen. Braxton Bragg, a Confederate general from Warrenton, North Carolina, who was known for owning slaves and losing key Civil War battles that contributed to the Confederacy’s downfall.
Pentagon officials said the name change to the post where about 50,000 troops and another 14,000 civilians work was made while Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth was aboard a C-17 from Joint Base Andrews to Stuttgart, Germany.
Pfc. Roland L. Bragg earned medals for “exceptional courage” during the Battle of the Bulge, the news release said.
“This change underscores the installation’s legacy of recognizing those who have demonstrated extraordinary service and sacrifice for the nation,” Pentagon spokesman John Ullyot said in the release.
The change to Fort Liberty in June 2023 was part of a broad Department of Defense initiative, motivated by the 2020 George Floyd protests, to rename military installations that had been named after Confederate soldiers.
In 2023, the cost to rename Fort Bragg to Fort Liberty — one of the largest military installations in the world by population — would total about $6.37 million, according to a commission report.
Fort Roland L. Bragg borders several towns and Cumberland, Hoke, Harnett, Moore, and Scotland counties.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
