The Plain (West Point) - History

History

Before the development of the modern academy, the term "The Plain" referred to the relatively flat geographic area that the current academy occupies. It included the area where Fort Clinton was constructed. The term now specifically applies to the parade field. The Connecticut militia that first occupied West Point on 27 January 1778 encamped there during that particularly harsh winter. That summer, construction began on Fort Arnold, later to be renamed Fort Clinton, which stood at the far western edge of the Plain and overlooked the sharp westerly turn in the Hudson River. The land was owned by a private citizen, a Mr. Stephen Moore of North Carolina. Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton authorized the army's purchase of the land for $11,085 in 1790.

In the early days of the academy, the Plain was used for many purposes beyond its current use for ceremonial parades. From its earliest days until just after World War I, the Corps of Cadets spent their summers encamped on the Plain as part of their tactical field training. Semi-permanent tents were erected, hard-floor planking, and furniture and books were moved out to the campsite as the Cadets moved out of the barracks for the summer. Cadets practiced military drill and cavalry maneuvers on the Plain's open areas. However, after the superintendency of Douglas MacArthur from 1919 to 1922, summer camp was no longer held on the Plain. Before the construction of Michie Stadium, the Army football team played their home games upon the Plain. For the first 100 years of the academy, there was a large depression on the northern edge of the plain near trophy point. This area was known locally as Execution Hollow as reportedly military executions occurred there during the Revolutionary War period. The hollow remained until 1912, when it was filled in with soil excavated from the construction of Bartlett Hall. The area now is a small grassy field between the Superintendent's review stands, Clinton Field, and Battle Monument on Trophy point. The field contains a small putting green used by the Department of Physical Education for golf instruction and a spruce tree planted in 2009 as a post Christmas tree.

• Cavalry drill on the Plain, 1907 (Pershing Barracks in the upper left)

• Summer camp on the Plain, 1907

• Cadet tent during summer camp, 1905

• 1780 map showing Ft. Clinton on the western edge of the Plain

• Circa 1915

• c1896, only Pershing barracks (clock tower in center) remains