Fort Leonard Wood, MO

Fort Leonard Wood is a U.S. Army training installation located in the Missouri Ozarks. The main gate is located on the southern boundary of St. Robert. The post was created in December 1940 and named in honor of General Leonard Wood in January 1941. Taken together, these details give a newcomer a usable picture of Fort Leonard Wood, where its history, geography, and current gathering places meet. For Fort Leonard Wood, the memorable detail is the way older history and current gathering places share one local map. Originally intended to train infantry troops, in 1941 it became an engineer training post with the creation of the Engineer Replacement Training Center. During World War II Italian and German POWs were interned at the fort. In 1939, Congress approved the purchase of a 40,000-acre tract of land near Leon, Iowa, for use as a military reservation, but did not authorize any funds to do so.