Fort Benjamin Harrison, Historic military district in Lawrence Township, Indiana.
Fort Benjamin Harrison is a military district in Lawrence Township northeast of Indianapolis, covering 1,700 acres of preserved barracks, training grounds, and wooded areas. The installation spreads across rolling terrain with brick buildings from the turn of the century, open drill fields, and paved roads that run between former command structures.
The Army established the installation in 1904 as a training facility and named it after President Benjamin Harrison from Indianapolis. During World War II, the fort served as a major center for training supply troops and prepared more than 200,000 soldiers.
The Museum of 20th Century Warfare displays artifacts and documents from soldiers who served at the installation. Visitors can walk through rooms filled with personal items and equipment from different military periods.
Multiple hiking trails run through the grounds, including the 3.2-mile (5.1-kilometer) Harrison Trace Trail and the 4.2-mile (6.8-kilometer) Lawrence Creek Trail. The paved and gravel paths lead past abandoned buildings and through wooded sections that work for walks in all seasons.
Camp Glenn within the installation housed Civilian Conservation Corps workers in the 1930s and later held German prisoners from 1943 to 1945. The barracks served both groups in succession and still stand on the grounds today.
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