FORT KNOX, Ky. — "We want great men who, when fortune frowns, will not be discouraged,” – Henry Knox, 1776.
Fort Knox, originally “Camp Knox”, was named after Maj. Gen. Henry Knox in 1918. Knox was appropriately chosen as the installation namesake due to the high levels of artillery training taking place on the installation at the time, which corresponded directly to Knox’s artillery experience before, during and after the American Revolution.
General George Patton Museum Director Ty Reid said Knox should serve as an inspiration to current and future Army leaders.
“Henry Knox is a shining example of a self-educated leader and officer who sought out professional development wherever he could find it,” said Reid.
“He did extensive reading on military topics since he was often ordering and supplying books to many of the British officers in Boston prior to the war.”
Knox was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1750 and lead an active life from the age of 20 as a bookstore owner, a volunteer under General Artemas Ward during the Battle of Bunker Hill and a general military advocate. During this time, he managed to impress General George Washington and was commissioned as a colonel before being placed in command of the Continental Regiment of Artillery.
Did you know: Henry Knox stood 6’3 and weighed over 250lbs for most of his adult life – the average at the time was 5’8 and 150lbs – and was at times a member of a local Boston street gang where he was known for his fighting capabilities.
During his service, Knox directed the successful crossing of Washington’s troops over the Delaware River, which forced the Hessian’s to surrender in 1776. He then earned the title of Chief of Artillery; established the Springfield Armory in Massachusetts, where he also developed an artillery and officer training facility in 1779. In 1782, Knox earned the rank of major general following his artillery corps’ contributions to the Siege of Yorktown, which led to the surrender of Lt. Gen. Lord Charles Cornwallis.
Most famously, Knox and his men were responsible for the transport of 60 tons of captured British cannons from New York to Boston in the dead of winter during the Revolutionary War. According to historians, this mission’s success was a pivotal turning point of the war forcing the British to withdraw from the frontlines in March 1776.
Reid said something that made Knox’s success in this mission so special was his understanding of a phrase attributed to Marine Corps General Robert H. Barrow, roughly 200 years following Knox’s time,
“Amateurs talk about tactics, but professionals study logistics.”
“Knox understood that without those cannons arriving at the right location at the right time, Gen. Washington could not even begin to fight an effective campaign in that war,” Reid said.
Knox continued to serve under Washington after the war ended, even during his presidency.
When Washington retired from military service he appointed Knox as the senior officer of the Continental Army until his resignation in June 1784. In March 1785, the Continental Congress appointed Knox Secretary of War and four years later he became the United States’ first Secretary of War in President Washington's cabinet.
Knox died in 1806, but lives on as the installation namesake for Fort Knox, and according to Reid, the Kentucky installation is not the first to adopt the name.
“We’re not the first to name our installation after Henry Knox,” said Reid. “We are actually the fourth Fort Knox since the late 1700s, because his legacy throughout the nation and the Army made him that influential.”
Did you know: Today’s Fort Knox is the fourth fort to bear the same name? The first two sites called Fort Knox were located near Vincennes, Indiana from 1787-1813 and a recreation of the second site can be visited today. The third Fort Knox is a coastal defense fort located in Maine, that dates from 1844-1923. It can be visited as a Maine State Park.
Editor’s Note: The historic information contained in this article was provided by General George Patton Museum officials.
Visit Fort Knox News at www.army.mil/knox for all of Central Kentucky's latest military news and information.
| Date Taken: | 02.26.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 02.26.2025 16:38 |
| Story ID: | 491611 |
| Location: | FORT KNOX, KENTUCKY, US |
| Web Views: | 17 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Historic Fort Knox: The man behind the namesake, Henry Knox, by Savannah Baird, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
