Updated on Apr 13, 2021
Fort Wainwright is a United States Army installation in Fairbanks, Alaska. Fort Wainwright is part of the Fairbanks North Star Borough and the coterminous Fairbanks Metropolitan Statistical Area. The installation is managed by U.S. Army Garrison Alaska (USAG Alaska) and the senior command is U.S. Army Alaska (USARAK). Fort Wainwright was formerly known as Ladd Field (1939-1945) and Ladd Air Force Base (1947-1961) it was renamed Fort Wainwright in honor of General Jonathan M. Wainwright, a Medal of Honor recipient for his courageous leadership as commander of U.S. forces during the fall of the Philippines in World War II. Ladd Field was designated as a National Historic Landmark (NHL) on 4 February 1985 and Ladd Air Force Base was designated as Ladd Air Force Base Cold War District and was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on the same day.
Fort Wainwright is located in Interior Alaska, between the Alaska Range in the south and the Brooks Range in the north. Fort Wainwright's boundaries are located within the Fairbanks North Star Borough. To the west is the City of Fairbanks, and to the southeast is the City of North Pole. Fort Wainwright resides on both sides of the Chena River, a 100-mile tributary of the Tanana River.
The total population to include the workforce on Fort Wainwright is approximately 15,000 personnel. There are roughly 6,500 military members, 5,700 military dependents, 1,250 civilian employees including appropriated and non-appropriated fund employees and over 400 contractors.
Fort Wainwright is located in a subarctic climate with seasonal temperature extremes. Temperature extremes have been recorded from −66 °F to +94 °F (−54 °C to +34 °C). The average low temperature is in January at −17 °F (−27 °C) with the average high temperature is during July at +73 °F (+22 °C). The annual precipitation averages 12 inches (305 mm) of rain and 37 inches (94 cm) of snow. Fort Wainwright is approximately 190 miles south of the Arctic Circle. The hours where the sun is above the horizon averages 22 hours in June with twilight during the night hours and less than 4 hours in December. The climate creates a short construction season for installation projects. It also potentially contributes to Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) among the workforce.
Fairbanks falls in a region with discontinuous permafrost, a condition where permafrost is broken by pockets of unfrozen ground. This, coupled with the periglacial effect of seasonal freezing and thawing, can drastically modify the ground surface. Construction engineering in this environment requires additional planning to avoid the potential for hazards of ground movement or collapse.
Fort Wainwright has a Cultural Resources Management Program that is responsible for over 1.6 million acres of Army-managed land with a diverse array of resources including historical buildings, a national historic landmark, archeological sites, and properties of traditional religious and cultural significance. There are over 650 prehistoric archeological sites on Fort Wainwright and its training lands that date from the last ice age (14,000 years ago) to the Alaskan homesteading era. USAG Alaska have several agreements in place in regards to historical findings and archaeological digs. Partnerships include the State of Alaska Historical Preservation office and the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Museum of the North who curates the archeological relics.
The U.S. Army Garrison Alaska (USAG Alaska) provides an Alaska Native Liaison that manages the Native Liaison/Government to Government program for Fort Wainwright. Fort Wainwright's cantonment and training areas is made up of Army-withdrawn land that support resources that have been utilized by the Alaska Native community for thousands of years. U.S. Army Alaska (USARAK) and USAG Alaska support the policy of tribal self-determination through support for Army's government-to-government relationship with tribes and implementing the Army American Indian and Alaska Native Policy , Department of Defense (DoD) American Indian and Alaska Native Policy, the policy’s Alaska Implementation Guidance, and DoD Instruction 4710.02: Interactions with Federally-Recognized Tribes.
11th Airborne Division
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