Base name honors military man with Albany connection
Arthur Gregg, whose name is one of two that now grace a Virginia military base, has a background that includes higher education in the Capital Region.
Fort Lee, which was named for Confederate Army leader Robert E. Lee, was redesignated Thursday as Fort Gregg-Adams. The transition recognizes two Black officers, Lt. Gen. Gregg, 94, and the late Lt. Col. Charity Adams, for their impact on the U.S. Army.
In 1993, Gregg was appointed to the Board of Overseers for the Albanybased Regents College and became chair in 1997. In 1998, he was appointed a founding trustee and chair of the Board of Trustees of the newly independent Regents College (later known as Excelsior University), according to the university. His initial election to the board (founding trustee) was March 10, 1998, and he served until Dec. 31, 2007. He was board chair for six years, from 1998 to 2004, Excelsior said in a statement.
According to the U.S. Army, Gregg rose from the rank of private to three-star general during his military logistics career, which began just after World War II and spanned nearly 36 years. Gregg is the only living person in modern Army history to have an installation named after him.
”General Gregg has dedicated his life to public service,” Excelsior President David Schejbal said in a statement. “Whether he was commanding troops, supporting the Joint Chiefs of Staff, or chairing the Excelsior board of trustees, he
always focused on the wellbeing of others. General Gregg embodies what it means to serve our country, and we are thrilled that his legacy will continue with this redesignation.”
Adams was the first Black officer in the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps, later known as the Women’s Army Corps, in World War II and led the first Black WAC unit to serve overseas, according to an Army statement.
The post is one of nine Army installations being redesignated following the Defense Department-endorsed recommendations from the congressional Naming Commission to remove names, symbols and other aspects that commemorate the Confederacy.
Another base renaming has an Albany connection. Louisiana’s Fort Polk, a name recognizing a Confederate general, will bear the name of Henry Johnson, a Black soldier who posthumously received a Medal of Honor for his courageous action on the Western Front against German troops and who lived in Albany.