A ceremony was held at 2:30 p.m. Thursday, January 11 at the Warrior Memorial Park to unveil a monument to Fort Johnson’s namesake, Sgt. William Henry Johnson. Remarks were made by Brigadier General David W. Gardner as the Commanding General of the Post.

Fort Johnson is the only Army installation named after an enlisted soldier, not a general officer.

Johnson was born in North Carolina and moved to New York as a teenager. He joined the Army in the summer of 1917 and was assigned to the 369th Infantry, an all-back unit that became known as the “Harlem Hell Fighters.” From 1918-1919, that unit was detached to a French unit on the front lines of the Argonne Forest.

Johnson stood only 5’4” and weighed 130 pounds. He was not a physically imposing figure but showed his mettle and bravery one night while on guard duty with another soldier. They were ambushed by over 20 German soldiers. His fellow soldier was wounded in the attack. Johnson used his rifle, grenades, his pistol, helmet and knife to defend his position, killing or wounding at least 12 of the enemy. For his gallantry, the French awarded him the Croix de Guerre (Cross of War) with palm leaves. He was one of the first American soldiers to win that award.

Upon his return to the States, he was denied proper Veterans benefits and health care and died in 1929 without ever getting recognition from our country. He did, however, pave the way for a whole new generation of African American soldiers. Johnson was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart in 1996, the Distinguished Service Cross in 2002, and the Congressional Medal of Honor in 2015.