Mountain View Officers' Club, built in 1942, is a historic structure that originally served as an officers' club for African American soldiers stationed at Fort Huachuca, Arizona. It was long vacant, but was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017 and there have been plans for its renovation.
Mountain View Officers' Club | |
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| Location | Kilbourn Ave., Fort Huachuca, Arizona |
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| Coordinates | 31°32′45″N 110°20′12″W / 31.54584°N 110.33669°W |
| Area | less than one acre[2] |
| Built | 1942 |
| Built by | Del E. Webb Construction Company |
| Architect | White and Miller, Inc. |
| NRHP reference No. | 100000549[1] |
| Added to NRHP | January 24, 2017[1] |
History edit
Fort Huachuca had the highest number of African American soldiers at any military installation in the United States between the years of 1892 and 1946.[3]
In 1942, the Mountain View Officers' Club was one of 1,400 buildings built to accommodate Fort Huachuca's Black infantry divisions. The club is the fort's only surviving recreational facility from this time.[3][4]
The club was vacated in 1998 and has since faced multiple threats of demolition.[3]
Restoration efforts edit
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017 as a result of two years of discussions between the U.S. Army authorities at Fort Huachuca, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Arizona State Historic Preservation Office, the Arizona Preservation Foundation, the Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation, and other consulting parties.[2]
The listing included one contributing building and four contributing structures.[2]
In 2018, Arizona State Parks and Trails received $500,000 from the National Park Service’s African American Civil Rights Fund for the purpose of restoring the club. The National Trust for Historic Preservation's African-American Cultural Heritage Action Fund has also supported restoration efforts with a 2018 grant.[5][6] Additional financial supporters have included the Pascua Yaqui tribe and Buffalo Soldier organizations.[7]
In January 2023, Fort Huachuca signed a programmatic agreement for the rehabilitation of the Mountain View Officers' Club. A viable plan to rehabilitate the building as a Range Operations Synchronization Center is moving forward and has been submitted for Army funding consideration. The rehabilitation plan also provides exhibit space for consulting parties to tell the story of the Black World War II military experience.[3][8]
References edit
- ^ a b "National Register of Historic Places Weekly Lists 2017" (PDF). National Park Service.
- ^ a b c William Collins; Jennifer Levstik (June 12, 2015). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Mountain View Officers' Club / Building 66050 / Colored Officers' Club". National Park Service. Retrieved March 17, 2023. Includes historic photos and nine photos from 2012.
- ^ a b c d "Mountain View Officers' Club at Fort Huachuca | National Trust for Historic Preservation". savingplaces.org. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
- ^ Hernandez, Nicole; Watts Cronkite, Alexandra (July 19, 2019). "New life on horizon for former Fort Huachuca black officers' club". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
- ^ "Arizona State Parks & Trails Receives Grant Funding To Restore The Mountain View Officers' Club". Office of the Arizona Governor. March 13, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
- ^ "$1.1M awarded to preserve African-American historic sites". The Holland Sentinel. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
- ^ dana.chiueh@myheraldreview.com, Dana Chiueh. "Progress made on Mountain View Officers Club restoration". Herald/Review Media. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
- ^ Linton, Tanja (February 23, 2023). "Plan to rehabilitate Building 66050 (Mountain View Officers' Club) advances". U.S. Army. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
External links edit
- Analysis of the Mountain View Officers' Club: Fort Huachuca, Arizona, Army Corps of Engineers
- Mountain View Officers’ Club at Fort Huachuca, National Trust for Historic Preservation
- Mountain View Black Officers Club, Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation
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