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CHistory
History · Fort Lewis

Fort Lewis dates to 1917, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

More historic than 26% of U.S. towns · #150 of 285 in Washington. What drives it

Most of Fort Lewis was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1987. Its Register listing is the Red Shield Inn. Below: 9 old photos and papers, maps from 1948 on, and the census since 1970.

1917founded
1on the National Register
7%homes built before 1940
9old photos & papers
14famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Fort Lewis’ archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Fort Lewis began

When was Fort Lewis founded?

1917

Fort Lewis dates its founding to 1917 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1970.

First census: 38,054 in 19702020 census: 14,052109 years

How historic is Fort Lewis?

C

More historic than 26% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Fort Lewis’ History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Fort Lewis is more historic than 26% of U.S. towns, #150 of 285 in Washington. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Fort Lewis’ overall grade.
Founding era1917, from Wikidata: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 19407.2% of homes (±3.3) · typical WA town 4.3% · U.S. 8.4%C+National Register1 listing, 0.7 per 10,000 residents · typical WA town 0.1 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 26%
NewerOlder
Washington towns of 2,500+ (285)Ahead of 48%

Few Washington towns list much on the Register (a typical Washington town has 0.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Fort Lewis’ 0.7 sits near the middle of its state (59% of Washington towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to C+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.3 points). Two sources give 1917.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Fort Lewis’ past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Famous sons and daughtersMichelle French, Jim Turner and 12 more were born here.
★ What stands out · Famous people

14 famous people were born in Fort Lewis

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Michelle FrenchAmerican soccer player · b. 1977
Jim TurnerAmerican politician · b. 1946
Jonathan StewartPlayer of American football · b. 1987
Laurent RobinsonAmerican football player · b. 1985
Mike EdwardsAmerican baseball player · b. 1952
Roy MillerAmerican football player · b. 1987
The story

How Fort Lewis came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Fort Lewis.

Read it all →

Fort Lewis was originally established in 1917 with the passage of a Pierce County bond measure to purchase 70,000 acres (280 km2) of land to donate to the federal government for permanent use as a military installation. A portion of the initial land was taken from the Nisqually tribe's reservation. (The Nisqually people would later petition unsuccessfully for the return of this land.) In 1927, Pierce County passed another bond measure to establish a military airfield just north of Fort Lewis. The airfield, called Tacoma Field, opened in 1930 and was renamed McChord Field in 1940. McChord Field separated from Fort Lewis when the U.S. Air Force was created in 1947 and was subsequently renamed McChord Air Force Base. The two bases operated independently of one another for more than 60 years before merging in 2010.

ChaptersMajor unitsJBLM Main and JBLM NorthYakima Training CenterGray Army Airfield

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Fort Lewis, 1917 to 1987

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 20th century
  2. 1917
    FoundingFort Lewis is established
  3. 1917In the archiveCamp Lewis
  4. 1946Born hereJim Turner is born here
  5. 1948On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1971BuiltRed Shield Inn is built
  7. 1977Born hereMichelle French is born here
  8. 1985Born hereLaurent Robinson is born here
  9. 1987Born hereJonathan Stewart is born here
By decade

Fort Lewis, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s7 items
Camp Lewis1917Camp LewisRemount Station, "Camp Lewis", Tacoma, Wash1917Remount Station, "Camp Lewis", Tacoma, WashLibrary. Camp Lewis1918Library. Camp LewisHostess House. Camp Lewis1918Hostess House. Camp LewisKnights of Columbus. Camp Lewis1918Knights of Columbus. Camp LewisMilitary horsemanship show, Remount Station, Camp Lewis, staged in stadium, Tacoma, Wash., July 4, 19181918Military horsemanship show, Remount Station, Camp Lew…Camp Lewis, Tacoma, Wash., Sept. 28, 19171919Camp Lewis, Tacoma, Wash., Sept. 28, 1917
1920s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Date unknown2 to date
Fort Lewis, Locomotive Shelter, South side of South Drive, DuPont, Pierce County, WADate?Fort Lewis, Locomotive Shelter, South side of South D…Fort Lewis, Post Hospital, Near Ninth Division Drive & Idaho Avenue, DuPont, Pierce County, WADate?Fort Lewis, Post Hospital, Near Ninth Division Drive …
On the map

Fort Lewis on the map, 1948 to 1997

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Fort Lewis. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Fort Lewis on the 1948 USGS mapFort Lewis on the 1959 USGS mapFort Lewis on the 1968 USGS mapFort Lewis on the 1973 USGS mapFort Lewis on the 1997 USGS map1948Fort Lewis sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Fort Lewis.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Camp Lewis
Retake this viewCamp Lewis, 1917

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Fort Lewis’ page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Fort Lewis

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1979
Red Shield Inn
Red Shield Inn, built 1971
Buildings
Red Shield InnBuilt 1971

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Fort Lewis, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00040,000198020002020Peak: 38,054

Between 11,046 and 38,054 people in every census since 1970.

6 censuses, 1970–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Fort Lewis’ Wikipedia page.

Places that used to be

Old corners

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Hillside

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Fort Lewis’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo2 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewCamp Lewis: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Lakewood9 historic placesB+North Fort Lewis1 historic placeB−

Questions about Fort Lewis’ history

What year was Fort Lewis founded?

In 1917, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. the census of 1970 counted 38,054 people here.

How does Fort Lewis rank for history?

Fort Lewis is more historic than 26% of U.S. towns, #150 of 285 in Washington. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Fort Lewis?

One place: the Red Shield Inn (listed 1979).

How old are the homes in Fort Lewis?

7% of Fort Lewis’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.3 points), against a typical 4.3% for a Washington town; the median home was built in 1987.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From the Library of Congress (9), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.