Fort Bragg

First it was Fort Bragg, named in honor of a Confederate general. Then it was Fort Liberty. Now, the North Carolina Army installation is officially Fort Bragg again, only this time in honor of a World War II paratrooper and Silver Star recipient from Maine. A ceremony Friday celebrated the post's new namesake, Pfc. Roland L. Bragg.

The army base near Fayetteville, N.C. formerly known as Fort Liberty is now Fort Bragg — again. WUNC's Jay Price joins Due South guest host Celeste Headlee to explain the history of these name changes and the strategy the Trump administration used to deliver on a campaign pledge to bring the name Fort Bragg back.

The base, known as Fort Liberty since 2023, originally was named for Confederate General Braxton Bragg. The Army says it now will be named for a World War II private, Roland Bragg.

The North Carolina base was renamed Fort Liberty in 2023 as part of a national effort under the Biden administration to remove names that honored Confederate leaders. The base’s original namesake, Gen. Braxton Bragg, was a Confederate general.

Biden is to use a visit to the recently renamed Fort Liberty in North Carolina to highlight the order. The order directs agencies to develop a federal government-wide plan on hiring and job retention for military spouses, bolster child care options, and take more than a dozen additional actions.

A newly constructed historic march route will remember the base's former name and the soldiers who served there.

70,000 inspections yielded more than 2,100 findings of mold. Now, the Army has begun a service-wide initiative to detect and clean it up sooner.

Specialist Enrique Roman-Martinez disappeared on Labor Day weekend in 2020 while camping with a group of fellow 82nd Airborne Division soldiers on Cape Lookout.

The service organization is closing some of its centers, opening new ones, and expanding its online programs to respond to funding reductions and troops' changing needs.

The idea is to take on micro-level problems that major military research facilities might not prioritize, says Lieutenant Colonel Kyle Kirby who will head the new lab.