After World War II
After 1945 various American units were stationed at Ray Barracks, most recently 3rd Armored Division and 1st Armored Division components.
After being drafted in 1958 Elvis Presley joined 3rd Armored Division who were stationed at Ray Barracks. He choose to not receive any special treatment and was respected for not joining Special Services, which would have allowed him to avoid certain duties and maintain his public profile. He did not live on base at Ray Barracks, but was able to live in the nearby resort city of Bad Nauheim. Presley's battalion, redesignated the 4th Battalion, 67th Armor,"Bandits," would be later commanded back-to-back by West Point classmates and future Army Generals Albert Bryant, Jr. and Martin Dempsey (the current Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff), who maintained their office above the "Elvis Aaron Presley Mess Hall," partially funded by Presley. Notably, former U.S. Secretary of State and retired General Colin Powell began his Army career as a Second Lieutenant in 1958 at Ray Barracks in the 3rd Armored Division.
The 3rd Armored Division used Ray Barracks until its retirement of colors in 1996 at which time the 1st Armored Division (forward) occupied the installation until 2007 when the forces stationed there were returned to the United States.
At the time of the installation closing in 2007(along with nearby Giessen Depot) both bases were the home of the 1st Brigade Combat Team "Ready First", 1st Armored Division which had participated in 2 deployments to Iraq(03-04, 06-07) in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Read more about this topic: Ray Barracks, Friedberg, Germany, History
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