CAMP SPRINGFIELD (CUBA LIBRE)

On April 25, 1898, the United States declared war on Spain after the explosion of the U.S.S. Maine in Havana harbor resulted in the deaths of 260 Americans. When President William McKinley called for 125,000 volunteers, camps were established to serve as rallying points for soldiers awaiting deployment. On May 22, soldiers of the 2nd Division, 7th Corp of the U.S. Volunteers (USV) arrived here under the command of Major General Fitzhugh Lee and Colonel William Jennings Bryan. Originally named Camp Springfield, it was later called Camp Cuba Libre (Free Cuba). Volunteer units from all over the country were stationed here. This exact site was the camp of the 1st North Carolina Volunteers. By August, Camp Cuba Libre had nearly 30,000 men, supplies were scarce, and typhoid was a constant threat. Army physician Major Walter Reed visited the camp to study the origins and transmission of typhoid. Most of the volunteers at the camp never saw combat. Some were deployed to Havana aboard the Roumanian on December 7, but the fighting ceased after the signing of the Treaty of Paris with Spain on December 10, 1898. The following day, the deployed volunteers became the first USVs to set foot in an independent Cuba.