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11th Armored Division Street Named
Gary Payton

 

My father was in the 11th AD, 42nd TB, D CO.

Two years ago, I started the process of gathering the necessary 11AD historical and military information required by ARMY regulations to get a street named for the 11AD. It took almost a year to gather the necessary information, meet with ARMY Memorialization authorities, formally prepare 18 binders (almost 3" thick) of the necessary information, and finally present the information to senior Civilian ARMY leaders and ARMY Generals for review and approval. one week before the formal board review in OCT 2015, the board required pictures of 11AD personnel at Fort Knox during WW2. I was able to gather approximately 2 dozen pictures which sealed the deal. The board only approved the Memorialization package of the 11th AD at that meeting (board meets once per year) and the board now uses our submittal as a measure for future submittals to the board.

Then the package went to the Installation Management Command (IMCOM) HQ Fort Sam Houston, TX. Since the board at Fort Knox( two Major Generals) had approved, this was almost automatic. IMCOM HQ approved the renaming of Eleventh Avenue to 11th Armored Division Avenue at Fort Knox, KY. 

These photos  show the street sign at the intersection of 11th Armored Division Ave. and Wilson Road. For anybody who has been to Fort Knox, KY; Wilson Road is the old Federal North-South Highway 31 or Dixie Highway (state name for this highway). It runs from Nashville, TN to Louisville, KY and beyond. Wilson Road is the southern gate entrance to the base. This street sign in the photo is across from the MP dog training facility on the 7th Armored Division Road on base. Wilson Road is a 4 lane highway through most of the base and narrows to two lanes at the base hospital. Most travelers use the new Dixie Highway which passes thru the Fort Knox Military Reservation and runs by the Patton Museum, especially since entrance to the base is restricted now.

To visit the base to see these street signs for the 11th Armored Division, you must if traveling from Louisville, KY take US Highway 31 south and enter Fort Knox at the Chaffee Gate entrance. As you approach the base, stay in the fast lane or outermost left lane and enter the Visitor Center. You will need a state issued Driver's License (they will scan it for wants and warrants and they do not accept some state licenses not meeting the new Federal standards) and they will check for proof of insurance sometimes, so have it with you. As you exit the Visitor Center you will need to stay in the first two lanes and a guard will scan your Driver's License. Since your license is in the system, you will be allowed to enter the base. At the Visitor Center they have maps with 11th Ave on them, this is the street for the 11th Armored Division Ave now. The new signs are up. New maps with the new name will be printed once the current stock of maps are gone. The 11th Armored Division Avenue street runs by the Fort Knox High School football field, the base Emergency Operations Center, the 84th Training Command HQ, the post commissary and the Base Exchange. It is approximately one mile in length. The division name should be recognized by many future military and civilians located at Fort Knox, KY.