Fort Bliss is a United States Army post in New Mexico and Texas, with its headquarters in El Paso, Texas. Established in 1848, the fort was renamed in 1854 to honor Bvt.Lieut.Colonel William W.S. Bliss. It is the largest installation in the United States Army Forces Command (FORSCOM) and second-largest in the Army overall, the largest being the adjacent White Sands Missile Range. Fort Bliss provides the largest contiguous tract () of restricted airspace in the continental United States, used for missile and artillery training and testing, and at has the largest maneuver area, ahead of the National Training Center, which has . In August 2025, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) opened a detention facility named Camp East Montana with a capacity of 1,000, eventually 5,000, detainees on Fort Bliss.
Geography Fort Bliss is located in El Paso County, Texas, and Doña Ana / Otero counties, New Mexico in the Southwestern United States. It has an area of about . The garrison's land area is , ranging to the boundaries of the Lincoln National Forest and White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.Welcome to Fort Bliss; access-date=2018-07-16 Fort Bliss includes the Castner Range National Monument. The portion of the post located in El Paso County, is a census-designated place with a population of 8,591 in the 2010 census.
Units Fort Bliss is home to the 1st Armored Division, which returned to US soil in 2011 after 40 years in Germany. The division is supported by the 1st Armored Division Sustainment Brigade. The installation is home to Joint Task Force North, a joint service command. JTF North supports federal law enforcement agencies in the conduct of counterdrug/counter transnational organized crime operations. It facilitates DoD training in the United States Northern Command area of responsibility to disrupt transnational criminal organizations and deter their freedom of action to protect the homeland and increase DoD unit readiness.
The 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command is a theater-level Army air and missile defense multicomponent organization with a worldwide, 72-hour deployment mission. It is the Army Forces Command and Joint Force Land Component Commanders' organization that performs critical theater air- and missile-defense planning, integration, coordination, and execution functions.
The Joint Modernization Command (JMC) plans, prepares, and executes Joint Warfighting Assessments and other concept and capability assessments, provides objective analysis and feasible recommendations to enhance Multi Domain Command and Control, and informs Army Modernization decisions. On order, JMC conducts directed assessments in support of the Cross Functional Teams of Army Futures Command.
1st Armored Division The 1st Armored Division units include: 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division ("Ready First") is prepared to deploy, conduct decisive and sustainable land operations in support of a division, Joint Task Force, or Multinational Force. The Brigade will be trained and ready to conduct decisive action as part of Combined Arms Maneuver or Wide Area Security operations in order to disrupt or destroy enemy military forces, control land, and be prepared to conduct combat operations to protect U.S. national interests.
2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division ("Strike") is prepared to deploy, conduct decisive and sustainable land operations in support of a division, Joint Task Force, or Multinational Force. The Brigade will be trained and ready to conduct decisive action as part of Combined Arms Maneuver or Wide Area Security operations in order to disrupt or destroy enemy military forces, control land, and be prepared to conduct combat operations to protect U.S. national interests.
3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division ("Bulldog") is prepared to deploy, conduct decisive and sustainable land operations in support of a division, Joint Task Force, or Multinational Force. The Brigade will be trained and ready to conduct decisive action as part of Combined Arms Maneuver or Wide Area Security operations in order to disrupt or destroy enemy military forces, control land, and be prepared to conduct combat operations to protect U.S. national interests.
1st Armored Division Combat Aviation Brigade ("Iron Eagles") conducts aviation operations to support geographic combatant commanders conducting unified land operations.
1st Armored Division (1AD) Artillery (DIVARTY) ("Iron Steel") provides direct support, precision strike, and Joint Fires capability to the 1st Armored Division for Unified Land Operations in support of the Division's contingency operations. 1AD DIVARTY provides trained and ready fire support forces and assists Brigade Combat Team (BCT) Commanders in training their fire support systems.
1st Armored Division Sustainment ("Muleskinners") provides mission command of assigned, attached, and Operational Control (OPCON) Echelons above Brigade sustainment units and synchronize distribution and sustainment operations in support of 1st Armored Division, and other aligned units. On order, rapidly deploy to designated contingency areas; receive, integrate, and provide mission command of sustainment units providing operational and tactical sustainment; and perform theater opening, theater distribution, and sustainment operations in support of Unified Land Operations.
Additional units/agencies
The Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) Leadership Center of Excellence (NCOL CoE): Academic institution for noncommissioned officers aligned under Army University and the Combined Arms Command, with additional reporting to Training and Doctrine Command. Provides professional military education to DoD and allied noncommissioned officers.
The United States Army Sergeants Major Academy (USASMA) was accredited as a branch campus of the Command and General Staff College (CGSC) in 2018. In March 2018, the CGSC Combined Arms Center Execution Order, made USASMA the 4th campus of CGSC. In June 2019, USASMA Class 69 became the first students from the Sergeants Major Course to earn Bachelors of Arts in Leadership and Workforce Development (Staff College) through USASMA. The accreditation process took 10 years, beginning with the last officer commandant, Col. Donald E. Gentry.
The 11th Air Defense Artillery Brigade: Known as the "Imperial" Brigade, it strategically deploys combat ready units globally in support of the 32nd AAMDC to conduct joint and combined air and missile defense operations in order to protect the Combatant Commander's critical priorities. On order, conducts reset and training of Patriot, Avenger Iron Dome, and Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) units.
William Beaumont Army Medical Center (WBAMC)
The 5th Armored Brigade: The brigade plans, coordinates, synchronizes, and supports the pre/post mobilization training and demobilization of Army National Guard and United States Army Reserve units in order to provide trained and ready forces for worldwide contingencies. On order, deploys exportable OC/T teams in support of the Army Total Force Policy.
The Fort Bliss Mobilization Brigade: The brigade provides all administrative and logistical aspects of Title 10 support to mobilizing/demobilizing units. Act as focal point for installation support and quality of life issues. Coordinate requirements and integrate mobilization support. Provides personnel and logistical readiness validation input.
The CONUS Replacement Center: CRC receives, processes, equips, and conducts Theater Specific Individual Requirements Training (TSIRT) for military Non Unit Related Personnel (NRP), Department of Defense (DoD) Civilians, and Non Logistics Civil Augmentation (LOGCAP) Program (Non LOGCAP) Contactors deploying to and redeploying from theaters of operations in support of overseas contingency operations.
The Army Field Support Battalion (AFSBn): AFSBn is responsible for enhancing the readiness of Active, Reserve and National Guard units and continuously synchronizing the distribution of sustainment materiel and force projection at the Installation and field level in order to support the Materiel Enterprise and combat readiness of supported units and contingency operations.
The Network Enterprise Command: This unit defends the security of the Army Global Network Construct, provides transparent delivery of Command, Control, Communications and Computer (C4) Information Technology (IT services to customers).
The Civilian Personnel Advisory Center (CPAC) -- Desert Mountain: CPAC is responsible for assisting customers in recruiting, developing and sustaining a professional civilian workforce through human resource products and advisory services.
The headquarters for the El Paso Intelligence Center (EPIC), a federal tactical operational intelligence center, is hosted at Fort Bliss. Its DoD (United States Department of Defense) counterpart, Joint Task Force North, is at Biggs Army Airfield. Biggs Field, a military airport located at Fort Bliss, is designated a military power projection platform.
Fort Bliss National Cemetery is located on the post. Other forts in the frontier fort system were Forts Griffin, Concho, Belknap, Chadbourne, Stockton, Davis, Richardson, McKavett, Clark, McIntosh, Inge, and Phantom Hill in Texas, and Fort Sill in Oklahoma.Carter, R.G., On the Border with Mackenzie, 1935, Washington D.C.: Enyon Printing Co., p. 48 There were "sub posts or intermediate stations" including Bothwick's Station on Salt Creek between Fort Richardson and Fort Belknap, Camp Wichita near Buffalo Springs between Fort Richardson and Red River Station, and Mountain Pass between Fort Concho and Fort Griffin.Carter, R.G., On the Border with Mackenzie, 1935, Washington D.C.: Enyon Printing Co., p. 49
Infrastructure DoD's second largest installation at 1.12M acres. Abuts the largest, White Sands Missile Range Maneuver acreage, heavy and light: 924,640.2 acres The only Digital Air Ground Integration Range (DAGIR) built to full Army specifications The longest runway in the Army, 8th longest in the DoD A major trauma center. plus the new William Beaumont Army Medical Center One of the largest single solar residential communities in the continental US, at 4K+ homes, with potential to expand Total building gross square footage (GSF), minus housing: 24,499,406 square feet, with 2,139 buildings
History
Early locations
Post opposite El Paso del Norte (1849–1854)
In 1846, Colonel Alexander Doniphan led 1st Regiment of Missouri mounted volunteers through El Paso del Norte, with victories at the Battle of El Brazito and the Battle of the Sacramento. On 7 November 1848, War Department General Order no. 58 ordered the establishment of a post NOTE: At the time of its creation, the first post occupied territory that was considered to be part of New Mexico, and the post remained the strongest military encampment in New Mexico until the 32nd parallel north was designated the official boundary between New Mexico and Texas in 1850. across from El Paso del Norte, now Ciudad Juárez. On 8 September 1849, the garrison party of several companies of the 3rd U.S. Infantry, 'The Old Guard', currently the oldest active duty regiment in the US Army, commanded by Major Jefferson Van Horne, found only four small and scattered settlements on the north side of the Rio Grande.