COLUMBIA, S.C. — Fort Jackson celebrated its 105th birthday on Wednesday. Over the past century, Fort Jackson has brought hundreds of thousands of soldiers to the Columbia area.
“Over 60% of the trainees that join the US Army come through Fort Jackson, and over 50% of the females come through Fort Jackson," Command Sergeant Major Philson Tavernier said.
With the trainees comes millions of dollars in Columbia revenue.
The story of Fort Jackson's economic impact dates back to 1917, when a group of business owners raised money for a $50,000 land purchase. When they purchased the land, they donated it to the federal government, and it then became Camp Jackson. Later it became Fort Jackson.
The Columbia Chamber of Commerce said the initial purchase of the land was the perfect business decision. The City has made back well over that amount in the past century. “It’s an investment we’d certainly like to take advantage of today," Susan McPherson with the chamber said. "If you could take $50,000 and multiply it to where you’ve received over $2.4 billion over the past how many years? It’s a tremendous economic benefit.”
The Chamber says this impact makes Forest Drive the perfect place for some businesses to plant roots there.
Army wife Dr. Sally Le says she chose Forest Drive for her business because she knew the Army would support her.
“Not only am I a military wife, but you know, we’re directly off the base and we have a lot of traffic from there. And I think it’s really helped my business grow.”
Down the road, Navy Veteran Wayne Prickett said he chose this location because it's an opportunity to give back to the place that gave him so much.
“The Army base brings families. Families come to a place like this. We hope this is place kids can relax in and feel comfortable.”
McPherson says that Fort Jackson brings more than 250,000 people to Columbia plus more than $4 million a year.