Infantry Barracks & Willie Morehouse Memorial Bench

The Willie Morehouse memorial bench in front of the Infantry Barracks.

NPS Photo

Quick Facts

Location:

West Vancouver Barracks

OPEN TO PUBLIC:

No

MANAGED BY:

City of Vancouver

Amenities

1 listed

Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits

The Infantry Barracks

In 1882, Vancouver Barracks was made into the headquarters for the US Army's Department of the Columbia and for the 21st Infantry Regiment. $50,000 was supplied for improvements to the military post, which had been established in 1849.

These improvements included a new hospital, stables, a gymnasium with bowling alley, and new officers' quarters. Also, several nearly identical enlisted men's barracks were constructed along Barracks Row (south of McClellan Road). This building, constructed in 1887 at the west end of the Row, is the last remaining of those early structures.

Willie Morehouse Memorial Bench

This memorial bench is dedicated to Willie Morehouse (1922-2017), a veteran of the US Army who served at Vancouver Barracks from 1944 to 1946. Morehouse was the co-founder of the Buffalo Soldiers - Moses Williams Chapter, named for Moses Williams, a Buffalo Soldier and Medal of Honor recipient who was laid to rest at the Vancouver Barracks Post Cemetery. Learn more about the Buffalo Soldiers at Vancouver Barracks here.