Fort Fisher Recreation Area could join Fort Bragg in getting new, non-Confederate namesake

A North Carolina recreation area may get a new name in the latest round of recommendations to remove Confederate names from federal property.

The first round of recommendations addressed military bases like Fort Bragg. In a list released on Tuesday, the commission recommends renaming the Fort Fisher Air Force Recreation Area in Kure Beach, North Carolina.

Fort Fisher was the name of a Confederate fort that protected the vital trading routes of the port at Wilmington during the American Civil War.

The commission is recommending the Secretary of the Air Force be authorized to rename all Department of the Air Force assets, including Fort Fisher Recreation Area.

In August, recommended Fort Bragg be renamed to Fort Liberty "after one of America's core values," removing the name of Gen. Braxton Bragg, a North Carolina slave owner who fought for the Confederate army during the Civil War to uphold slavery. Fort Bragg was established in 1919, decades after the Civil War.

In addition to the base being renamed, the commission also recommends all base-associated assets be renamed. For example, the commission said Fort Bragg NCO Academy be renamed Fort Liberty NCO Academy.

The Naming Commission estimates it will cost more than $6.3 million to rename Fort Bragg, the most expensive of base name changes nationwide.

Eight other bases the commission suggests renaming includes:

• Fort Benning, Ga.
• Fort Gordon, Ga.
• Fort Hood, Texas
• Fort A.P. Hill, Va.
• Fort Lee, Va.
• Fort Pickett, Va.
• Fort Polk, La.
• Fort Rucker, Ala.

Part II of the report dealt with assets belonging to the U.S. Military Academy and the U.S. Naval Academy

The final cost estimate for all commission recommendations is $62,450,030.

This includes the $21,041,301 for all Part I recommendations (including the renaming of Fort Bragg), $451,000 for all Part II recommendations, and $40,957,729 for all Part III recommendations.

This report is merely information that is then provided to Congress; the commission does not make any final decisions.

Congress is expected to make the final naming decision by 2023.