Fort Campbell Fort Campbell is a United States Army installation located astride the Kentucky - Tennessee border between Hopkinsville , Kentucky , and Clarksville , Tennessee . Fort Campbell is home to the 101st Airborne Division and the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment . The fort is named in honor of Union Army Brigadier General William Bowen Campbell , the last Whig Governor of Tennessee . History . The site for Camp Campbell was selected on July 16 , 1941 , and the Title I Survey was completed November 15 , 1941 , coincidentally the same time the Japanese Imperial Fleet was leaving Japan ese home waters for the attack on Pearl Harbor . Construction of Camp Campbell began on January 12 , 1942 . Within a year , the reservation designated as Camp Campbell was developed to accommodate one armored division and various support troops , with a total size of , and billets for 2 , 422 officers and 45 , 198 enlisted personnel . Due to its close proximity to Clarksville , Tennessee , the War Department on March 6 , 1942 , designated Tennessee as the official address of the new camp . This caused a great deal of confusion , since the Headquarters was in Tennessee and the post office was in Kentucky . After many months of mail delivery problems , Colonel Guy W . Chipman requested that the address be changed to Camp Campbell , Kentucky . The War Department officially changed the address on September 23 , 1942 . Early in the summer of 1942 , the post ' s initial cadre , one officer and 19 enlisted men , arrived from Fort Knox , Kentucky . From that time until the end of World War II , Camp Campbell was the training ground for the 12th , 14th and 20th Armored division s , Headquarters IV Armored Corps and the 26th Infantry Division . In the spring of 1949 , the 11th Airborne Division arrived at Campbell following occupation duty in Japan . The 11th was in residence there until early 1956 . By April 1950 , the post had evolved from a wartime training camp to a permanent installation and was renamed Fort Campbell . On September 21 , 1956 , Secretary of the Army Wilbur M . Brucker and the Army Chief of Staff , General Maxwell D . Taylor , presented the colors of the 101st Airborne Division to MG T . L . Sherbourne , the first commander of the new ROTAD airborne division . This was the official ceremony reactivating the famed " Screaming Eagles " of World War II . On May 2 , 1966 , Third Army General Order 161 directed the activation of a Basic Combat Training Center at Fort Campbell . On July 6 , barely two months after its activation , Fort Campbell ' s Army Training Center received its first 220 newly inducted soldiers . Basic Combat Training began on schedule July 11 with a full complement of 1 , 100 trainees . The Training Center operated until April 15 , 1972 , when it was deactivated The 1st Brigade was sent for duty in Vietnam in July 1965 . Soon thereafter , upon the escalation of hostilities in Southeast Asia , the rest of the division arrived . Also in response to the military buildup , the 6th Infantry Division was reactivated at Fort Campbell on November 24 , 1966 , and inactivated July 25 , 1968 . In September 1971 the 173rd Airborne Brigade returned to Fort Campbell and conducted its official homecoming ceremonies , which were presided over by Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird . The 173rd was then inactivated on 14 January 1972 and its personnel and the equipment used to rebuild the 3rd Brigade , 101st Airborne Division ( Airmobile ) . The 3rd Brigade remained on jump status until April 1974 , when its jump status was terminated and the division became entirely airmobile . On April 6 , 1972 , the 101st Airborne Division ( Airmobile ) was officially welcomed back to its home station after the cessation of hostilities in Vietnam . The ceremonies were attended by Vice President Spiro T . Agnew and General William C . Westmoreland , Army Chief of Staff . On 12 December 1985 , 246 servicemembers died with eight aircrew shortly after takeoff from Gander , Newfoundland , Canada , during a return from peacekeeping duties in Egypt . A memorial wood and monument are near the post museum . Criminal incidents . On July 5 , 1999 , Private First Class Barry Winchell , 21 , of 2nd Battalion , 502nd Infantry Regiment , was bludgeoned to death with a baseball bat in his barracks . The murder was committed by Private Calvin Glover , who was egged on by Specialist Justin Fisher . Apparently the motive was punishing Winchell for falling in love with Calpernia Addams , a transsexual showgirl . Winchell died at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville . Glover was later convicted for the murder , while Fisher was convicted of lesser crimes . Fisher was released to a halfway house in August 2006 , and was later released from all custody . Glover received a life sentence and is eligible for parole after 15 years . On October 13 , 2005 , Fort Campbell made international headlines when Private Nicholas Mikel opened fire on a group of soldiers training at the base . Private Mikel was arrested soon thereafter and charged with attempted murder . In April 2006 he was convicted of attempted premeditated murder and sentenced to 25 years imprisonment . 2011 Tornado . On April 26 , 2011 , The fort sustained damage from an EF3 tornado . Operations and taxation . The Sabalauski Air Assault School , named after Command Sergeant Major Walter James Sabalauski is located here . Courses taught include Air Assault , Pathfinder , Pre - Ranger , Jumpmaster Refresher , and Rappel Master . FRIES / SPIES Master courses are also taught . The school is also home to the Division ’ s Parachute Demonstration Team . Kentucky has limited rights to taxation : Individuals performing services on the Kentucky portion of Fort Campbell only pay taxes to the state where they are residents , refer to US Code Title 4 , Chapter 4 , § 115 . Fort Campbell Parachute Demonstration Team " Screaming Eagles " . The Fort Campbell parachute demonstration team was established in 1958 during the infancy of precision freefall as the Army ' s first such team — pre - dating the Golden Knights , United States Army Parachute Team , by one year . Early team members were soldiers who volunteered their free time in order to perform quality parachute demonstrations . In 1984 , the 101st command group opted to form a full - time parachute team , known as the “ Screaming Eagles ” . The " Screaming Eagles " perform more than 60 parachute demonstrations each year in front of an average viewing audience of 5 , 000 spectators . The team has a diverse background of Army Military Occupational Specialties ( MOS ) and at this time has seven members . The team has one Light Wheeled Mechanic , two Combat Medic s , three Infantry men , and one Parachute Rigger most of whom have combat experience . Collectively , the 2009 team has more than 40 years of skydiving experience and more than 6 , 000 skydives . " See " Barber ' s pole . Tenant Units . Other facilities include Blanchfield Army Community Hospital , Sabalauski Air Assault School and the SSG John W . Kreckel NCO Academy .