Fort Lawton Fort Lawton was a United States Army post located in the Magnolia neighborhood of Seattle , Washington overlooking Puget Sound . In 1973 a large majority of the property , 534 acres of Fort Lawton , was given to the city of Seattle and dedicated as Discovery Park ( Seattle ) . Both the Fort and the nearby residential neighborhood of Lawton Wood are named after Maj . Gen . Henry Ware Lawton . While Fort Lawton was a quiet outpost prior to World War II , it became the second largest port of embarkation of soldiers and materials to the Pacific Theater during the war . The fort was included in the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure list . Fort Lawton officially closed on September 14 , 2011 . History . In 1896 , the Secretary of War selected what would later be Fort Lawton for construction of an artillery battery intended to defend Seattle and the south Puget Sound from naval attack . Local citizens and governments donated land to the United States Army for the installation the next year . Fort Lawton was named after Maj . Gen . Henry Ware Lawton ( 1843 – 1899 ) , a veteran of the American Civil War , the Indian Wars , and Spanish - American War campaigns , who was killed in action in the Philippines . The fort opened on February 9 , 1900 on a site , which was redesigned in 1902 for infantry use . In 1910 , a design overhaul , to include housing for officers and enlisted men , was prepared by landscape architect John C . Olmsted . In 1938 during the Great Depression , the Army offered to sell Fort Lawton back to the city of Seattle for one dollar , but the city declined , citing maintenance concerns . During World War II , at least 20 , 000 troops at a time were stationed at Fort Lawton , with more than 1 million troops passing through both before and after the war . It was the second - largest port of embarkation for US forces and material to the Pacific Theater during the war . The post was also used as a prisoner - of - war camp , with more than 1 , 000 Germans imprisoned there . Approximately 5 , 000 Italians were passed through en route to Hawaii for imprisonment . On August 15 , 1944 an Italian POW , Guglielmo Olivotto , was found murdered at Fort Lawton after a night of rioting between Italian POWs and American soldiers . Twenty - eight African - American soldiers were later court - martial ed , convicted of the crime , and sent to prison . They and their families challenged the convictions ; after an investigation , the convictions were set aside in 2007 . A formal army apology ceremony was held on July 26 , 2008 ; officials also presented the relatives of former US soldiers and the two remaining survivors with years of back pay , following the overturn of their dishonorable discharges . On Memorial Day 1951 , a grove of trees and monument honoring the war dead was dedicated near the post chapel . The Korean War brought a flurry of activity as troops headed to or returned from Korea were processed through Fort Lawton . In February 1953 , the Fort Lawton Processing Center transferred half of its functions , the outbound tasks , to Fort Lewis ( now called Joint Base Lewis McChord ) . Returnees continued to process through Fort Lawton . In the late 1950s , Nike anti - aircraft missiles and Air Force radars were in use at Fort Lawton , but in 1968 the site was rejected for proposed defense upgrades . The Army surplussed in 1971 . The property was transferred back to the city in 1972 , and dedicated as Discovery Park in 1973 . In 2005 , the fort was included in the Base Realignment and Closure list for that year . Fort Lawton ' s family housing has been used by the U . S . Navy for Navy and Coast Guard personnel for almost 40 years . It is currently being vacated , with the officer and NCO housing scheduled to be sold to the public when the market improves . The Capehart Housing in the center of the park was vacated by December 2009 and demolished during the summer of 2010 ; the land has become part of Discovery Park . Fort Lawton officially closed on September 14 , 2011 , and the 364th Expeditionary Sustainment Command , the last U . S . Army Reserve tenant on the post , moved to its new facility in Marysville , Washington . A closing ceremony took place on February 25 , 2012 . The remainder of the fort property ( with the exception of the military cemetery on site ) was due for transfer to the City of Seattle sometime in 2012 . The future of the last fort property has been contentious , as local residents , city leaders , and local homeless advocates have battled over its proposed use . Historic district . The Fort Lawton Historic District ( FLHD ) in the heart of Discovery Park contains numerous historic buildings and structures that were once in , and part of , Fort Lawton . The following list includes only buildings and structures that survived at least into the 1980s . Source for buildings , construction dates , comments : The Chapel . The chapel , which is outside the Historic District , has the status of a city landmark .