Fort Indiantown Gap Fort Indiantown Gap , also referred to as " The Gap " or " FTIG " , is a census - designated place and U . S . Army post primarily located in Lebanon County , Pennsylvania . A portion of the installation is located in eastern Dauphin County . It is located adjacent to Interstate 81 , 23 miles ( 37 km ) northeast of Harrisburg , just north of the northern terminus of Pennsylvania Route 934 at I - 81 ' s Exit 85 . The installation is an active National Guard Training Center and serves as headquarters for the Pennsylvania Department of Military and Veterans Affairs and the Pennsylvania National Guard . The fort surrounds Memorial Lake State Park . It is served by the Annville , Pennsylvania post office . As of the 2010 census the population was 143 residents . The Fort Indiantown Gap Military Reservation is protected by a full - time police force . The Fort Indiantown Gap Police enforce traffic and other state laws . The post includes , with numerous ranges and training areas for the 28th Infantry Division , the 213th Area Support Group and the Eastern Army National Guard Aviation Training Site ( EAATS ) . The installation is also home to the Northeast Counterdrug Training Center ( NCTC ) . History . The history of Fort Indiantown Gap dates back to 1755 , when resentment of the Susquehannock Indians toward white settlers forced the colonial government of Pennsylvania to establish a fortification in the area . The Susquehannock , who had been cultivating the land in that area of Pennsylvania for well over three thousand years , became willing allies against the colonists as the French and Indian War began . At the onset of the war , the Susquehannock attacked colonial frontier settlements using the passes that existed in Blue Mountain through Manada Gap , Indiantown Gap , and Swatara Gap . Because of these attacks , a chain of fortifications was established across the northern tier of Lebanon County , to include Fort Indiantown Gap . The modern post was originally developed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , on the recommendation of General Edward Martin , as a National Guard training site in 1931 . Over the years , the installation has served as home to the Pennsylvania National Guard as well as active units of the United States Army . In 1941 , the post was officially named Indiantown Gap Military Reservation ( IGMR ) . Martin retired from military service and went on to serve as Governor of Pennsylvania and then State Senator . After his death , the $ 3 renamed the installation the Edward Martin Military Reservation , a designation that Martin himself had rejected throughout his life . The new name was never fully accepted by the military personnel who served there . In 1975 , the Secretary of the Army renamed the post Fort Indiantown Gap , in order to more closely align it with other Active Duty stations throughout the United States . Pennsylvania also reinstated the " Indiantown Gap " designation , which it retains today . World War II expansion . World War II reconfirmed the strategic importance of the Gap , which became one of the nation ' s most important Army training camps and served as a staging area for the New York Port of Embarkation . Construction on the installation began almost immediately . Thirteen thousand workmen were called in to construct over 1 , 400 buildings , including headquarters buildings , three fire stations , two guest houses , a bus station , nine chapels , two service clubs , four huge theaters , a large sports arena , and a 400 - bed hospital . Seven U . S . Army divisions were given final training at the Gap prior to being shipped overseas . The Gap also served as a demobilization site for many units returning home from the European Theater of Operations after the war ended . Postwar . From 1951 to 1953 , during the Korean War , the Gap ’ s strategic role again surfaced when it became the home of the 5th Infantry Division , whose mission was to train 32 , 000 troops as replacements for assignment to Korea . During the late 1960s and early 1970s , during the Vietnam War , Fort Indiantown Gap served as one of the largest Reserve Officers Training Corps summer camps for the U . S . Army . In 1975 , the Gap served as a refugee camp for southeast Asian refugees . For eight months , more than 32 , 000 Vietnamese and Cambodia n refugees were resettled through the installation . In 1976 , a section of Fort Indiantown Gap was selected as the new national cemetery for the states of Delaware , Maryland , New Jersey , Virginia , and West Virginia . The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania donated the land for the site to the Veterans Administration . In 1980 , the Gap again became a refugee camp when over 19 , 000 Cuban aliens were brought to the Gap for processing and sponsorship after the Mariel boatlift . Some of the Marielitos were criminals and were detained further by U . S . authorities , and others were later returned to Cuba . The last Marielitos were not released from the Gap until late 1981 . In 1990 , the Gap served as a mobilization and embarkation center for active , reserve , and guard units deploying to the first Persian Gulf War . In the fall of 1991 , the Gap served as the training center for the 84th and 85th Pa State Police academy classes . In July 1995 , the Base Realignment and Closure Commission recommended closing Fort Indiantown Gap , except for minimum essential ranges , facilities , and training areas used by reserve components . The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania assumed control of the land from the federal government in 1998 and converted it back to a training site for National Guard and Army Reserve units . Today , over 177 , 000 personnel are trained annually at the Gap . Post 9 / 11 . Fort Indiantown Gap is a staging area for the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team of the 28th Infantry Division , the only National Guard Stryker brigade in the U . S . Army . Since the September 11th attacks , the Gap has served as a mobilization center for troops supporting operations in Bosnia and Kosovo , as well as operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom . Police Explorer Summer Program . Every July , the Learning for Life program allows many Explorer posts to travel to and train at the Gap for a one - or two - week period . Instructors include National Guard , State Police , US Army , and local participating police stations . Demographics . As of the census of 2000 , there were 85 people , 33 households , and 26 families residing in the fort . The population density was 4 . 5 people per square mile ( 1 . 7 / km² ) . There were 37 housing units at an average density of 2 . 0 / sq mi ( 0 . 8 / km² ) . The racial makeup of the fort was 97 % White , 1 % African American , and 1 % from two or more races . There were 33 households out of which 27 % had children under the age of 18 living with them , 79 % were married couples living together , 3 % had a female householder with no husband present , and 18 % were non - families . 15 % of all households were made up of individuals and 6 % had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older . The average household size was 2 . 58 and the average family size was 2 . 81 . In the fort the population was spread out with 17 % under the age of 18 , 8 % from 18 to 24 , 29 % from 25 to 44 , 34 % from 45 to 64 , and 12 % who were 65 years of age or older . The median age was 43 years . For every 100 females there were 84 . 8 males . For every 100 females age 18 and over , there were 86 . 8 males . The median income for a household in the fort was $ 65 , 893 , and the median income for a family was $ 66 , 607 . Males had a median income of $ 42 , 250 versus $ 31 , 071 for females . The per capita income for the fort was $ 27 , 757 . None of the population and none of the families were below the poverty line . Geography . According to the United States Census Bureau , the CDP has a total area of 19 . 0 square miles ( 49 . 2 km² ) , of which , 18 . 8 square miles ( 48 . 8 km² ) of it is land and 0 . 2 square miles ( 0 . 4 km² ) of it ( 0 . 84 % ) is water . Folklore . An infamous 19th - century murder in Fort Indiantown Gap resulted in a trial of six defendants who all had blue eyes . They became known as the Blue Eyed Six , given the moniker by a newspaper reporter who was attending the trial . Their murder trial , held in the county courthouse in Lebanon , received worldwide publicity and inspired Arthur Conan Doyle while he was writing " The Red - Headed League " . Five of the six defendants were hanged at the county jail . One of the defendants , Franklin Stichler , was buried in an unmarked grave on his family ' s farm . Another defendant , Israel Brandt , a Civil War veteran , ran a rather seedy hotel along Hotel Road . The murder site along Indiantown Run , Stichler ' s family farm , and the hotel site were all later encompassed by the Fort Indiantown Gap installation .