Honoring the Past: Memorial Gates Gardens Dedicated at Fort Ritchie

Alisha Yocum

Perhaps the engraving leading up to the Memorial Gates Gardens sums it up best: The Garden serves as a living tribute to all who have passed through the gates of Ritchie. May it forever inspire us to honor the dedicated service of our veterans and all those who contributed to the missions of the facility from 1926 to 1998.

On October 19, a small crowd of supporters, community members, and Veterans gathered for the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the newest installment in the ongoing Ritchie Revival—a project led by John Krumpotich and his family to restore life to the historic military base.

Katy Self, the director of the Ritchie History Museum, said they went with a more generic name that did not include Ft. Ritchie or Camp Ritchie to signify the inclusion of all the history of the property.

The Memorial Gates Garden, which is located just outside the entrance of the museum, had 54 engraved bricks placed in memory or honor of those who served. The second installment of the memorial, which will be a circle, is planned for next summer.

The design of the gardens incorporates meaningful elements from Fort Ritchie’s past. Most notably, the gates themselves were built from stone salvaged from the demolished Provost Marshal’s Office. The layout also includes references to the flags that have been part of the history.

“I’m always so focused on bringing the buildings back,” said Krumpotich. “Katy always pushes me to put the history out front, which is the most important part of this project.” He went on to thank his dedicated team, who have worked tirelessly to bring the former military base back to life.

Veterans assist with cutting the ribbon during the dedication of Memorial Gates Garden at Fort Ritchie.