In-depth: The history of Ft. Hood

AUSTIN (KXAN) - The largest Army post in the country has an honored place in the history of the U. S. Military.

It started out as Camp Hood in the early 1940s, a new military installation devoted to training tank troops to counter rapid fire German invasion forces in Europe. It was named for Confederate Gen. John Bell Hood, an important Civil War commander.

In 1950, Camp Hood became Fort Hood. Units and divisions came and went through the Korean and Vietnam wars.

Fort Hood deployed troops to Operation Desert Shield in the run-up to the Gulf War, which forced Saddam Hussein's military out of Kuwait and back into Iraq.

During the Iraq war, it was a Fort Hood unit that found the Iraqi leader hiding in a spider hole and captured him.

Troops from the base also participated in peace-keeping efforts in Bosnia and in relief deployments to Mexico City and Nicaragua, following massive earthquakes in those cities.

Of course , Fort Hood is now serving as a major deployment center for American troops bound for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Fort Hood is a virtual city with a population of over 60,000, so it's not easy to completely wall it off.

However, since 2001, visitors do have to show ID and have their destinations confirmed before being allowed on post. The outfit is closed up tight Thursday as the investigation into this afternoon's events continues.