The History of the Security Forces Exhibit Annex is located at 1300 Femoyer St, Lackland AFB, TX 78236. The historical site is also known as the National Guard Readiness Center and is run by the Army National Guard. It was established in 1949 to host Army Air Defense units that were being deployed to various locations within the United States. Today, it’s a museum that showcases artifacts from different time periods that have been directly linked with military operations throughout history. How It All Began The History of the Security Forces Exhibit Annex has its origins in San Antonio, Texas. In 1949, there was an ABC Concession at Fort Sam Houston where military personnel had access to recreational facilities. Generally speaking, this was an area where guard units could relax temporarily while they were on duty at the base or when they were deployed elsewhere for extended periods of time.

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The Security Forces are Key to San Antonio’s History
When the Battle for San Antonio first began in 1836, the Mexican Army had a compound at the Alamo Mission Complex. The compound was turned into a fort in 1849 after Texas joined the Union. When the Confederate Army took over the state, Fort Sam Houston became a major military installation. In 1907, the first Coast Artillery unit was established in San Antonio. The unit eventually became the 4th Coast Artillery Regiment. The regiment remained in San Antonio until 1940, when it was relocated to Fort Shovel Point, Panama, to defend the new Panama Canal.

Korean War: From Camp to Battlefield
In 1950, the United States military initiated the buildup of forces in South Korea to deter an invasion by North Korea. As the war escalated, the U.S. Army’s 7th Infantry Division was deployed to the country to replace the 7th Infantry Regiment. It was also during this time that units from the 82nd Airborne Division were also deployed to South Korea. In the middle of 1951, the Chinese Peoples’ Liberation Army (PLA) initiated a large-scale attack on South Korea’s border region. This attack forced American and Allied forces to withdraw from South Korea.

Vietnam: The Transition from Reserve to Active Duty
A couple of years later, in 1954, a conflict began in Vietnam between South Vietnamese Army troops and North Vietnamese Army (NVA) forces. The fighting lasted for more than ten years, and it eventually evolved into a war between the United States and North Vietnam. Between 1955 and 1963, the U.S. military conducted numerous military operations in Vietnam to assist South Vietnamese troops and prevent the NVA from expanding their influence in the country. In 1962, the Army’s 2nd Division was transferred to the National Guard and deployed to Vietnam. The division, together with units from Army Reserve units, served as the groundwork for the expansion of the U.S. military presence in Vietnam.

Desert Storm: The Inaugural Deployment for Stryker Brigade Combat Teams
Desert Storm was a conflict that began in 1990. The war lasted for six months and involved North and South Iraq and Kuwait. The Gulf War was eventually dubbed Desert Storm. The U.S. military conducted a wide variety of operations during the war. Some of the most significant operations were the liberation of Kuwait City, the liberation of Baghdad and air operations against strategic military and industrial targets. The deployment of mechanized infantry brigades from the Army’s Stryker Brigade Combat Team was the first time that a mechanized unit was used on the battlefield.

End of an Era: Returning from Iraq
In the spring of 2011, the U.S. military began deploying troops to Afghanistan. The exact number of troops that would be deployed was not immediately clear, but it was estimated that there would be around 100,000 troops in the country. By 2011, the U.S. military had been fighting in Iraq for more than eight years. This was also the first time that the military had ever deployed combat units to two different countries simultaneously. The History of the Security Forces Exhibit Annex is just one of the many things to see when you visit Fort Sam Houston. The site is currently undergoing renovations, but the renovations should be completed soon.