
The family of Roland Bragg said they weren’t aware of the Trump administration’s plan to rename the iconic North Carolina base after him.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. โ The family of Army Private First Class Roland Bragg, the new namesake of North Carolina’s once-again Fort Bragg, says they weren’t aware of the change until it was announced by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.ย
Fort Liberty, which was named Fort Bragg for over 100 years until it was renamed in 2023, will once again be called Fort Bragg. But this time, the name isn’t to honor a Confederate general, it’s to recognize Roland L. Bragg, an American hero during World War II. The decision to name the base after him got around a law prohibiting the military from naming a base after a Confederate leader.ย
Bragg’s daughter and son-in-law told WRAL that they had a missed call from an Army lieutenant colonel Monday night, but they weren’t sure what it was about. In fact, it wasn’t until WRAL’s reporter asked about the name change that they knew it was even in the works.ย
Roland Bragg was a private who was stationed at Fort Bragg. He fought in WWII and was awarded a Silver Star and two Purple Hearts, according to the Department of Defense. His family says he didn’t talk much about the war after returning home and led a modest life in Maine before his death about 25 years ago.ย
His daughter was asked how he’d feel today knowing the largest Army base in the world would be named after him.ย
“Amazed. He’d be amazed,” Debra Sokoll said. “I think he’d rather be humble about it. I don’t think he’d expect any โ he wouldn’t expect any special attention, no. He wouldn’t be the type of fellow who would expect that. He would just be very surprised about it.”ย
Rep. Richard Hudson, who represents North Carolina’s 9th District, home of Fort Liberty, celebrated Hegseth’s memorandum that reversed the name of Fort Liberty back to Fort Bragg with a post on X.ย
“Fort Bragg is BACK!” Hudson posted. “Thank you, @SecDef!”
According to Hegseth, Bragg drove a stolen German ambulance 20 miles during the Battle of the Bulge to get a wounded soldier to an Allied Forces hospital in Belgium. He was awarded a Purple Heart and Silver Star for his heroism.ย