Columbus State names military history institute for Moores

Columbus State University has created a new institute for the study of military history. It is named for Lt. Gen. Hal Moore and his wife, Julia Moore, who both have deep ties to Columbus.

The full name is the Lt. Gen. Harold & Julia Moore Institute for the Study of the American Military Experience. The University System of Georgia Board of Regents approved the name at its Oct. 7 meeting, the university said in its announcement of the Moore Institute.

The university describes it as a multidisciplinary center for teaching, research and public programs on the U.S. military’s role in society.

Who runs it

David Kieran is the first director. He holds the Col. Richard R. Hallock Distinguished University Chair of Military History at Columbus State and has taught there since 2022.

“Through our new Moore Institute for the Study of the American Military Experience, Columbus State will more fully establish itself as the Southeast’s premier military history institute as we further engage with our fellow citizens in and out of uniform about what that commitment to serve our country really means,” Kieran said in the announcement.

What the institute will do

The university’s plans for the institute include:

• growing its military history programs and public talks
• preserving records in a new archive vault within its Archives and Special Collections
• working with the ROTC Cougar Battalion, which has commissioned more than 720 U.S. Army officers over the last 50 years
• graduate credit partnerships with the Army’s Captains Career Course and Sergeant Major Academy
• internships, public programs and global study opportunities

The new vault is named the 1st Lt. William A. Donahoe Jr. and Corporal Charles Foster Vault for American Military History Preservation. The university said it holds several nationally significant collections, covering military history from the American Revolution to today. Gifts from the Donahoe and Foster families helped pay for it.

The institute also has $175,000 in federal funding for military history preservation. The university said U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, both Georgia Democrats, helped secure it in early 2026.

Why the Moores

Hal Moore trained at Fort Benning and led the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment at the Battle of Ia Drang Valley in Vietnam in 1965. He co-wrote the 1992 book “We Were Soldiers Once… and Young,” which became the 2002 film “We Were Soldiers.”

Julia Moore lived in Columbus while her husband served in Vietnam. The university said her campaign to change how families were told of a soldier’s death led the Army to create in-person casualty notification teams. Both are buried at the Fort Benning Main Post Cemetery.

Columbus State President Stuart Rayfield said the couple’s example shows “what it means to put others first.”

Their son Greg Moore said his parents “truly loved and honored” the connection between the military and other Americans. “Our family is equally honored that Columbus State shares this conviction and purpose,” he said.

What it means for you

• A public launch is planned. The university will mark the institute’s founding at a Veterans Day program at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 11, at the Columbus PowerHouse. The speaker is Patrick Murphy, the first Iraq War veteran elected to Congress and a former under secretary of the Army. The announcement does not give ticket details; the university asks people to sign up for Hallock Endowment email updates for event news.
• Planning your Veterans Day? Our Veterans Day parade guide has the parade date, time and route.
• More to do in town this month is on our things to do in October page.