United States Oval Historic District

Brick barracks, officers' quarters, a hospital, a chapel and a bandstand surround a broad parade ground in southeast Plattsburgh, on the grounds of Plattsburgh Air Force Base. The district covers 53 acres and holds 27 contributing features built between 1893 and 1934 for the former Plattsburgh Barracks, which the U.S. Army occupied from 1814 to 1944. Its most prominent elements are two large 1893 brick barracks and a symmetrical row of 16 brick double houses for officers, finished by 1897. Earlier buildings show Romanesque influence, while later ones, such as the 1934 barracks, use Georgian Revival details. The post guarded Lake Champlain and the northern frontier, and in 1915 it hosted the first reserve officer training camp, which produced the "Plattsburgh Idea" of citizen-soldier preparedness. The district is valued for its combined effect and its integrity of design and materials, with few exterior changes and many buildings still in use.