Camel Corps

It's easy to chuckle when you learn that the US military actually had a camel corps, which was essentially a battalion of camel-mounted soldiers. Today, it sounds foolish and in 1837, when it was first proposed, people also thought it was stupid.

There were no huge military transport vehicles in the 1800s. Soldiers rode their horses. And just 42,000 soldiers were available to cover the entire country. As a result, when the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo added over 500,000 square miles to the United States and residents began flocking to California for the Gold Rush, the army had huge swathes of area to cover. And a large portion of the new territory was desert.

Camel travel grew in popularity for military purposes when water and supplies became scarce and arid terrain became more difficult to traverse. They were skilled at navigating arid terrain and used significantly less water than a horse. They might also transport supplies. In 1855, Congress appropriated $30,000 for the acquisition of camels.

Thirty-three camels were acquired in the Middle East and sent to the United States. There were now thirty-four camels since, despite the death of a couple, more had been born. The Civil War effectively brought an end to the camel experiment. Rebel soldiers captured and killed several. The remainder were auctioned off, and some were simply turned loose. The last known army camel died in 1934.

Year of Experiment: 1855