U.S. War Department

City: Washington

State: District of Columbia

One of the original federal departments, Congress established the War Department on August 7, 1789, to oversee the operation and maintenance of the Army. The Secretary of War headed the department. It initially supervised the Navy as well but ceded that responsibility with the creation of the Navy Department in 1798.

"An Act to Establish an Executive Department, to be Denominated the Department of War," 7 August 1789, Statutes at Large of the United States 1 (1845):49-50; "An Act to Establish an Executive Department, to be Denominated the Department of the Navy," 30 April 1798, Statutes at Large of the United States 1 (1845):553-54.