The fort was named for Charles W. Raymond, who had served in Alaska as a captain in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
[1] The defense of Seward became less important after 1943 when the Japanese forces in the Aleutians were defeated and the threat of attack or invasion was greatly reduced.
The construction of the deep water port in Whittier, Alaska, much closer to Anchorage, also reduced Seward's importance.
The Army troops stationed at Fort Raymond were used as stevedores when needed.
The fort's hospital was quickly transferred to the Territory of Alaska by the War Assets Administration, and it was operated as a tuberculosis sanitorium until 1957.