Camp Leach was the name the U.S. military used for the segment of the Washington, DC main campus of American University during World War I and World War II. During both wars, the university allowed the U.S. military to use parts of its grounds for weapons development and testing. In 1917, 24 days after the United States declared war on Germany, the university offered its property to the war effort. The military divided the campus into two segments, Camp American University and Camp Leach. The two camps were considered at the time to be "the largest laboratory this side of the sun or other burning stars."