Thank you CaMP BoWIE for 75 years of service
Hometown people. Hometown spirit. brownwood, texas • member fdic
PAGE 2 | CAMP BOWIE - 75 YEARS LATER | BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
In Memory of the Men of the
Fighting 36th Division
TABLE OF CONTENTS PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
Construction of Camp Bowie got under way in September 1940.
“thE tEXAs Division”
3) Ghosts of Camp Bowie: Evidence of camp lives today 4) The History: Camp Bowie ends Depression doldrums 6) A Change to the City: How Brownwood prepared for Bowie 8) How it Happened: City leaders sought camp since 1923 9) Road to Redemption: Camp last resort for wayward soldiers Airport Plays Role in Growth: Air squadron headquarters 10) Prisoners of War: German POWs called Camp Bowie home 11) Prisoners of War: POW reflects on time in Brownwood 12) Soldiers of Camp Bowie: History of Krueger Hill namesake 14) Lifestyle of a Soldier: What did soldiers do for fun? 15) Camp Deactiviation: U.S. victory spells end of camp’s boom 16) Texas National Guard: Camp Bowie now home to training center
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17) Keeping History Alive: Library volunteers hold key to history 18) Keeping History Alive: Museum offers expanded exhibit
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BROWNWOOD BULLETIN | CAMP BOWIE - 75 YEARS LATER | PAGE 3
CAMP BOWIE
Support your favorite Support your favorite cause when you shop!
| THE LEGACY
cause when shop! Support youryou favorite cause when you shop! PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
The railroad tracks that brought construction materials into Camp Bowie 75 years ago made the creation of a major industrial complex easier for Brownwood a generation later.
Ghosts of
CAMP BOWIE alive and well today
Evidence of camp continues to be unearthed in form of potentially dangerous ordinance BY GENE DEASON
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
The ghosts of World War II Camp Bowie are all around — if you know where to look. Some ghosts are obvious, like the buildings that continue to serve the community as industrial or municipal facilities. Others are less apparent, like the chapels that were moved and became places of worship for civilian congregations, or the stone culverts that carry 21st century traffic. The most valuable remnant of the former Army camp, however, is the land and infrastructure the government left behind when the camp closed in 1946. “Having Camp Bowie here laid the groundwork for the robust industrial park we have today,” said Ray Tipton, executive director of the Brownwood Area Chamber of Commerce. “If we had not had Camp Bowie, we wouldn’t have what we have in Brownwood today.” The thousands of industrial jobs created by the factories and businesses
that have located on what was formerly Camp Bowie property have solidified the local economy and the benefits have boosted every other sector, Tipton said, as people come here to work, live and play. That in turn boosts the retail community as stores open to serve those residents. “We also have to give credit to that group of leaders for having the vision, for seeing what the community needed, and then promoting even with their own funds the industrial area,” Tipton said. “In a lot of ways, my job is a direct result of all that, and so is the Brownwood Industrial Foundation and the Economic Development Corporation.” When the Army finally left the camp permanently, a grid of roads, rail and infrastructure just outside the city limits was ideal for such a development. “The infrastructure has been significant,” Brownwood City Manager Emily Crawford said. “Having the rail is huge. The fact that we have rail like that for an industrial site in a city our size, is a See LEGACY, page 19
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PAGE 4 | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
CAMP BOWIE
PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
The construction of Camp Bowie that began in 1940 prompted these local entrepreneurs to offer a place where workers could buy cold drinks, coffee, lunches and candy. Framing for buildings at Camp Bowie took shape quickly during the winter of 1940-41. PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
| THE HISTORY
Camp Bowie ended Depression doldrums
Shock of closing after World War II set stage for industrial complex BY GENE DEASON
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
Historians describe the United States of the late 1930s as an isolationist nation, focused on domestic problems while struggling economically to shake off the aftershocks of the Great Depression. Saying that World War II “changed everything” is an understatement. It was no different for Central Texas, a rural region that had economic fortunes continue to rise and fall with agriculture. In the 1930s, those fortunes were mostly falling. In the decade prior to World War II, the agricultural sector in Brown and surrounding counties had been hammered. Between 1929 and 1940, cropland harvested in the county dropped from
honoring the foundation of brownwood
75 lebrating e C
Years
146,129 acres to 118,000, and the number of farms dropped to 2,119, local historian Dr. T.R. Havins wrote in his book “Something About Brown.” On top of that, the depression ended an oil boom experienced in the Brownwood area in the early part of the century. As prices dropped, production fell off.
DEPRESSION HARDSHIP
Hardship was widespread during the 1930s, even with state and New Deal relief programs. Among the federal projects that employed workers and improved county facilities were road, school and public works construction initiatives. The construction of a dam on Lake Brownwood during the early 1930s also helped to alleviate some of the effects of the depression. With the winds of war blowing in Europe, the United States adopted a defensive stance in See BOWIE, PAGE 5
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BROWNWOOD BULLETIN | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | PAGE 5 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4 the event the goal of world domination of Nazi Germany looked across the Atlantic. Brown County leaders began courting military officials, seeking the location of an Army camp in the area. The fruit of their efforts was Camp Bowie, a military training center authorized by the War Department one and a half miles south and east of the city limits of Brownwood. It wasn’t the first Camp Bowie in Texas; that installation had been opened by the Army in Fort Worth during World War I. But that land was no longer available, having been declared surplus after “the war to end all wars.” The property near Camp Bowie Boulevard in Fort Worth, with its good roads and utility lines already in place, was snapped up by residential developers. In 1940, the war situation in Europe prompted Congress to decide it was time to strengthen the defense system. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was given the power to mobilize National Guard units. Units of the 36th Division of the Texas National Guard arrived at Camp Bowie in mid-December for training. Before that training ended, war had been declared following the attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941.
PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
Camp Bowie had 31 post exchanges — the PX — to serve soldiers. This is one of the larger ones. NEW CAMP AUTHORIZED
The War Department announced on Sept. 19, 1940, that a camp would be built near Brownwood. Work began quickly, on Sept. 27, 1940. Camp Bowie was the first major defense project in the state, and there was no shortage of labor when the work began. At one time more than 15,000 area men were employed on the project.
However, the work wasn’t easy. Record rainfall fell on Brown County that winter and spring, and by the time the War Department decided to revive the name Camp Bowie in October 1941, the label “Camp Gooey” seemed more appropriate. Between 1940 and 1946, the camp near Brownwood grew to be one of the largest military training centers in the state. Approximately a quarter of a
million men were processed through it. On Oct. 1, 1942, the War Department became the owner of 123,000 acres of land in Brown and Mills counties. Before the war ended, the campsite encompassed 5,000 acres and approximately 118,000 acres were used as training grounds, and some 250,000 men had come through. The urgent need to start training troops resulted in the expansion of pyramidal tents. This lasted for about a year and a half, until more permanent buildings were built. At one time there were 6,072 pyramidal and 910 wall tents at Bowie. Each tent housed five enlisted men. While living quarters were being built, larger buildings were popping up across the site. On March 1, 1941, it was reported that 213 mess halls and 224 bathhouses had been built. The men enjoyed sports and entertainment at 22 recreation centers. The camp boasted a large post exchange with 27 branches, three libraries, and one golf course, as well as three dental clinics and two Red Cross buildings. The hospital could care for 2,000 patients, and the post had 13 chapels. Atop the hill overlooking Camp Bowie was the post headquarters, and SEE BOWIE, page 21
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PAGE 6 | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
How d o o w n w Bro r o f d e r a p e r p e i w o B p Cam CAMP BOWIE
| A CHANGE TO THE CITY
PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
This photo of Center Avenue looking west was taken in 1944 during the height of the Camp Bowie build-up. It shows signs in front of several of the nine movie theaters in the city, as well as some buildings still standing in 2015. Among them are the First National Bank building on the corner of West Baker Street, at left foreground, and the former Citizens National Bank building, the tall building in the distance at left, which now houses Brownwood Manor, at the corner of West Lee Street. Also visible is the Lyric Theater, which was renovated and reopened last year.
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | PAGE 7
City had little time to prepare for changes Camp brought BY GENE DEASON
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
When the military decided to locate a training center near Brownwood in 1940, it lost no time making Camp Bowie a reality. Brownwood business and civic leaders found themselves scrambling to keep up, because they could not have predicted the boom that was ahead. In the late 1930s, national leaders felt a sense of urgency to shore up America’s military defenses as the war in Europe spread. That urgency was wellfounded, because the United States was ultimately drawn into World War II after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. “Brownwood and the smaller communities in the county have had almost insurmountable problems from the date of the announcement of the location of the Army camp,” historian Dr. T.R. Havins wrote in his 1958 book, “Something About Brown.” Brownwood began experiencing a housing shortage almost immediately after the announcement of the camp in September 1940, and it persisted until the end of the war, Havins wrote. Local leaders that month sought a federal housing grant, and approval was granted in January 1941. Construction began on March 10 that year on an 11acre tract in north Brownwood, but it didn’t do much to alleviate the tremendous demand for housing. Families of men stationed at Camp Bowie continued to arrive through the winter of 1941-42, prompting the Army to issue pleas to local residents to open individual rooms in their homes to military personnel. The community responded, and situations were common where people rented rooms above garages, vacant bedrooms and even out-buildings. Anything with a door and a roof was deemed prospective living quarters. In December 1942, Brownwood newspapers reported that mothers with children, unable to find accommodations, went door-to-door asking local residents if they could just sit in their living rooms so their families would have shelter from the cold weather. The Army built a 220-unit housing project for civilian employees of Camp Bowie and soldiers with a wife working at the camp, with the quartermaster corps as the administrative agent, Havins wrote. It too was hardly adequate to meet the demand. In addition to the sudden influx of soldiers’ families, another major problem was the arrival of scofflaws and undesirable characters, which proved a burden to the resources of local law enforcement agencies. The population of Brownwood soared from 13,964 in April 1940 to 23,479 a year later. Photographs from the war years show crowds of people rivaling scenes from New York’s Times Square on New Year’s Eve, as servicemen — primarily — jammed the streets seeking a meal, a beverage, conversation with a local female, or a movie at one of the city’s eight downtown theaters. Many counted in the population surge were children of servicemen, which created overcrowding in public schools. Teachers extended the school day in an effort to handle all the students. Because Brownwood was a defense area, the government approved a $486,000 grant for new school
PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
Good railroad service was one thing Brownwood already had when Camp Bowie was authorized in 1940, sending 250,000 troops for training during World War II. This photo from the 1920s shows the Santa Fe Depot and Harvey House from the railroad side. Lodging was available at several places nearby. buildings, additional rooms for existing school buildings, and equipment. In a 1961 Camp Bowie essay, Tessica Martin wrote that the owner of a skating rink brought in cots to his business and charged $2.50 a week for sleeping quarters — complete with heat, electricity and showers — after construction began on the camp. Martin was a longtime journalism professor at Howard Payne College, and worked at the Brownwood Bulletin during the war. It was not uncommon for women to assume civilian jobs traditionally held by men when they resigned to join the military. The housing problem in Brownwood persisted, so the manager of one of Brownwood’s movie theaters announced plans to remain open all night so those without shelter could stay inside after the final showing. Cafés opened on almost every street corner downtown, and many of those stayed open all night as well. Men stationed at Camp Bowie came to town to eat at almost every opportunity, Martin wrote. The camp’s cooks knew they would seldom have a full crew to feed, but regulations required them to cook enough food for everyone regardless. The result was that large quantities of food were wasted on base, while nearby civilians faced shortages of certain items and experienced rationing in their own homes. The Brown County Water Improvement District, which had completed the costly construction of Lake Brownwood less than a decade earlier, found
itself without funds needed to expand its facilities to handle the demands of the camp. The water district received a grant of $156,000 from the government to make those upgrades, and an additional $130,000 was received that had to be repaid from water rents collected from the City of Brownwood. For its part, the City of Brownwood obtained WPA grants in 1941 and 1942 to repair streets being worn out by heavy traffic. The work was concentrated on Austin Avenue and Coggin Avenue, where the heaviest volume of traffic moving between town and the camp was traveling. While infrastructure woes mounted, the Brownwood economy boomed. Wages were high, and employers couldn’t find enough applicants to fill positions. A civilian “army” of some 10,000 workers were on hand filling jobs at Camp Bowie, and other jobs went begging. Businessmen had a ready market for their wares, and they clamored for additional supplies from their wholesalers. Owners of real estate — and especially those with rental property — had multiple inquiries for every listing. In order to prevent abuse by landlords, the Office of Price Administration opened a rent control office in Brownwood that served Brown, Coleman and Comanche counties. Deposits at Brownwood banks, which totaled around $4 million in September 1940, had jumped to $15 million at the same banks by the end of the war.
PAGE 8 | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
BY GENE DEASON
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
PHOTO COURTESY JAMES FURRY AND BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
Dorothy Mae Furry is shown at Camp Bowie’s Gate One in the 1941 photo. The site is where Gate One Motel is now located on the Brady Highway.
CAMP BOWIE | HOW IT HAPPENED
City leaders had sought military camp since 1923
Brownwood civic leaders had been lobbying the government for a military training compound for more than 15 years when Camp Bowie was finally authorized in 1940. Now the home of numerous plants operated by international industries and support manufacturers, Camp Bowie was an even larger beehive of activity 75 years ago. The U.S. War Department had quickly ramped up construction in preparation for what ultimately became World War II. Compared to the current era when bureaucracy often slows federal response to a crawl, the green light to build Camp Bowie came with lightning speed. Congress authorized the camp on Sept. 19, 1940, and the 36th Division was simultaneously ordered to mobilize there on Nov. 20, 1940. Construction at the camp was under way a mere eight days after its authorization — on Sept. 27, 1940. Texas National Guard officers in Brownwood had directed attention to Brown County as a possible training center for troops as early as the summer of 1923, after rumors circulated that the state would likely abandon the Camp Hulen training center at Palacios. Dr. T.R. Havins, in his 1958 book “Something About Brown,” wrote that after plans were announced to abandon Camp Mabry in Austin as the headquarters for state troops, Brownwood business leaders invited high-ranking Guard officers to visit Brown County to inspect the potential new installation site. A comprehensive tour by those officials
March 25-28, 1924, raised optimism locally, but it resulted in no decision. Camp Mabry, created in 1892, continues in its role as joint force headquarters for the Texas National Guard, Texas Air National Guard and Texas State Guard, and remains the third oldest active military installation in the state. Local officials never gave up, however, and efforts intensified after the Great Depression hammered the area whose economy was largely dependent on agriculture. In the summer of 1940, as Congress considered ordering a peacetime draft of civilians into military service, the Brownwood Chamber of Commerce responded with a brief to the commanding general of the VIII Corps in San Antonio that detailed the advantages of the Brownwood area as a training center. The chamber of commerce initiative was announced locally on Aug. 1, 1940, and local newspapers carried brief stories that the Army was considering the area for a training center. On Sept. 5, 1940, the Brownwood Bulletin carried a story stating that Brownwood had been selected by the War Department as a National Guard training center. A 2,000-acre site had been leased for the center, and local committees were working on securing leases for about 60,000 acres to be used as a maneuver area. After several months, the government purchased the property outright. Selective Service was approved nationwide on Sept. 16, 1940, and registration of men for the draft began a month later. However, it would be more than a year before the camp would be given its See CITY LEADERS, page 22
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | PAGE 9
CAMP BOWIE
| A ROAD TO REDEMPTION
Camp Bowie last resort for wayward soldiers BY GENE DEASON
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
The prison that held captured German soldiers at Camp Bowie during World War II is well documented. Murals painted by POWs still decorate the interiors of several area buildings, and a Texas Historical Marker on Highway 45 documents the POW camp’s story. Fewer local residents know about the prison at Camp Bowie that held American soldiers found guilty through court-martial. An Associated Press story published six months after the Camp Bowie Rehabilitation Center opened Dec. 1, 1942, offered a detailed report of the program. The center, operated by the Eighth IMAGE COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY Service Command, gave soldiers found LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH guilty a “last chance” to prove themCamp Bowie had a “rehabilitation censelves worthy of the uniform. It was a ter,” which was actually a prison, that place where, the story explains, “the held military personnel who had been Army winnows the military useful found guilty of crimes at court-martial. from the useless among enlisted men.” It was the last chance for them to prove At the time of the story, 602 men themselves worthy of the uniform, and lived in a stockade guarded by two perhaps earn a reduced sentence and be barbed/wire fences, machine guns and returned to active duty in World War II. sentries. Each came to the Rehabilita-
CAMP BOWIE
tion Center under sentences ranging from six months to 15 years, after being found guilty of crimes as wideranging as absent without leave to rape. They represented most branches of the service, and their homes had been in every state of the nation as well as the Caribbean and Panama Canal Zone. The length of the sentence was not necessarily the determining factor in a transgressing soldier’s future. Rather, the ultimate test was whether a man could prove himself to be a good soldier. If he did, he could qualify for a reduced sentence and possibly be returned to active duty. If not, he ultimately received a dishonorable discharge after serving his time. The routine, described as unique among the Army’s nine Service Commands, was grounded in discipline combined with a “time of soul-probing which allows time to untangle a man’s inner conflicts.” It was a successful formula. By the time the center closed in 1946, a total of 2,294 men were restored to active duty, with a failure rate of only 12 percent.
Col. Arthur Kennedy, a Texan who commanded the center, said he drove the program strictly down the middle “between excessive punishment and excessive mollycoddling.” After men arrived at the stockade and received physical and mental evaluations, those deemed fit were put in one of two companies, B or C. For 120 hours, spread over about 10 weeks, the men worked at drilling, marching, bayonet and target practice, scouting, patrolling, reading maps, and studying field fortifications. Another 120 hours were spent carrying out work assignments, always staying in confinement. It wasn’t all drill. Those who were illiterate were taught to read and write, along with arithmetic, to a fifth grade level. Others learned radio communications, baking, cooking, clerking and vehicle mechanics. After those 240 hours of work, the men were up for “promotion” to the Honor, or A, Company, and with that came special privileges. They could be put on parole, allowing them to work, play and drill outside the stockade, but See REHAB, page 22
| AIRPORT PLAYS ROLE IN GROWTH
National Guard air squadron used airport as headquarters BY GENE DEASON
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
Any story about Camp Bowie during World War II is incomplete without mention of the importance aviation played in its development and service to the nation. The City of Brownwood had been considering construction of a municipal airport since the late 1920s,
but it wasn’t until 1935 that the facility known today as Brownwood Regional Airport was established. When Camp Bowie was authorized in September 1940, the Air Army Corps almost simultaneously approved the 200-acre municipal airport as headquarters for the air squadron of the 36th Division of the Texas National Guard. The Army’s designation resulted in the installation of a lighted field plus water, gas and other utilities,
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according to a history of local aviation available at the Brownwood Public Library’s Genealogy Branch. Brownwood had entered the age of aviation at least by Oct. 4, 1913, when the U.S. Postal Service established daily “aeroplane mail service” between the Brownwood and Comanche post offices. The pilot, Lester Miller of Dallas, also offered flights to the public at the Free Fall Fair in Brownwood. See AIRPORT, page 22
Davis-Morris Funeral HoMe Serving Brown County SinCe 1924
We want to thank and honor Camp Bowie for being a staple of the community and our heritage.
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PAGE 10 | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | BROWNWOOD BULLETIN BY GENE DEASON
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
CAMP BOWIE
|
PRISONERS OF WAR
W
hile American soldiers were being trained at Camp Bowie before going into battle during World War II, the war was over for some of the men there. They were German prisoners of war who had been captured by Allied forces, mostly from Field Marshal Erwin Rommel’s elite Afrika Corps in North Africa. The Geneva Convention required POWs to be kept in areas comparable to those in which they were captured, and Brownwood was deemed to be a climate similar to North Africa. The prison, located not far from the current Brownwood County Club, had three sections, according to documents at the Brownwood Public Library Genealogy Library. There was one for enlisted German soldiers and sailors who worked and enjoyed special privileges, another for those who refused to cooperate, and a third for sergeants and higher ranking prisoners. They began arriving at Camp Bowie in 1943. Living conditions were rather luxurious, given the conditions, because the Geneva Convention required minimum housing standards. The camp received regular visits from Swiss international inspectors. Interior decorating was common, with furnishings purchased or otherwise “appropriated.” Barracks held competition for the most attractive interiors. So too were contests for the Good Barrack Keeping Program, which led to landscaping and gardens — even flower beds — outside the barracks. The prisoners, unimpressed with the quality of most American music, organized several bands and two orchestras. Performances were held in one barrack building, and the camp commander granted the POWs’ request to convert the building into a performance hall with a stage. That led to the performance of classic German plays in the theater, and female roles were portrayed by men in costume. Participation was high, and costumes and props were made from materials they were provided for that purpose. Sometimes, though, contraband acquired through the underground prisoner exchange was used. Sports were also encouraged. Each barrack had a soccer team in the POW League. Uniforms were provided the prisoners, but they seldom met with their approval. Because many of them worked in the camp laundry, they managed to obtain clothing that might otherwise be abandoned. The commander allowed them to wear that clothing as long as items were marked with a “P” and “W”
PHOTOS COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
GERMAN
POWs POWs began arriving at Camp Bowie in 1943
ABOVE: Landscaping, including flowers in front of their barracks, was important for the Germans POWs held at Camp Bowie during World War II. LEFT: German POWs at Camp Bowie entertained themselves by forming bands and orchestras.
German POWs like those who were held at Camp Bowie during World War II grimace at newsreel coverage of the treatment of people held in German concentration camps.
on the legs to distinguish them from civilians on base. The deaths of five German prisoners were recorded, and death certificates have been preserved. George Forst, Alfred Kafka, Walter Reese, Albin Sickel and Karl Staudinger were buried in a corner of Jordan Springs Cemetery south of the camp, until their bodies were returned to their families after the war, if possible. If families could not be found, they were buried at the State Cemetery in Austin. The death certificates did not always reflect the true cause of death, researchers said, because German officers reportedly staged deaths as punishment. German POWs said their accommodations at the barracks where almost 3,000 of All prisoners were returned to their them were held at Camp Bowie were much like a hotel. homelands after the war.
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | PAGE 11
CAMP BOWIE
|
PRISONERS OF WAR
Memories of a POW
Former POW recalls stay at Camp Bowie with fondness BY GENE DEASON
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
One of the first of almost 3,000 prisoners who came to Camp Bowie was Heinrich Krahforst, 22, who was interviewed in Germany by Heike Haddenbrock of Flower Mound in 2007. The transcript and photos were sent to the Brownwood Area Chamber of Commerce, which forwarded the materials to the Brown County Museum of History. “We were treated very well,” Krahforst said. “They always gave us plenty of food.” However, he was not impressed by the beer. Even though Brownwood prohibited liquor sales, prisoners were allowed the beverage. After a brief period of having to sleep on camp-beds, the POWs were provided real beds. Krahforst said it was like living in a hotel. Prisoners learned to speak English, taught by two Germans who were fluent in both languages. Prisoners were not allowed to work, but after about six months, Krafhorst said work was allowed. His main job was at the telephone office, where his boss Major Schroder was fluent in German. “What a fine man he was,” Krafhorst said. “Always PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LO- friendly, always treated CAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH me so well.” He Heinrich Krahforst and his wife are shown in a earned $28 a 2007 photo. Krahforst, a German POW at Camp month. He was Bowie, returned home after World War II and, after able to buy their marriage, purchased furniture with money he beer, cookhad saved working on base. ies, chocolate and cigarettes, and managed to save $132 to take with him when he left the United States. He even purchased two wedding bands, of “very good American gold.” Later on, one would no longer fit his wife’s finger, but she still continued to keep it in her jewelry box. He had a good friend while a POW, who was a baker in a kitchen. They lost touch after the war, but were reunited by accident in 2005 when they shared a room in a hospital. He only saw Brownwood once, other than the time he came and left the camp. That was when a camp messenger took let him go along to town on his daily trip. After being at Camp Bowie, he was moved to Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan, where he worked fields for farmers. He was told he was being taken back to Germany to be set free, but was instead sent to France where he again was held as a POW, but in much tougher See MEMORIES, page 22
“I do remember everything very well, and I still speak some English. I have some very good memories of that time, although I stayed there as a POW.” PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
Heinrich Krahforst, a member of German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel’s elite Afrika Corps, was one of almost 3,000 German POWs held at Camp Bowie after his capture. In recent years, he was interviewed about his experience.
PAGE 12 | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
CAMP BOWIE
|
SOLDIERS OF CAMP BOWIE
PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH / INSERT PHOTO: GENE DEASON/BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
A large crowd turned out to watch soldiers parade at Camp Bowie in the 1940s. Pictured from left to right are 131st Light Artillery, the 132nd Light Artillery, and the 133rd Heavy Artillery. INSET: Members of the Tarleton State University ROTC raise an American flag on Krueger Hill during ceremonies Sept. 19, 2015, the 75th anniversary of the authorization of Camp Bowie by Congress.
HISTORY OF
KRUEGER HILL
Gen. Walter Krueger served as commander of VIII Corps in Brownwood
BY GENE DEASON
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
B PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
This is a view overlooking Camp Bowie shot from Krueger Hill and the commander’s residence, before it got the name from Gen. Walter Krueger.
rownwood residents know the name Krueger from the hilltop overlooking the Camp Bowie industrial complex south of Brownwood, at the intersection of U.S. Highway 377 and Texas Highway 45. But only those familiar with military history know much about its namesake — Gen. Walter Krueger. During his short time in Brownwood, Krueger was commander of VIII Corps, which moved into Camp Bowie after the 36th Infantry Division left. The “TPatchers” became involved in some of the most intense battles in Europe during early World War II. The camp’s headquarters, and Krueger’s home, were located on top of the hill. Krueger went on to make his name in the jungles of the Pacific Theatre, Kevin C. Holzimmer writes in his biography of Krueger, “General Walter Krueger: Unsung Hero of the Pacific War” (University of Kansas Press, 2007). He was tapped by Gen. Douglas MacArthur to lead the invasion of Japan had it been necessary, See KRUEGER, page 13
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | PAGE 13 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 12 made crucial contributions to the Army’s tactical and operational doctrine, and was featured in 1945 on the cover of Time magazine. Even so, historians view him as one of the least-known commanders of World War II. As head of the Sixth Army, Krueger exemplified the art of command at the operational level of war and played a pivotal role in the defeat of Japan. His abrasive personality could cause MacArthur problems, but his commander credited him as “swift and sure in attack, tenacious and determined in defense, modest and restrained in victory.” Krueger has been credited with forging and leading a large combinedarms effort that integrated infantry, armor, artillery, naval, and air forces in the Pacific. Unlike some overly cautious commanders of the war, Krueger turned aggressive when situations dictated. In 1964, MacArthur said, “History has not given (Krueger) credit for his greatness. I do not believe that the annals of American history have shown his superior as an Army commander. Swift and sure in the attack, tenacious and determined in defense, modest and restrained in victory—I do not know what he would have been in defeat, because he was never defeated.” Krueger was born in West Prussia in 1881, and moved to the United States at age 8. With other high school students, he served as a volunteer during the Spanish-American War, and remained in the U.S. Army when the conflict ended. He graduated from the Infantry-Cavalry School at Fort Leavenworth, Kan. This was followed by the Command and General Staff College in 1907. He then joined the 23rd Infantry at Fort Ontario, N.Y. He served in the Philippines, and after returning to the United States in June 1909, he was assigned to the Department of Languages at Fort Leavenworth as an instructor in Spanish, French and German, which he could speak fluently. He published translations of several German military texts, most notably William Balck’s Tactics. Krueger joined the 10th Infantry of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard upon the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, and served along the Mexican border under Maj. Gen. John Pershing. He assumed command of the 55th Infantry Regiment at Camp Funston, Kansas, in 1920, and graduated from the Army War College in 1921. He remained there as an instructor on classes like the “Art of Command.”
PHOTO COURTESY ARMY SIGNAL CORPS COLLECTION, U.S. NATIONAL ARCHIVES
Lt. Gen. Walter Krueger, Gen. Douglas MacArthur, and Gen. George Marshall, from left to right, are shown at a field headquarters in late 1943. He spent four months in Germany in 1922 studying that country’s war archives, and became convinced that much of the German Army’s effectiveness had been its system of decentralized command. Krueger urged the Army to give American commanders in the field wider latitude in carrying out their orders. In the mid-1920s, Krueger served in the War Plans Division of the War Department General Staff in Washington, where his assignments included plans for another possible war with Mexico as well as another civil war in the United States. Seeking more rapid promotion, he tried in 1927 to transfer to the Army Air Corps at Brooks Field, Texas, but his flight instructor failed him after an attack of neuritis in his right arm. He accepted the position of instructor at the Naval War College teaching history classes on World War I. In the 1930s, Krueger commanded an infantry regiment in Missouri, and was promoted to colonel. He returned to the War Plans Division in 1934, and became its chief in 1936. He was named brigadier general and commander of the 2nd Infantry Division at Fort Meade, Maryland, in 1938, and major general in 1939 when he took command a year later of the 2nd Infantry Division at Fort
Sam Houston, Texas. While there, Krueger made a series of suggestions on how the Army’s new triangular division concept could be improved. Mechanization and fastpaced modern warfare fascinated him, and his ideas were tested in maneuvers with his division. His troops called themselves the “blitzkruegers.” Krueger became commander of IX Corps on Jan. 31, 1940, created to control units of the Third Army engaged in large scale maneuvers simulating battle with IV Corps. Krueger became commander of the VIII Corps on June 27, at it was during this command that he headquartered at Camp Bowie. On May 16, 1941, he was promoted to lieutenant general and given command of the Third Army. He took command of the South Defense Command that July, and asked that Col. Dwight D. Eisenhower be assigned to him as his chief of staff. That request was granted. Krueger’s modern battlefield tactics were proven in 1942 during maneuvers in Louisiana between his Third Army and the Second Army. Krueger expressed the desire to be sent overseas to personally lead attacks on the enemy, but he acknowledged that such assignments would likely go to younger men. He would
turn 62 in January 1943. So, he was surprised to learn that Gen. MacArthur, the Supreme Commander of the Southwest Pacific Area, had requested his services. Krueger became a key to MacArthur’s success, making his commander’s strategic vision a reality, and often providing accurate intelligence on Japanese forces and strategy in the face of conflicting information from other sources. Historians have speculated that Krueger’s methodical, deliberate approach was a valuable counter-balance to MacArthur’s fast-paced style. MacArthur recommended Krueger’s promotion to general on March 5, 1945, having rated his leadership above that of either George Patton or Omar Bradley. After occupying Japan until the end of 1945, the Sixth Army was deactivated in January 1946, and Krueger retired to San Antonio in July 1946. A middle school in San Antonio was named in his honor. His health declined during the 1950s, and he died from pneumonia at Valley Forge, Pa., in 1967. He was buried at Arlington Memorial cemetery. His papers are housed at Cushing Memorial Library at Texas A&M University.
PAGE 14 | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
CAMP BOWIE
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LIFESTYLE OF A SOLDIER
PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
ABOVE, LEFT: The line waiting to get into the Lyric Theater for a Clark Gable picture wrapped around the corner in this World War II era photo of downtown Brownwood. The name of the film is not easily identified, but Gable only made five movies — from 1940 to 1942 — before he enlisted in the Army Air Corps to serve in combat. Thousands of soldiers stationed at Camp Bowie during the war made such lines common, even though Brownwood had nine theaters — eight downtown plus another for black patrons — and the camp had seven more.
So, what did soldiers do for fun? Movie houses were the hot spots in Brownwood for Camp Bowie soldiers
BY GENE DEASON
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
I
magine living hundreds of miles from home in a world with no television, limited radio, and no Internet. This is the world known by 36th Infantry Division soldiers who were mobilized at Camp Bowie in Brownwood 75 years ago this winter. So what was there to do? Not much, perhaps, at least initially. But as Camp Bowie blossomed as World War II got under way, so did nearby Brownwood — and so did opportunities for entertainment for soldiers who were off-duty between
training exercises. In the 1930s and 1940s, movies dominated the options for entertainment, and soldiers had their pick of 16 theaters, when those available on base and downtown were combined. A pocket guide distributed to soldiers stationed at Camp Bowie listed seven camp theaters, all showing firstrun movies for an admission price of 15 cents. Those theaters were open to all military personnel and their dependents, as well as civilians who lived on base. Popcorn was sold in the lobby of each, the guide explains. Theaters in Camp Bowie were generally larger than those found in town, al-
PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
ABOVE, RIGHT: The Bowie Theater welcomed audiences from Brownwood and Camp Bowie to the 1942 film “My Favorite Spy,” starring Kay Kyser and Ellen Drew, and produced by silent film star Harold Lloyd. It should not be confused with the 1951 movie with the same name starring Bob Hope and Hedy Lamarr. During World War II, the Bowie was one of seven movie theaters open in downtown Brownwood, and it was the last to close. Its building still stands at the corner of Center and West Chandler, housing Solaris Hospice. though the Lyric and the Bowie rivaled the seating capacity of the largest on base. Four base movie houses had seating for 950 people each, while two others could hold 602 customers each. The smallest theater on base seated 310 people. The two largest theaters in town were furnished with much tighter seating than would be comfortable for today’s larger bodies, and based on some reports, could accommodate at least twice that many — if not more. Brownwood was home to nine theaters by the time World War II ended. They were, alphabetical order, the Bowie at 413 Center, Gem at 313 Center, Granada at 205 East Lee, Harlem at 1012 Cordell, Lyric at 318 Center, Plaza at 307 Center, Queen at 203 Center, Ritz at 102 Center, and Texas at 205 North Center. In these days of segregation, the Harlem Theater was designated for black customers. Several of the buildings that housed Brownwood theaters have been demolished, but several others remain in use by other, non-theater businesses. Only the Lyric is used as an entertainment facility today, and that was made possible by a multi-million restoration completed in December 2014. The facility closed as a movie theater in 1958, and was used by retail stores before being vacant for several years. The Lyric and the Bowie were the largest of the local theaters. The films shown at the downtown theaters, along with numerous cafes and restaurants, attracted massive numbers of soldiers — most of whom couldn’t wait until their duties were completed so they could take visits off
PHOTO COURTESY OF BRITT TOWERY
Employees at the Lyric Theater, at the corner of Center and West Anderson, are shown in this 1944 photo. Pictured from left to right are Robert Taylor, head usher; Bill Rast, manager; Mary Hartnitt, door lady (ticket taker); Joe swan, usher; Bill LaQuey, usher; and Britt E. Towery Jr., popcorn boy and part-time usher. “Ministry of Fear” is a 1944 filmnoir starring Ray Milland about a man just released from an asylum in England during World War II who accidentally stumbles onto a deadly Nazi plot, and tries to stop it. The Lyric closed in 1958, but was restored to a community showplace in time for its 100th anniversary last year.
base. A curfew of 1 a.m. was enforced for every day of the week. Two of the largest theaters on base, which were identified by numbers instead of names, hosted monthly revues furnished by USO Camp Shoes Inc. of New York City. Playbills from those shows indicate that former and current vaudeville, radio and night club stars See FUN, page 23
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | PAGE 15
U.S. victory spells end for Camp Bowie’s boom CAMP BOWIE
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DEACTIVIATION
BY GENE DEASON
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
PHOTO COURTESY JAMES FURRY AND PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
Soldiers march down Center Avenue in Brownwood as crowds line the streets in support of the Armistice Day parade (now Veterans Day, Nov. 11) in 1947. Camp Bowie was deactivated in 1946, and Brownwood was coping with the changes that came about as the area unwound from being a military boom town during World War II. The holiday’s designation was made by Congress in 1954. The Bowie Theater shown at far left in the where Solaris Hospice is located today.
PHOTO ON DISPLAY AT LEHNIS TRAIN MUSEUM
BACKGROUND PHOTO: This aerial photo of downtown Brownwood was taken in January 1946, just months before the War Department declared Camp Bowie surplus on Aug. 1, 1946.
Throughout World War II, soldiers who trained at Camp Bowie won numerous battles around the world, while local residents were also winning the battles at home by supporting those troops however possible. But the battle to convince the Army to keep Camp Bowie open after the war was one Brownwood civic leaders could not win. The economic blow the Brown County area suffered by the deactivation of Camp Bowie in 1946 was the mirror-image of the boom that the community had experienced just six years earlier. On Aug. 1, 1946, the War Department notified Texas members of Congress that the camp had been declared surplus. The Civilian War Assets Administration took charge and began distribution of parcels of land and buildings. On Oct. 1, 1946, the U.S. flag flying over Camp Bowie came down for the last time. Camp Bowie was authorized on Sept. 19, 1940. About a hundred miles to the southeast, an Army garrison command — Camp Hood near Killeen — had been authorized in 1942. As Camp Bowie was being deactivated, a portion of Camp Hood was deemed suitable for post-war operations, and the 2nd Armored Division became the post’s main unit. Military appropriations were severely limited, leading to the deactivation of Camp Bowie and limited activity at Camp Hood until 1948. Camp Hood was renamed Fort Hood — which meant it had
been accorded permanent status — in April 1950, two months before the beginning of the Korean War. It appeared increasingly unlikely that in peacetime, the Army would keep two permanent installations so close to each other. Rumors circulated that regressive residents were vocal about not wanting Camp Bowie as a permanent fort, citing fears that the bad influence of rowdy soldiers living so close to the city would be detrimental to the quality of family life. Some residents may have held that view, but it wasn’t evident in the lobbying effort local leaders mounted to keep Camp Bowie viable. The Korean War that began in 1950 renewed hopes that Camp Bowie would be reopened. The Brownwood Bulletin reported that civic leaders had begun efforts to impress upon the Department of Defense the suitability of the former Camp Bowie site as a military installation in light of Communist aggression. Petitions with more than 6,000 signatures from local residents were sent to Texas’ two U.S. senators and the area’s Congressman. In 1951, Congress appropriated more than $8 million to partially rebuild Camp Bowie as a military camp. “Engineering crews are now at work at Camp Bowie, drawing plans and estimates for the work,” the Bulletin reported in March 1952. “Contracts are expected to be let in May, and construction is due to start in June.” Indeed, construction had again begun on rail facilities, communications operations and a million gallon water tower that See VICTORY, page 21
PAGE 16 | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
CAMP BOWIE
| TEXAS NATIONAL GUARD TRAINING CENTER
Commander synchronizes exercises at training center BY GENE DEASON
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
Lt. Col. Jamey Creek, commander, Training Centers Garrison Command, Texas Military Forces, had once considered a career in criminal justice. But after shadowing a game warden while a student at Tarleton State University, he decided he couldn’t do the job and also spend the time he wanted with his family. “He made it work for him,” Creek said of his Comanche County game warden mentor, “but I didn’t think I could. I ate many evening meals with his family before we went out on patrol together.” Even after being promoted last year from Camp Bowie garrison commander to the position that now has him supervising operations at four Texas National Guard training facilities across the state, Creek says the military is still the right choice — and the right balance — for him. “I’m able to be home a day or two each week,” he said on a day that found him working out of the Camp Bowie office he retained after his new position based at Camp Mabry in Austin. With a schedule that can include some “odd hours,” he successfully divides his time between home, and his offices in Austin and Brownwood. Family, which includes his wife and 12-year-old daughter in Buffalo Gap, is important to him, but so too is his National Guard family. “I enjoy it,” Creek said of his work. “I can’t say there is anything I would enjoy now more than this.” Creek did spend 10 years in the criminal justice sector, working as a probation officer in Abilene. That was before he was called for active duty, deployed to Iraq and then served a year at Fort Hood. “I found that was more to my calling, and I stayed with it,” Creek said. Creek was born in Brownwood and raised in Comanche. An ROTC student at Tarleton, he received his commission with the Texas National Guard in 1993. He served a few years in Abilene before becoming a platoon leader for the 3-112 in Coleman, and then was executive officer of Alpha Company in San Angelo. He held a staff job in Headquarters Armored Company Command in Stephenville before being deployed as a commander in 2004-2005. After returning from active duty in Iraq, he served a year at Fort Hood as an S-3 Armored Battalion operations officer, and then from 2007 to 2014 as officer in charge of
GENE DEASON | BULLETIN PHOTO
Lt. Col. Jamey Creek, left, commander, is shown with three staff members at the Camp Bowie Texas National Guard Training Center near Brownwood. Pictured from left to right are Staff Sgt. Thomas Crooks, Staff Sgt. Raymond Gerth and Sgt. 1st Class Isaias Garza. base operations at Camp Bowie. During a conversation with Creek about his work, the word “synchronize” was mentioned repeatedly. “It a very detailed, intensive job here to synchronize units and facilities,” Creek said. “At Camp Bowie, we maintain all resources and facilities a mobilizing unit needs to conduct its mission for the state, as well as for the federal level if called.” The training center spans just under 8,800 acres and can accommodate as many as 1,500 soldiers at one time, Creek said. In the course of a year, 80,000 to 100,000 soldiers will train at the Brownwood facility. That can include not only units of the Texas National Guard, but also teams from the U.S. Army, Marines, Air Force and the Texas State Guard. The training center hosts numerous missions from the 21st Cavalry, 302nd of Fort Hood, which periodically include military groups from America’s allies in Europe. Creek has 18 full-time staff members, and that number does not include other staff for additional operations at Camp Bowie. In addition to the training center command, Camp Bowie is home to the 111th Engineers of the Texas National Guard. Most recently, in October, the 111th assisted in containing a large grass fire near Justin in north Texas. The facility also licenses an enclave to the Texas Forest Service. Numerous state agencies in addition to the Texas State Guard have used the training facilities. Creek said the importance of containing grass fires was underscored in 2007 when a fire on the training center grounds jumped a fence to a neighboring property owner’s ranch. Numerous area fire depart-
ments responded, and it took 14 days to extinguish the fire that burned 3,800 acres. Since then, each staff member at the training center has been certified in wild fire training. Creek remains a member of the volunteer fire department in Buffalo Gap, although he is usually hundreds of miles away when a call to respond comes through on his cell phone. “We cherish the relationship with our neighbors,” Creek said. “I know pretty much every one of them, so we can diffuse things before they grow. It allows us to provide the best facilities for our troops together with the most realism. “It’s a two-way street. We can address our neighbors’ needs and try to mitigate noise to certain hours.” Creek described the relationship with the Brownwood community, and especially the Brownwood Area Chamber of Commerce, as “amazing.” The training center has some flexibility in its scheduling, and it is able to synchronize major training exercises and events like changes of command with community activities. With multiple training exercises often under way at Camp Bowie, safety is a prime concern. “We take our job very seriously,” Creek said. “We use the best procedures to keep all soldiers safe.” The most dangerous time is when exercises call for the use of live fire, and those training events are carefully monitored to ensure that soldiers do not accidentally stray into harm’s way. “There are a lot of unknowns in deployment,” Creek said. “Most of those are considered in advance. We plan in great detail.”
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | PAGE 17
CAMP BOWIE
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KEEPING ITS HISTORY ALIVE
PHOTO COURTESY CLAY RILEY, BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
This mural painted by Sgt. Helmuth Rosebrock, German POW, during in 1943 is preserved in the City of Brownwood Recreation Center at Camp Bowie. Rosebrock, whose photo is on display at the center, returned to German after the war, and died in 1954.
Library volunteers hold keys to camp’s history BY GENE DEASON
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
The start of construction at the U.S. Army’s Camp Bowie set off an new era in the history of Brownwood and Central Texas, and much of it is being preserved at the Brownwood Public Library Local History and Genealogy Branch. Volunteers at the library, located across the street from the entrance of the Brown County Courthouse, are members of the Pecan Valley Genealogy Society and are available to assist researchers from Tuesday through Friday each week. Two of the volunteers, Frank Hilton and Clay Riley, have compiled a rich collection of data and details about the camp — among other aspects of Brown County history — and what they don’t remember off the top of the
heads, they know where to find. So, any discussion of the topic results in the presentation of facts in rapid-fire succession, with one piece of information immediately leading to another. The basic information is generally well-known by most local residents, but there’s much more. “It must have been a fascinating time,” Riley said. “In addition to training soldiers for military combat, there was another big segment, a significant hospital command. Medical personnel from Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Louisiana were here. The Camp Bowie hospital featured a circular walkway so patients could be moved without being exposed to the elements, Riley said. A hotel on base housed relatives there to visit ailing soldiers. “Then there were the prisons, and you could say there were three of
them. German prisoners-of-war were separated to keep those who cooperated — or ‘collaborated’ — with the See HISTORY, page 19
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PAGE 18 | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
CAMP BOWIE
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KEEPING ITS HISTORY ALIVE
Museum offers expanded exhibit BY GENE DEASON
The exhibit includes display cases as well as drawings and narratives hanging on walls with war memorabilia. A walk through the Camp Bowie exOne display pays tribute to Walter hibit at the Brown County Museum of Krueger, who took command of VIII History Annex is not only a visit back Corps at Camp Bowie in 1941, and was to the Brownwood that existed during the first soldier to rise from the rank World War II, but also a trip back to the of private to general in the U.S. Army. world that generation knew. He later was placed in command of the Wanda Furgason, museum director, Third Army and the Southern Defense pointed to the year-by-year progresCommand, and was a key adviser to sion of displays featured, and the wide Gen. Douglas MacArthur. variety of items The numerincluded. ous European “We have battlefield some phoaccomplishtos that the ments of the 36th Infantry GENE DEASON | BULLETIN PHOTO public had not seen before,” Division, which Ann Daub visited the Camp Bowie exhibit at the Brown County Museum of History Furgason said. was the first during ceremonies held in September for the 75th anniversary of the camp’s autho“We know that unit to be rization. 250,000 men mobilized at came through Camp Bowie Camp Bowie for late in 1940, training. That’s are celebrated. a lot for this The 36th, town. Wives originally would come organized as a here with their Texas National husbands and Guard unit there was no at the first place to stay.” Camp Bowie Mike Hall CLU, Agent Separate disin Fort Worth 807 Center Avenue plays starting during World Brownwood, TX 76801 in 1939 trace War I, was Bus: 325-646-8600 Toll Free: 888-704-3368 how the war in reorganized www.mikehallinsurance.com Europe expandfor training in ® ed, with a newsBrownwood. paper account Originally an of how Hitler all-Texas unit, ® invaded Poland, the 36th evenMike Hall CLU, Agent With competitive rates and 807 Center Avenue in which six tually grew to Brownwood, TX 76801 personal service, it’s no million resiinclude men Bus: 325-646-8600 Toll Free: 888-704-3368 Mike Hall CLU, Agent www.mikehallinsurance.com wonder more drivers trust Mike Hall CLU, Agent dents perished. from all 50 With competitive rates and 807 Center Avenue State Farm®. Babies whose states. Even 807 Center Avenue TX 76801 Brownwood, GENE DEASON | BULLETIN PHOTO personal Like service, no Brownwood, TX 76801 76801 Brownwood, TX Bus: 325-646-8600 Toll Free: 888-704-3368 a goodit’s neighbor, features were so, it retained This display at the start of the Camp Bowie Bus: Toll Bus: 325-646-8600 325-646-8600 www.mikehallinsurance.com Toll Free: Free: 888-704-3368 888-704-3368 wonder more drivers trust® deemed “Aryan the “Texas State Farm is there. exhibit at the Brown County Museum of History www.mikehallinsurance.com www.mikehallinsurance.com ® enough” were Division” nickCALL FOR A QUOTE 24/7. State Farm . tells how Germany’s aggression in Europe led ® taken away to ® name. to the authorization of the World War II camp. Like a good neighbor, be raised as A combat Germans under uniform and State Farm is there.® ® Hitler’s plan to rule the world with a equipment such as those worn by the ® “master race,” by destroying anyone he average member of the 36th Infantry considered inferior. Division, the “T-Patchers,” in 1944 Photos of the leaders of Germany, takes center stage. Italy and Japan — the “axis” around The progression of the war and the which they envisioned the world would role Camp Bowie played in the Allies’ State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company rotate — are included, along with other success provides a thread for displays State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company State Farm Indemnity Company State Farm Indemnity Company 1001142.1 1001142.1 items from war. See MUSEUM, page 22 Bloomington, IL BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
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HISTORY
continued from page 17 Americans and those who didn’t.” Lesser known today, Riley said, was the rehabilitation center, which was actually a prison for U.S. soldiers who had been sentenced at court-marital. The center had good success in rehabilitating those men and returning them to active duty for a variety of positions. The construction of Camp Bowie, authorized in September 1940, had to be accomplished quickly, so waste was evitable. “It’s amazing how much material disappeared,” Hilton said. “They had enough scrap lumber to build an entire house in north Brownwood. In addition, they used a lot of concrete. Some of those buildings’ foundations are still around today.” So too are many of the roads. After 75 years, much of the firstperson recollections of the Camp Bowie era are gone, but memories live on in the minds of children of those who lived here or served there then, and in the documents and photographs those alive during World War II left behind. An impressive collection of such
LEGACY
continued from page 3 huge benefit for the community. “Access to the railroad is important in recruitment of industries.” Crawford served as director of economic development and assistant city manager before she took over as city manager in June. “Camp Bowie’s legacy can be seen in the industrial park and the regional airport,” Crawford said. “It includes the jobs that they create. Then there are the sports fields, recreational facilities and residential neighborhoods we have there.” Tim Airheart, assistant city managerpublic works and a 24-year employee of the City of Brownwood, was more blunt. “Brownwood was on its way to death without 3M and Kohler,” Airheart said. Those and other key industrial plants were recruited in the 1960s and early 1970s. Airheart has a personal understanding of the Camp Bowie that was before, and the Camp Bowie that is now. He holds state and federal certification in solid waste and hazardous materials management, and the municipal landfill is built on land that was once part of the military camp. He has also served in the Texas Army National Guard for 11 years, including Company Commander for the Headquarters and Headquarters Company 3rd Battalion, 12th Armor.
materials is held at the local history library, and much of it is available for purchase by the public on electronic media, at reasonable rates. Some of it is also posted online, at www.browncountyhistory.org. “A lot of people come to the library and say they remember their dad or grandfather talking about working at Camp Bowie,” Hilton said. “They talked about how difficult people had finding housing.” Hilton pointed to research the library has about the German POW camp. An interview with a German resident, complete with old photos, is available for study, and he who recalls his experience in a positive light considering that he was a prisoner. All fact provides a fascinating glimpse to the humane conditions Americans provided their prisoners. The library has detailed records of the men held at the POW camp, including the death certificate of the five Germans who died while there. Not all of them were necessarily of natural causes. Hilton said higherranking Germans would severely punish POWs who were considered to be collaborating too much with their captors. The decade of the 1940s was still “Once in a while, we will unearth some artifact from World War II at the landfill,” Airheart said. “The landfill’s scale house was built on the foundation of an old shop from Camp Bowie.” Those artifacts, often some type of ordnance that has remained buried for decades, also find their way to the surface. In recent years, such unexploded munitions have been found in residential areas that have grown up in the area of the former camp, as well as on ranches, and along county roads. Airheart, who also has experience in construction project management, explained that heavy rains that fell on Brownwood during the winter of 194041 cost the Army some 40,000 tons of base material. “That’s a lot of material,” Airheart said, “and it was of no use.” The rapid build-up when Camp Bowie was under construction produced large amounts of scrap lumber, he added, and the leftovers were enough to build a house in north Brownwood. “Camp Bowie used natural gas instead of coal,” he said, so those lines remained, but many water lines were dug up and taken to Denton for use there. “You can still see evidence of the pier and beam type construction they used in building Camp Bowie,” Airheart said. “There are places that were used as a training ground where heavy equipment trails crossed through. Tracks were worn into rock, and they left ruts there.”
a time of racial segregation, but the common purpose of defeating the Axis powers tended to unify some people. “Blacks and whites had a pretty good relationship during the war,” Riley said, even though battle units were separated. After the war, though, that dissolved. A few Camp Bowie photos clearly show men of both races working together. Several Camp Bowie structures remain in use at the location where they were built, including for industries like Ratliff Steel and Diamond P Enterprises. But many more of those buildings were acquired by others and moved to different locations. Hilton has attempted to track the disposition of the camps’ 14 chapels, with some success. Several remain in use by churches in Brownwood, Stephenville and other area cities. Other buildings from the Camp Bowie era are also still in use, such as the former USO building on Adams Street that became a municipal community center before being moved to Early as Travelers. The new Adams Street Community Center was built on that site. The local history library also hold lists of property owners whose lands were bought to form Camp Bowie.
PHOTO COURTESY BROWNWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY BRANCH
Camp Bowie had 14 chapels on base, not including those in the station hospital and the POW encampment. The chapels were equipped with Hammond organs, and services were conducted for Protestants, Catholics and Jewish faithful. Arrangements were made for other faiths, if needed. Many of them were acquired by area congregations and moved after the war. Several remain in use today.
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PAGE 20 | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
Camp Bowie Then&Now GATE ONE | THEN RATLIFF STEEL | THEN
RATLIFF STEEL | NOW
GATE ONE | NOW
CAMP BOWIE SERVICE CLUB | THEN
CAMP BOWIE SERVICE CLUB | NOW
USO BUILDING THEN & NOW
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | PAGE 21
VICTORY
continued from page 15 still stands. A year later, however, the Bulletin announced that construction on seven Army projects, including Camp Bowie, would be halted. The war in Korea had ended, and the camp was left in “standby” status. Construction stopped on Feb. 4, 1953. Significant acreage that had been taken over by the Army for Camp Bowie went back into private ownership after it was declared surplus, but not all of it was acquired immediately. A representative of the newly created Office of the Economic Adjuster within the Defense Department came to Brownwood in September 1961 to inspect the camp property and talk
BOWIE
continued from page 5 it became known as Krueger Hill in honor of Gen. Walter Krueger, former commander of the VIII Corps, who later led the Sixth Army in the Pacific. Krueger’s home was located on the hill along with other headquarters buildings. There were five commanders at Bowie. Brig. Gen. K.L. Berry commanded from Nov. 18 to Dec. 14, 1940, and again from July 29, 1941, to Oct. 25, 1941. Maj. Gen. Claude V. Birkhead commanded from Dec. 14, 1941, to July 29, 1941. Col. Frank E. Bonney took command on Nov. 18, 1941, and left the camp June 20, 1944. Col. Alfred G. Brown took command on June 10, 1944, and stayed until Jan. 11, 1946. Col. K. F. Hunt took command on January 1946 and remained until the camp closed on Oct. 1, 1946.
ADDITIONAL EXPANSION
The original plan was for Camp Bowie to be a temporary training camp for the 36th Texas National Guard Division. But the declaration of war in December 1941 changed those plans, and it grew into one the nation’s largest training facilities, hosting members of almost every branch of the service. Many of the men initially stationed at Camp Bowie were from Brown and adjacent counties, and the rest from other areas of Texas. The 36th departed for Camp Blanding, Florida, on Feb. 15, 1942. Soldiers of the Texas Division splashed ashore on the beaches of Salerno on Sept. 9, 1943, to become the first allied soldiers to crack Hitler’s Europe fortress from the west. After 400 days of combat, five campaigns in Italy, France, Germany, and
to Brownwood residents concerning future use of the area. He said the camp faced one of three fates. First, it could remain on standby as an emergency training camp. It could also be reactivated by the Army in response to the crisis in Berlin or other Cold War defense needs. Or, the government could declare the camp excess to Army requirements and put up for sale. The latter option was exercised less than a year later. In May 1962, the Department of Defense announced that the Army would retain only 69 acres out of Camp Bowie, and that 1,925 acres with improvements would be relinquished on June 30 and transferred to the General Services Administration for disposal. Property went to individual owners, small industries and schools.
A group of Brownwood businessmen pooled their resources to create property for an industrial complex, and the Brownwood Industrial Foundation continues to operate today under the Brownwood Area Chamber of Commerce. Buildings were sold and moved, and some were moved for use by owners like Howard Payne University, churches and other owners not only in Brownwood, but also in several distant cities. A number of the larger structures were left in place, and are now homes to industries like Diamond P and Ratliff Steel. The infrastructure left behind by the Army — streets, utility lines and railroad tracks — proved beneficial as major industries were recruited and began to seriously consider the property for their new locations and expansions.
Among them today are international companies like Kohler, 3M, and Superior-Essex — a combination of industries that make Brownwood a major center for manufacturing unique to rural Texas cities so distant from metropolitan areas. Land that was once part of Camp Bowie is now home to a modern hospital, Brownwood Regional Medical Center, and other medical offices and support facilities. The City of Brownwood has developed portions of that land and a few former Army buildings into recreation centers, baseball and soccer parks, and a municipal aquatic center. Residential neighborhoods have been developed there, and the city’s primary football and track facility — Gordon Wood Stadium — also is located on former Camp Bowie property.
Austria, the men of the Texas Division had endured many hardships and shown countless displays of heroism. Their achievements included 175,806 enemies captured, 12 Medals of Honor, six Presidential Citations, and 12 Distinguished Service Medals. Officially, the division suffered 19,466 casualties, including 3,717 killed in action, 12,685 wounded and 3,064 missing in action. In December 1945, the men of the 36th came home as a unit to be discharged. The division demobilized on Christmas Day 1945. When the 36th Division moved out of Camp Bowie for maneuvers in August 1941, units of the Third Army and VIII Corps remained. The Third Army was composed of special troops in the 7th Headquarters Detachment of the Third Army. Krueger Hill, the elevated area overlooking the camp from the west, is still known by that name. It got it because Gen. Walter Krueger, commander of the 6th Army in the Pacific and one of Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s key personnel, had commanded the VIII Corps from the hill as a major general. The hill had become the site of 7th Headquarters, Special Troops, 4th Army, by 1945.
Japanese. Another battalion of the 36th Division also became known as a “lost battalion.” In 1944, they were cut off from other forces by the Germans in France. A Nisei regiment, the renowned 442nd Infantry made up almost entirely of sons of Japanese parents who had immigrated to the United States, rescued the men in an almost suicidal surge. The first Women’s Army Corps arrived at Camp Bowie on Nov. 16, 1943, to take over jobs and to free the men for overseas duties.
Field Marshal Erwin Rommell’s proud Afrika Corps. When they got settled at Camp Bowie, the 2,700 men were well behaved. They worked at jobs on the Camp and became day laborers for the farmers and ranches in Central Texas. They raised their own vegetables. The POW camp was located in the area between what it now state Highway 45 and the area around the Brownwood Country Club.
HEROES TRAINED HERE
The 36th Division in Europe wasn’t the only unit to win war-time glory after training at Camp Bowie. More than 200,000 soldiers who trained in Brownwood fought on every front around the globe during World War II, a March 25, 1952, Bulletin story reported. “The Lost Battalion of Java” was the 131st Field Artillery, detached from the 36th Division and were aboard a ship headed for the Philippines when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. The artillerymen were diverted to Java, where they were later captured by the
PRISONERS AT CAMP
There were two prisons in Camp Bowie. The Rehabilitation Center that restored men back to duty was opened in January 1942 by the Eighth Service Command in Dallas, and a German Prisoner of War Camp with a capacity of 3,000 was assigned to the camp in August 1943. Historians note that the German prisoners had to be separated, because some of them were found to be “collaborating” with the Americans, which could result in punishment. The five German POWs who died while being held at Camp Bowie have death certificates showing causes of death as acute trauma to the cervical cord, undetermined hemorrhage, or kidney trauma, as well as suicide. Those German POWs who died while at Camp Bowie were buried in a separate area at Jordan Springs Cemetery until their bodies were returned to their families overseas after the war. The Army’s Rehabilitation Center was opened on Dec. 1, 1942. From that date until 1946 there were 2,294 men restored back to duty. Only 12 percent could not be restored. The first German Prisoners of War arrived at Bowie in August 1943. Most of the men were members of
AFTER THE WAR
On Aug. 1, 1946, the War Department notified Texas’ members of Congress that the camp had been declared surplus. The Civilian War Assets Administration was to take charge and began the distribution of the land and buildings. On Oct. 1, 1946, the U.S. flag flying over Camp Bowie came down for the last time, but the government retained the designation in case it was needed for an emergency. The Korean War that began in 1950 prompted discussion about reopening Camp Bowie. In 1951, Congress appropriated more than $8 million to partially rebuild Camp Bowie as a military camp. Construction began on rail facilities and other infrastructure in the summer of 1952. However, work was halted in February 1953 with the end of the Korean War. Significant acreage that had been taken over by the Army for Camp Bowie went back into private ownership after it was declared surplus, but not all of it was acquired immediately. EDITOR’S NOTE: Information included in this story was taken from various sources, all compiled and available to the public through the Brown County Museum of History, and the Pecan Valley Genealogical Society.
PAGE 22 | CAMP BOWIE: 75 YEARS LATER | BROWNWOOD BULLETIN
AIRPORT
continued from page 9 On Oct, 7, 1914, Katherine Stinson, the youngest aviator in the world to pass all international flying tests, was at the fair to offer flights for $25 per passenger. Landing fields were located west of the end of Austin Avenue, and north of Avenue K. In 1929, the board of directors of the Brown County Fair Association granted permission for pilots to use 50 acres inside its mile race track, on a temporary basis until a municipal airport could be build. That happened in 1935, when Brownwood leased 200 acres from the county about five miles north of the city. The Bureau of Air Commerce
REHAB
continued from page 9 still within Camp Bowie. Occasionally, they were allowed to go into Brownwood, but only if parents accompanied them. “A man won’t try to escape when he’s with his mother,” Col. Kennedy reasoned. Men who completed rehabilitation were never returned to their former units. Instead, they were given a fresh start. Those who failed rehabilitation were separated from the others until their sentences were completed, and kept under strict guard without money, tobacco or privileges. A psychiatrist and psychologist were on staff at the center, and they together with prisoner supervisor Major Rufus Goza and experts from
MUSEUM
continued from page 18 about other war years. Included in the exhibit are a trunk from a Brown County native that was abandoned after medics believed he had suffered fatal injuries. But he recovered, and the trunk was located and returned later.
MEMORIES continued from page 11
conditions. The French captors took everything they had from the POWs, but Krafhorst successfully hid his money and the rings. With the help of a French girl, he managed to escape.
wood purchased 160 acres on the west side of the existing airport so the military could build longer runways needed for a military field. Construction of a structural steel hangar for the Army began in late March 1941, and that hangar remains in use today. By June 1941, the Robert E. McKee Construction Company, general contractor, was completing work on the only unfinished buildings at the airport under its contract — a bakery, laundry and military hangar. Brownwood’s first Texas Defense Guard unit was Flight B of the of the Abilene squadron, and flights were organized by municipal airport manager and flying school manager C.C. Kersey, who received a commission as captain of the defense guards. Flight B was assigned one cabin plane and several lighter
of the U.S. Department of Commerce approved $19,863 for grading, draining and applying six inches of caliche base on runways, as well as for clearing and leveling of grounds. Construction of a hangar was approved by Brownwood City Council on Dec. 7, 1939. A temporary building was erected for use by Daniel Baker and Howard Payne College students participating the Civil Aeronautics Authority’s student pilot training program. After the airport was identified as the Air Corps’ headquarters in September 1940, mess halls, tent frames and other facilities were in place by Dec. 3. Temporary gas, electric and telephone lines were extended to the airport to serve members of the 111th Observation Squadron. On Jan. 9, 1941, the City of Brown-
the Red Cross, FBI, police, family members and friends made up a board that created a thorough case history on each individual. Their recommendations were sent to Col. Kennedy for review, and then they were forwarded to the Eighth Service Command headquarters for approval. Records showed that the majority of men had been guilty of desertion or theft, and a history of poverty existed in many of those cases. However, Goza commented that “the factor of too much money is found in plenty cases where men went wrong.” At the time of the interview, the center had no record of any men who had been deemed rehabilitated who had suffered a relapse into former bad habits. Goza said he would rather go into battle with a hand-picked group
of rehabilitated soldiers — “any day” — than he would a group of unproven men sent to him through induction. “The men that stand the gaff and merit restoration are real soldiers went they finish here,” he added. Indeed, one of the first rehabilitated soldiers, wrote back to the center’s commander to say he came out “as changed in outlook as a butterfly is changed from the caterpillar.” He said where most prisons operate under the belief that inmates are “mistakes” who unfortunately were identified as men, the center at Camp Bowie was based on the idea that those there are soldiers and men who have unfortunately made a mistake. “No one appreciates freedom more than the one who is set free,” he wrote.
One of Brown County’s heroes from World War II, Col. Jack Bradley, has an exhibit honoring his destruction of 15 or 17 — sources differ — enemy aircraft in aerial combat and damaging 13. The ace was also credited with three probable victories, all between December 1943 and March 1945. Also mentioned is the deteriorating health of President D. Franklin Roosevelt, whose condition was not
publicly known. He died on April 12, 1945, leaving it to his vice president, Harry S. Truman, to make difficult decisions like the use of atomic weapons to end the war. The museum is open from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. each Thursday and Friday, and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays. Admission is $3 per person, and children age 5 and under are admitted free.
He walked for weeks trying to get to his hometown, but it was under French occupation, so going there would mean being returned to a POW camp. He stayed in a nearby town under British occupation. He worked as a truck driver, and he and his wife were married in 1949. He finally returned to his hometown, and started work at
aircraft. On Feb. 5, 1946, the Army Air Force announced that the Army air field at Brownwood had been declared surplus. That weekend, daily air passenger service between San Angelo and Dallas Love Field by Westland Airlines began. The airline had been flying twin-engine aircraft between San Angelo and Fort Worth for two months, and stops in Brownwood and Stephenville were initiated within 30 days. On April 7, 1946, a crowd estimated as large as 10,000 swarmed the new Brownwood Municipal Airport for an open house and air show. The day before, the former 1,500-acre Army air base had officially been turned over for civilian use. Brownwood Mayor Wendell Mayes said Brownwood’s field was the first in Texas, and one of the first in the nation, to be converted since the end of the war.
CITY LEADERS continued from page 8
official name by the War Department. Local newspapers stepped in to fill the gap, labeling the installation “Camp Brownwood,” until the name Camp Bowie was announced on Oct. 16, 1941. Fort Worth had been home to the 36th Division of the Texas National Guard from 1917 to 1919 during World War I, and its name was chosen to memorialize Alamo defender and Texas patriot James Bowie. Within a week of the Sept. 5 announcement, the War Department said $1.65 million had been allocated for construction of Camp Bowie facilities, which were being designed to accommodate one infantry division with 18,000 men. On Sept. 19, when the installation was authorized by Congress, plans were expanded and additional funding brought appropriations up to $5,050,000. By the middle of November 1940, another $4 million had been added. And this was only the beginning, Havins wrote in his book. By the time the war ended in 1945, spending on Camp Bowie facilities and operations totaled $35 million — the 2015 equivalent of approximately $462 million, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. From an original campsite of 2,000 acres, the expansion program finally brought in almost 5,000 acres, and the maneuver area expanded from 60,000 acres to nearly 122,000 acres.
his father’s construction company. He exchanged the $132 for Deutschmarks, and he and his wife bought their first bedroom furniture with that money. “I still think a lot about my time in the United States,” Krafhorst said. “I do remember everything very well, and I still speak some English. I have some very good memories of that time,
although I stayed there as a POW. “I want to thank the people of the United States for treating me so well in their country during that time.” The full interview and additional photos are available on the Brown County Museum of History’s website, and on a CD available at the Brownwood Public Library Genealogy Branch.
BROWNWOOD BULLETIN | CAMP BOWIE - 75 YEARS LATER | PAGE 23
FUN
continued from page 14 came to Camp Bowie. Two shows were featured on the evenings they were held. Some soldiers even used their leave to enjoy hunting and fishing throughout the area, but officials warned them to consult state and federal fish and game regulations just as they would if they were back home. Toward the end of World War II, Camp Bowie had added a beer garden, officially titled Post Exchange Branch PX 30, but also known as “Club SadSack.” It was operated for the benefit of all enlisted men, their wives or female companions. Facilities included a snack and beverage counter, social room with a juke box for dancing inside, and a concrete dance space outside with an orchestra stand and second juke box. The beer — with a low 3.2 percentage alcohol — was open from 5 to 10 p.m. weekdays, 5 to 11 p.m. Saturdays, and 2 to 10 p.m. Sundays. It was a military base, so the availability of athletic and recreational opportunities was crucial. The Camp Bowie Field House with a seating capacity of 3,000 and 18,000 square feet of space held three basketball courts, mats, punching bags, badminton and volleyball courts, ping pong tables, wall pulleys, hurdle bars, ropes for climbing and other physical conditioning equipment. Rallies, dances, shows and indoor circuses were also held at the field house. Dexter Field was located immediately behind the facility, which continues in use today as a recreational center operated by the City of Brownwood. The Camp Bowie swimming pool was used for training purposes, but was open for recreation from 6 to 9 p.m. during the week, and from 9:30 a.m. until 9 p.m. on Sundays. Life guards were on duty at all hours. Special Services provided soldiers with a baseball diamond, three lighted softball field, three “twilight” diamonds, three tennis courts and a handball court throughout the base. Other game fields and calisthenic sites were also available. Reservations were needed to use sports areas, equipment and dayrooms. The camp’s officers’ club was located at the site of the intersection of Crockett and Morris Sheppard Drive, across from the parade grounds. Army officials in 1945 described the Camp Bowie Golf Club as one of the finest in the 8th Service Command, and it extended playing privileges to returnees in camp, servicemen on redeployment furlough or leave, plus visiting relatives and friends in the
Brownwood area. The 18-hole course is even more welcoming today as the Brownwood Country Club. In addition to the daily Bulletin and the weekly Banner, newspapers published in Brownwood, the camp produced its own weekly newspaper — The Bowie Blade — out of offices in the Camp Headquarters. Published every Friday under the supervision of the Camp Public Relations Office and Information and Education branch, the tabloid-sized eight-page Blade was distributed free to all military personnel. It included features along with announcements specifically for post personnel. Two newspapermen constituted the staff, and submissions of columns were solicited from those stationed at Camp Bowie. Soldiers with leave often took taxi service into downtown Brownwood, but those with longer passes took the train or bus to Fort Worth and Dallas, mostly, but some also went to San Antonio or Waco. In Brownwood, soldiers found not only the movie theaters, a handful of bowling alleys and one skating rink, but they also could visit five USO clubs that offering a variety of shows and activities. Those were located on Adams Street, Lee Street, Brown Street, and North Fisk. The USO on Cordell was reserved for black soldiers. Notably, the USO building on Adams Street was later used by the City of Brownwood as a community center, and it was sold and moved to become Travelers on Early Boulevard before the city built a new facility at that location. Soldiers who were able to get into town during on weekdays were also welcomed by Brownwood civic clubs, such as the Lions, Rotary, Kiwanis and Junior Chamber of Commerce. Camp Bowie also was home to four service clubs on base, and each held a dance each week which were attended by young women from Brownwood, Bangs, Coleman, Cisco and Eastland. Each club operated a cafeteria and soda foundation, and offered pool tables. Camp Bowie also operated four libraries for base personnel. All soldiers were also eligible for off-duty classes at the camp college, which featured classes in high school, university, industrial and technical subjects. The largest “business” on Camp Bowie was the Post Exchange, or PX, and 27 of them were open throughout the camp. The main Post Exchange also was where the PX warehouse for the camp was located, near the main entrances. The PX was where soldiers could receive ration cards for tobacco, bus tickets, stamps, war bonds, credit cards to all organizations, and notary public service. They also offered a vehicle service station, tailor shop, cafeteria and barber shop.
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