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Visit www.IndianaMilitary.org to see how to purchase a set of the original CARDINAL weekly papers on CD for viewing in your own home. These are actual images, not re-typed. The CD contains approximately 2/3 of all the papers. Not a complete set. |
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| 02/01/1952 | Latest thing in Jeeps. Includes a snorkel for underwater driving. Also more powerful with a 72 HP F-head instead of the old 60 HP L-head. Also softer plastic seats plus better springs. | |
| Atterbury's "Captain Carlsen" stuck to his ship Saturday as swift flood waters swept his vehicle from the road. Cpl. William H. Elliott, Hq. CO., 467th Chemical Mortar BN cautiously awaits calm water after being washed from the road enroute to his battalion's bivouac area. Post Safety Officer reports there was no damage or injuries in the accident. | ||
| Three Post Units to Texas Feb. 20 - 45th Truck, 388th Evac. and 467th Mortar selected for big Army maneuvers. Leave for exercise by mtor convoy - Bivouac on trip. | ||
| General Paxton here to complete plans for 31st arrival. General and 13 staff officers will fly to Atterbury for 24-hour visit. The Dixie Division Commander, who will be making his first trip here, will meet with Camp Atterbury officials to work out final plans for the movement of more than 18,000 men from Ft. Hood, Texas to Camp Atterbury. | ||
| 02/06/1952 |
Maj.
Gen. Paul W. Kendall became an Honorary Hoosier Jan. 26 at a banquet of
the Indiana National Guard Association.
The following letter was presented o Gen. Kendall by Gov. Henry
F. Schricker”
STATE
OF INDIANA |
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That’s
the moving statement in a letter from a young German who spent 20 months
in American as a prisoner of war during World War II.
He draws a grim picture of the difference between life in free
America, even as a prisoner of war, and his present life under socialism
in the Russian Zone of Germany. |
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| 02/15/1952 | Workers in Camp Atterbury's Salvage Yard built themselves a shed out of old ammo boxes. Using the empty crates like bricks saved the government $3,000. |
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| 02/22/1952 | Hospital Commanders to hold conference here Feb. 27-28. Commanding officers of seven hospitals will attend the Fifth Army Hospital Commanders' Conference at Camp Atterbury. | |
| Camp Red Cross quota is $3,500 | ||
| 02/29/1952 | Atterbury personnel began work early Wednesday morning to evacuate furniture from the burning VI Corps Headquarters building while Camp Firemen extinguish flames. Several troop units were alerted immediately after the fire department arrived on the scene before dawn to assist tin the work. Camp Atterbury's outstanding fire safety record was marred. Only two persons were on duty in the building. |
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| 03/07/1952 | Fighting VI Corps Colonel Has DSC, Three Silver Stars and Six Purple Hearts. Lt. Col. O. M. Barsanti, has 44 decorations | |
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What
Does A S Mean ?? A Cardinal reader asked the PIO staff what the
initials A S stand for. These initials are carved into a boulder
in front of the Judge Advocate's office on Division Street at
Milroy. The staff racked their brains and searched the Camp
Atterbury background and information file. No answer could be
found.
A search for the rock in 1999 was un-successful. |
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Post
HQs Moves - April 19-20 Set For Move To Rebuilt VI Corps Building - NCO
Club will occupy present Hqs. building; Plans opening May 9 A major change will occur in Camp Atterbury’s administrative scene next week when Post Headquarters moves into the building formerly occupied by VI Corps (Bldg. 205), now being reconditioned after a fire last month. Major James T. Coleman, assistant to Post G-1, announced that all sections now located in Bldg. 206 will be moved to their new quarters during the weekend of April 19-20. The 306th Transportation Truck Company will provide trucks for the operation. The entire movement will be accomplished without interference to normal administrative operations. All telephones will be transferred without change of numbers. Looking back into Post history reveals that Bldg. 205 was originally built to house Post Headquarters. However when VI Corps moved To Camp Atterbury in February 1951, Camp Atterbury’s administrative operations were moved into the old NCO Mess in Bldg. 206. $15,000 to be spent. The NCO Club has a current membership of 600 but hope t increase that to4,000 when the 31st Division arrives. The NCO Mess is now operating in Building 13180 and has a branch in the U. S. Army Hospital. |
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| 03/28/1952 |
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Your New Home - In reply to inquires from men of the 31st Division, the above picture illustrates the inside and outside view of a typical Atterbury barracks. Constructed of wood and insulated with cement-coated asbestos shingles, the structure has its own washroom, showers and latrine. All barracks at Camp Atterbury are now equipped with steel fire escapes. Many of the barracks are equipped with steel lockers for personal clothing. |
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| 04/11/1952 | DixieMen to Arrive Via Air Monday. 9,000 to arrive around t the clock in 2-day schedule. Remaining 4,000 troops to travel in convoy. Band stops in six cities. The men in the first plane will touch Hoosier soil, at the Atterbury Air Force Base about 8am and will be taken immediately to Camp Atterbury. Planes carrying the 31st Division will be from the 18th Air Force Troop Carrier Wing. They will fly about 227 sorties. Thirty buses will transport the men from Atterbury AFB to the camp. Camp Atterbury Military Police and Indiana State Police will control traffic. The Division's heavy equipment will travel from Texas to Indiana by rail. The Dixie Band is scheduled to parade in Dallas and Texarkana, Texas, Greenville, Miss., Memphis, Tenn., Ft. Campbell, Ky., and Louisville, Ky. | |
| 04/181/952 | Last Dixie airlift plane arrived late yesterday. The four-day around the clock airlift, was the largest ever undertaken by the Armed Forces. | |
| General Swift named CG of VI Corps | ||
| 05/02/1952 |
Dixie men Return From A-Bomb Test - Were Four Miles From Ground Zero One-hundred and fifty members of the 31st Infantry Division arrived at Camp Atterbury early this week from Yucca Flats, Nev., where they participated in the recent Atom test. The men, all members of Company B of the Dixie Division’s 167th Infantry Regiment, took part in the atomic explosion along with some 2,000 other Army and Air Force personnel. “The earth shook - and felt like it was going to fall apart,” was the comment of Sgt. Lawrence McDonald on the A-Bomb blast. “But,” he added, “it was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen and I’ll never forget it.” Lt. Lewis Leverett, the unit’s Commanding Officer, said that all of his men were happy to have taken part in the test. We feel it was a privilege to have been there. Not many people can say they were four miles from the heart of an A-Bomb blast,” he said. The Dixie Division men, along with ground troops form four other Infantry Armored and Airborne divisions, were in trenches and were enveloped in the boiling dust. Later, after radiological teams indicated the area was safe, the troops advanced directly across “ground zero”. Members of Company B went through the explosion without suffering a casualty. The Army announced after the test that there had been no casualties among the men who were participating. It marked the first time troops have been employed in a tactical situation involving an actual atomic explosion. The bomb itself was believed to have been the second largest A-Bomb tested. Members of Company B were flown to Nevada directly from Exercise Longhorn. They made the trip v=from Nevada to Atterbury by rail. Lt. Charles E. Whetstine, Company B’s executive officer, could not get excited about the big maneuver. “It was just another big thing,” the combat veteran of both World War II and the Korean conflict, said. It WAS a big thing, other members of the unit agreed. |
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484th
Begins ‘On Job’ Training Cycle Monday The 484th Engineers will begin a new training cycle Monday in which on-the-job training will be stressed, Lt. Col. William H. Hardin, the battalion commander announced. Major project on the unit’s agenda will be the rebuilding of Wallace Road, construction of a new combat village and repairs to Hospital Road. |
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| 05/09/1952 |
The massed colors and 31st Division Honor Guard Company parade around the Circle in Indianapolis while the Dixie Band plays a noon concert for the Governor and people of Indiana last Monday. The day was designated as “Dixie Day” by Indianapolis to officially welcome the Division to the city. |
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An
Answer to the Housing Shortage
To
the left is one of the 190 prefab homes for Atterburymen shortly before
completion. Thirty-four of
these are expected to be finished by May 20th. Many of the soldiers who have visited the housing area to get a close-up look at the prefabs said they seemed “awfully small.” “The only difference between the prefabs and a trailer is that you can move a trailer,” one master sergeant said. “And I see that they’re planning to put clothes lines and the oil storage tank in the front yard of each house. That will look real nice, “ he added. |
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ATTERBURY
THEATER |
Pvt.
Moe: "Do you like ‑ bathing beauties
Pvt.
Schmoe: "Don't know - haven't bathed any lately."
NCO
Mess TONIGHT‑Shrimp Night.'" SATURDAY‑Dance.
SUNDAY‑‑Card Party. Spot
Dance. MONDAY‑Niess I Closed. . Hospital Mess Open.
TUESDAY‑Old Time Movies. WEDNESDAY‑TV Fight Night.
THURSDAY‑Bingo.
Service
. Club
SERVICE
CLUB 2 |
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| 05/16/1952 | Post plans Open House on Armed Forces Day. Parades, displays and demonstrations | |
| 06/06/1952 |
Most
Decorated Hero of Korean War Assigned Here The most decorated hero of the Korean War has been assigned to Camp Atterbury. M/Sgt. Anthony Herbert, who wears 27 decorations for his actions in the Korean Conflict, arrived Wednesday for assignment with the 31st Infantry (Dixie) Division. Herbert, who is 22 years old, finished Ranger training at Ft. Benning, Ga., and asked to be assigned to the 31st after completing school. The 6-foot, 195-pound soldier, who has been picked up by Military Police several times, and once in Denver actually jailed because they thought he was wearing too many decorations, was wounded seven times during the 14 months he spent in combat. In Korea, he was a member of the 38th Regiment of the famed 2d Infantry Division, which fought in most of the bloodiest campaigns of the Korean War, including Heartbreak Ridge. Herbert was one of four original enlisted members of his company not killed or captured. Although wounded seven times, Herbert wears the Purple Heart with only three clusters. He refused medical attention on three other occasions. He has been awarded the Silver Star with one cluster and is under consideration for another. In addition, he wears the Bronze Star, Distinguished Unit Citation with two clusters and the Korean Campaign ribbon with four battle stars. He also has been decorated by the Turkish government for service with their Brigade in Korea and has received Medals of Honor from the cities of Paris, Milwaukee, Boston and the state of New York. He recently made a world-wide tour with 48 other United Nations soldiers after Gen. Matthew Ridgeway selected him as one of two outstanding U. S. soldiers in the Far East. Herbert is now a member of the 31st Replacement Co., but expects to be transferred to one of the Division’s Regiments in a few days. |
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| 06/06/1952 |
Hospital
Passes 20,000 Mark With Korean Vet.
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| 06/20/1952 | 1,000th baby born on the post since Camp Atterbury was reactivated in 1950 was born July 5th at 0418 hrs to 1st Lt. and Mrs. Ralph Manning, 9003rd ASU, Fort Harrison. | |
| New 72 site trailer park planned | ||
| 06/27/1952 | Close air support of ground troops by air power was demonstrated in an air show witnessed by over 4,500 men of the 31st Wednesday. Sixteen F-47 Thunderbolts from the 108th Fighter Bomber Wing at Godman AFB, Ft. Knox, Ky. put on the show. | |
| Unusual Hospital paper, the Caduceus, enters second Journalistic year. Founded April 1951 it delivers the news, features and humor of events in the huge hospital. | ||
| Heavy soldier traffic over 4th predicted. Payday to fall before long break. | ||
| Maj. Gen. Hobart R. Gay, Deputy Commander of 4th Army at Fort Sam Houston has been named to command the 6th Corps at Camp Atterbury. | ||
| 07/03/1952 | 12 new reserve units arrive: 301st Hosp. Center, 809th Signal Base Depot (Anderson, IN), 315th Trans. Car Co. (Detroit), 337th Med. Hosp. (Gary, IN), 452nd Gen. Hosp. (Milwaukee, Wis.), 325th Gen. Hosp. (Kansas City), 369th Trans. Truck BN (Green Bay, Wis), 742nd Army Postal Unit (Indianapolis), 467th Trans. Truck BN (Grand Rapids, MI), 361st Med. Field Lab. (Chicago), 180th Trans. Truck BN (Grand Rapids), and 903rd Trans. Truck BN (Detroit) | |
| The 31st Div. recently held a pistol meet and from it were selected the ten best shots. Pfc Sam A. McKoon, 198th Tank BN, Sgt James A. Gentry, 200th Reg., Pfc Richard A. Muir, 198th Tank BN, Lt. George E. Taylor, 198th Tank BN, MSgt Martin C. Peebles, 200th Reg., Lt. Billy Curtis, 198th Tank BN, Sgt Bert F. Skinner, 31st Recon Co., Lt. Elmer R. Warner, 198th Tank BN, Capt. Thomas P. Crawford, 198th Tank BN and Cpl C. Romero, 155th Reg. | ||
| 07/11/1952 | Father J. F. Rafferty joins Dixie Division. Chaplain (Lt. Col.) John F. Rafferty was recently assigned to the 31st Division at Camp Atterbury. He was with the 3d Army during the Omaha Beach landings on D-Day. | |
| Dixie NCO school teaches Techniques and discipline | ||
| Camp Atterbury received its first helicopter this week. The rotor-powered aircraft was utilized during maneuvers of 5 Organized Reserve Corps medical units. Brig. Gen. Carl F. Steinhoff, 301st Med. Hosp. CO flew with the pilot | ||
| GINGER, Dixie Bandsmen's popular mascot, "Goes Over The Hill" Ginger, Camp Atterbury's most famous dog has gone AWOL! The blond cocker spaniel, who has been mascot of the 31st Division's 102 piece band since last April, has been missing since Monday morning when he went for a stroll. He was last seen at the north end of the camp, but a search of the area failed to find him. Ginger, whose origin is unknown was presented to the Band by the chief of police of Meridian, Miss., following a concert in that city. He was accompanied the Band on all of its many road trips since then and was scheduled to go to New York City next month for the American Legion's national convention. General Paxton Makes Appeal When he learned of Ginger's disappearance, Mg. Gen. A. G. Paxton, Post and Division Commander, added his appeal for the mascot's return. Call 808, the Band's orderly room with any information. | ||
| Raymond Worley, Camp Atterbury's Fire Chief since the Post's reactivation in 1950, retires after 26 years as a fireman. | ||
| Reserve Bill signed by President Truman | ||
| 07/25/1952 | The sloping elliptical sides of the Army's newest medium tank, the Patton M 48, makes it extremely difficult for enemy anti-tank shells to get a "bite" and plow though the armor. The vehicle, weighting between 45 and 50 tons, mounts a 90-mm high-velocity gun, two 50 caliber machine guns and one 30 caliber. The first tank ever cast in one piece. An 810 HP engine drives the beast. |
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| Maj. Gen. William B. Kean, 5th Army CO inspected the 31st Division. He hopes to return to Camp Atterbury in four weeks for a longer visit. | ||
| Pay Mustering Out in $100 Amounts - Overseas Vets get $300, Stateside men only $200. | ||
| DIXIES get "new look" - Blue shoulder cords and scarves will be worn after Sept. 1st. | ||
| Post gets lighted fields - Most outdoor events to be played under lights. | ||
| 08/01/1952 | 114th Engineers work to re-build 20 miles of range roads. The old roads are only 12' wide, making it impossible for the newer wider Army trucks to pass. The new roads will be 20' wide with a 5' shoulder on both sides. | |
| Dixies whip Ft. Sheridan. First game under lights witnessed by over 200 fans. A 7-4 victory. | ||
| AWOL Ginger returned to custody of Division Band. Cpl. Kenneth Lovelett of the 388th Evac. Hospital called to say he had found Ginger. MPs were called and was led off to the stockade. Ginger refused to say where he had been for 7 days. | ||
| New 5th Army CG visits post facilities. "Atterbury looks good" | ||
| 08/08/1952 | Dixie Division gets 1,000 draftees soon. Will begin to arrive in Sept. for training. Div. school system expands in preparation. | |
| Camp Atterbury's huge combined Army-Air Force Food Service School to close Sept. 19 and all personnel will move to Ft. Sheridan. Since its opening in Jan 1951, it has graduated more than 3,000 students. | ||
| 900th MASH unit is currently supporting Indiana's 38th Division on summer maneuvers at Camp Grayling, Michigan. | ||
| Post open Booby-trap school. 50th EOD Squad trains men to play with death. | ||
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To
Play for the "Yankees" Members of the famous 102-piece Dixie Division Band practice for their coming tri to New York City. The Confederate gray clad music-makers will be featured in the grand parade of the American Legion Convention August 26. The trip will be the band's furthest northward penetration since 1863. |
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| 08/15/1952 | Point system set up for Early Release of Dixie NGs - Phase out program starts tomorrow, ends Jan. 15th. | |
| Gen. Gay's son, an Air Force Jet Pilot, missing after crash. | ||
| Camp Atterbury observes 10th anniversary of opening. Training began decade ago when 83rd Infantry Division was reactivated. (see full story in Camp Atterbury site - http://www.IndianaMilitry.org | ||
| 08/23/1952 | Maj. Gen. Hobart R. Gay assumes command of VI Corps and Camp Atterbury. Gen. Gay is Camp's 14th Commander. | |
| Wet clothes to be dried in barracks - Atterbury's outside clotheslines went down this week following an order that all wet clothing will be dried on lines inside the barracks. A Headquarters Memorandum stated that two lines will b strung on each floor to insure a uniform method of drying wet clothes. | ||
| Col. James C. Short named VI Corps Chief of Staff | ||
| Dixie Band begins weekly radio show. Half-hour program to be aired over WIBC Sundays. "Dixie-Aires", a musical program featuring the 31st Infantry Division Band, will broadcast over radio station WIBC, Indianapolis, beginning Sunday night at 1900 hrs. The show is scheduled for a weekly airing and is produced and directed by Dixie Division personnel, and features guest entertainment from within the division. "Dixie-Aires" was born lst year while the Dixie Division was stationed at Fort Jackson, S.C., and was broadcast weekly over the nearby Columbia station and many stations in the division's home states of Alabama and Mississippi. The half-hour program will consist of martial, concert and popular music by the famous Confederate Gray-clad Dixie musicians and songs by Pfc James Pingel. | ||
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Medal
of Honor Winner Arrives Here M/Sgt. Hubert L. Lee, who won the nation's highest military award for heroism in Korea, has been assigned to the 31st Infantry (Dixie) Division. The battle-scarred Sgt., a native of Leland, Miss., is an instructor in the Dixie Division's Non-Commissioned Officer's School where it is his job to train the men who later will give basic training to young draftees. Sgt. Lee won the Congressional Medal of Honor "for conspicuous gallantry....above and beyond the call of duty: for his heroic actions on Feb. 1, 1951. He received the Medal of Honor from President Truman in ceremonies at the Blair House a year to the day later, Feb. 1, 1952. Lee, a veteran of 15 years in the Army was a member of the 2d Infantry Division at Ft. Lewis, Wash., when war erupted in Korea. He was in action in Korea in August 1950. Six months later, on Feb. 1, 1951 his unit, Company I of the 23rd Infantry Regiment, was attacked by a "numerically superior" enemy force near Ipori, Korea. Lee's platoon leader was wounded during the attack by North Koreans and he took command. Lee regrouped the remnants of his unit - 47 men in all- and during the next 12 hours led them in repeated attacks against an estimated 300 North Koreans in an attempt to regain their position. "Although forced to withdraw five times, each time he regrouped his remaining men and renewed the assault," the citation said. He was wounded three times by exploding grenades and small arms fire but refused assistance and "advanced by crawling, rising to his knees to fire and urging his men to follow". |
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| 08/29/1952 | 31st Division expects to get 10,000 recruits. Will begin Basic Training cycle 48 hours after arrival on post. | |
| 09/06/1952 | "Range Central" is nerve center for complicated safety network. Often work day & night. | |
| Welcome to Camp Atterbury, Boys! First 250 new recruits arrive, of an estimated 10,000, to take training with the 31st Division. | ||
| Dixie Bandsmen return from big concert tour, from its successful trip through several Eastern states. | ||
| Last "Homesteader" here finally gets his orders. Sgt. James H. Tompkins, who has been stationed at Camp Atterbury longer than any soldier now here, leaves tomorrow for FECOM. Tompkins came to Atterbury in Dec. 1948 when the camp was inactive. At that time only four other enlisted men and five officers were stationed here. | ||
| 09/12/1952 | Hundreds of men here to receive reassignment orders from 5th Army. Men with combat MOS's will go to combat units. | |
| Last meat-cutters class receives diplomas today. Camp Atterbury's Food Service School will graduate its last meat-cutting class today when 19 Army and Air Force students receive their diplomas from Maj. Harry Decker, 5012th commander. | ||
| NCO Club celebrates second birthday since re-opening. Today, 2 years after its opening, it has grown in size from a small building on the outskirts of camp to a large structure which includes a ballroom, lounge, dining room, and other recreational facilities. The old site was building 894 and shortly afterwards a larger mess, known as Main Mess, was opened in building 13180 which today operates as a branch. The NCO Mess is now in the former Post Headquarters building, centrally located on 29th Street, between Gatling and Schoolhouse Road. | ||
| Camp Atterbury Night - SONJA HENIE - In Person - 1953 Ice Revue. You contribute to the Camp Atterbury combined charities by purchasing your tickets through your unit representative. All seats - $2 - Butler Fieldhouse, Indianapolis - Cast of 200 - October 6th, 1952 | ||
| 3641st Ordnance helped build secret base. A Camp Atterbury ordnance unit played a leading role in the construction of America's fantastic Artic air base at Thule, Greenland. The 3461st Ordnance Heavy Automotive Maintenance Company returned to Atterbury following its second trip to the far northern base, described at the nation's biggest secret military operation since the invasion of Normandy during WW2. Another Camp Atterbury unit, the 632nd Quartermaster Laundry Company, supported units at the Greenland base from Goose Bay this summer. | ||
| 2,000 attend Gen. Gay's reception Sunday | ||
| 10/03/1952 | Charity drive collects $5,000 in 1st 3 days. | |
| Gen. Collins named new Dixie Division Commanding General. Gen. Paxton will leave Atterbury about October 15. | ||
| Stamp honors servicewomen. The first block of postage stamps issued by the Postal Department to honor the "Women in the Armd Forces" was sold here today to Captain Lucy Rigby at the camp's main Post Office. The stamp pictures the Women's Army Corps, Waves, Women Marines and the Women in the Air Force. | ||
| 10/10/1952 | Plan Division review honoring General Paxton - All Dixiemen to march Saturday at 1000 hours. | |
| Engineer's conclude 2-day diesel school. | ||
| Atterbury will host 11 Exchange Clubs | ||
| Dixie Division bids General Paxton good-bye. A sense of the affection and respect of all Dixie Division men toward their commander as he says his last goodbye to his division, is imparted by the marching rows of troops that salute him as they "pass in review". | ||
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Headquarters
Fifth Army Certificate
of Achievement To Upon your release from active Federal service, I wish to express to you on behalf of the Fifth Army our sincere appreciation for the important service you have rendered to your country as Commanding General of the 31st Infantry Division. You have commanded the 31st Infantry Division since its return to active Federal service on 16 January 1951. The Division came under the jurisdiction of the Fifth Army when it moved to Camp Atterbury, Indiana, on 26 April 1952. Under your leadership and command, the Division has made an outstanding contribution to the preparedness of this Nation and has consistently performed all assigned duties in the best tradition of the Military Service. It is my sincere hope that health, happiness, and material success attend you in the years that lie ahead. Sincerely, W. B. Kean, Lieutenant General, U. S. Army, Commanding |
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| 10/17/1952 | Maj. Gen. Collins takes command of 31st Division. The command of the Division was signed over to General Collins by Brigadier General Eugene W. Riddings in a brief ceremony at Dixie Division headquarters. Gen. Riddings has been heading the division during the few days lapse since the departure of Maj. Gen. A. G. Paxton, past division commander. | |
| The Provost Marshall's Office last week installed new 4-way stop signs at Division and Harrison; Division and Schoolhouse; and Division and Gatling; to slow up traffic at these busy intersection. | ||
| New Dixie commanders have colorful careers. The 31st Infantry Division now has five new commanders. They are Maj. Gen. Harry J. Collins, the new Dixie Division CG; Lt. Col. Robert M. Fowler of the 155th Regiment; Col. Russell W. Jenna of the 167th Regiment; Lt. Col. Arthur M. Shomion of th 200th Regiment, and Col. William W. Dick, Jr., of the Division Artillery. | ||
| 114th Engineers build all-weather range roads | ||
| Chapel No. 2, across from Service Club No. 1 on Gatling Street shines in Christmas splendor, as part of Atterbury's many Christmas night displays. | ||
| Atterbury's air strip run by Air Force vets. Two former Army Air Force pilots, Capt. Robert J. LaHale and Lt. Arthur C. Franklin are among the personnel who keep things humming at the Atterbury Air Strip. Located on the southeast corner of the camp, the Strip is open five days a week from 0700 until 1700 and Saturday morning. Flights from the Strip carry personnel on important missions, photo missions, reconnaissance work on and around the post, checking the camp's boundaries and flying training flights for basic trainees. | ||
| New $40,000 L-20 adds class to Atterbury fleet. A sleek DeHavilland L-20 airplane was issued to VI Corps yesterday. The L-20 has a nine cylinder Pratt-Whitney motor which boasts 450 HP. | ||
| 01/23/1953 | Tommy Dorsey will climax 1953 Dimes Drive with dance at the Main Sports Arena, Thursday, January 29. | |
| Large promotion quota outlined for Atterbury soldiers. More than 1,500 promotions will be awarded. | ||
| Major McIntyre's son dies of combat wounds received in action with the 7th Regiment, 1st Marine Division in Korea. | ||
| Servicemen not allowed into the Indianapolis Service Men's Center in civilian clothes. | ||
| FAREWELL - Dixie "soldier men" lined the route from Brig. Gen. Eugene W. Ridings' former Atterbury home to the East Gate to bid the former 31st Infantry "Dixie" Division Asst. Commander a final goodbye as he departed for a new assignment with USAFFE. Gen. Ridings, who joined the 31st six months after its reactivation, will be accompanied on his trip to the Far East by his aide de camp, Lt. J. A. Davis | ||
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Dixie
Man Wind D. S. C. for Heroism. America's second highest military award, the Distinguished Service Cross, has been awarded to Lt. George P. Psilias, Hq. Co., 155th Infantry regiment for extraordinary heroism in action against the enemy near Naebongchon, Korea on 28 May 1952. Lt. Psilias was leading a platoon from C Company, 279th Inf. Reg., 45th "Thunderbird" Div., on a night patrol deep in enemy territory when they were engaged by the Chinese Reds in May, 1952. Wounded in the close fighting that followed, Lt. Psilias continued to lead his platoon, leaving the safety of their temporary shelter to gather ammunition from the bodies of dead Chinese soldiers. His platoon defeated the Chinese and made their way back safely to UN lines. |
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MENU -
SAT., Jan. 31st and SUN., Feb. 1st Baked
Ham, raisin sauce, glazed sweet potatoes, buttered peas and tossed
salad, or Any Selection Above - $1.25 |
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| CMH Winner In TX Combat Film - Atterbury's "most-decorated NCO", M/Sgt Hubert L. Lee, instructor at the 31st Infantry School, returned from Washington recently after taking part of narrator in a TV film plugging Savings Bonds. |
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| 02/20/1953 | Another group of AWOL's leave for Far East service. Weather permitting, 27 POR-qualified prisoners from Camp Atterbury's stockade will fly from Atterbury Air Base tonight to Camp Stoneman, California for shipment to USAFFE, Post G-1 revealed today. This is the second group of AWOL's to leave Atterbury's stockade under the Army's new "get-tough" policy designed to discourage military personnel from going AWOL to avoid shipment overseas. Larger groups will be sent to Ports of Embarkation on the West Coast as soon as the POE's can process their already overflowing lists of casuals - both AWOL's and regular fillers, and ship them to the Far East. Dept. of Army directives state that any man convicted of AWOL who is not a returnee from Korea since the outbreak of conflict, and who is overseas qualified, will be sent to USAFFE. | |
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"Aggressor
Alice" Joins 31st's Enemies
For the first time, trainees of the 31st Division will go into mock combat under "closer-to-real" conditions including the aggressor's use of psychological warfare and propaganda broadcasts. "Aggressor Alice", patterned after famed female propagandists Tokyo Rose and Axis Sally, will beam propaganda messages to trainees dug in on night problems to give them a preview of what they might encounter in actual combat. Miss Pat McDermott, Entertainment Director, has already assumed the role of "female siren", and has cut several tape recordings of the propaganda broadcasts. The initial playing of the tapes, said Lt. Charles Cooper, 31st Div. Psychological Warfare Officer, will mark the first time such a project has been undertaken on a divisional level. |
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| 02/27/1953 | Traffic violations will be treated severely now, says CG to Provost Marshall | |
| Post stockade win's Lt. Gen. Kean's praise in letter. Fifth Army lauds stockade personnel for their attention to duty. | ||
| New non-divisional officer's mess opens in building 1101. Prices at the new mess on Gatling Street range from 30 cents for breakfast and 45 cents for dinner and supper. A voluntary 5-cent service charge will be used to supplement the mess's funds. | ||
| Trainee of the week is Pvt. A. E. "Bud" Donegan, Mike Co., 155th Inf. Reg. | ||
| 03/06/1953 | One Atterbury Lt. Killed, Two Hurt; As March Weather "Roars Like a Lion". C-46 headed for Atterbury Air Base crashes in snowstorm; no casualties. Lt. Darrell A. Calhoun, Love Co., 200th Inf. Reg. was killed Sunday morning in Atterbury's first fatal accident of 1953 when his car skidded 216 feet, north of Edinburgh, overturned several times and stopped against a small tree, with his body pinned under the wreckage. A passenger, Lt. James Kenney was thrown from the vehicle and suffered a contusion of the hip. Another Atterbury Lt., Joseph H. Brewster, 31st QM Co., was injured in a two-car crash south of Franklin. He suffered a cut above his eye. A blinding snowstorm was blamed for the crash of a C-46 cargo plane enroute to Atterbury Air Base from Lowry Air Base at Denver, Colorado. The plane's three crewmen and eight passengers parachuted to safety in the midst of the blizzard as the plane, on autopilot, circled overhead at 3,000 feet. An engine failed on the C-46 and it crashed and burned on a farm near Avon, Indiana. | |
| CMH Winner Lee will present film "Battle Circus" to an MGM representative at the War Memorial Plaza in Indianapolis. "Battle Circus" stars Humphrey Bogart. | ||
| 03/20/1953 | Gen. Collins new CG. Officially takes over Post Command today. Gen. Gay leaves Atterbury for 3rd Corps assignment. | |
| VI Corps to be inactivated officially next week. Activity at "Circle Six" headquarters has increased int he past two weeks as VI Corps goes into its last phase of inactivation. The Corps, which was reactivated in early 1951 to aid the Fifth Army direct the train9ng missions of posts in a 13-state area, is slated to retire to the inactive lists on April 1.The Unit Personnel Office has moved to building 211. | ||
| 50 AWOL's to Far East. The prisoners were escorted to Atterbury Air Base in the afternoon where they embarked by air at 1600 hours for the west coast. A total of 104 men convicted of AWOL have been sent to POE's in the past three weeks. | ||
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Two
Camp Streets Named for CMH Winner, Medical Officer The late Col. Frank W. Wakeman, distinguished medical officer and Pfc. Richard G. Wilson, posthumous Congressional Medal of Honor winner in Korea, will be honored this week when two streets in the hospital area at Camp Atterbury are named for them. Col. Wakeman, whose wife resides at Valparaiso, Indiana, had a long record of service in the field of medical research. The present U. S. Army Hospital here was formerly named Wakeman General Hospital in his honor. Pfc Wilson was an Army medical corpsman, whose actions in August 1951, resulted in his being posthumously awarded the nation's top military decoration. The newly-named streets, Wakeman Drive and Wilson Road; lie behind Riley and Quinney streets in the Hospital area. Wakeman being the fist street north of Riley and Wilson the second street north of Riley, between Edinburgh and Hospital Roads. |
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| 04/17/1953 |
Atterbury
Stockade Boasts Long List of Superior Ratings & Commendations Honored by Dept. of Army IG and Fifth Army Hdqs; Individual Sections Receive Superior Scores; Mess Hall Classed as Near Perfect. "The finest installation of this type that I have evr inspected," said Lt. Gen. Daniel Noe, Army Inspector General. |
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| 05/01/1953 | Service Club No. 1 To Be Turned Into New Cultural Center. Activities to be led by 5 EM. The center, Service Club No. 2, at 39th and Gatling Streets will be set up into four units, fine arts and crafts, drama, literature and music. | |
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WELCOME TO CAMP
ATTERBURY |
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| 05/22/1953 | 4,300 cars registered for Camp | |
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A
Statement by the Commanding General On 31 March I assembled all civilian employees at Camp Atterbury ad talked to them about their rights and privileges, and my policies. At that time I told them that they would be notified as quickly as possible of any changes affecting their status of employment. Recently a cut was made in the civilian personnel in the U. S. Army Hospital, Camp Atterbury. This reduction in civilian personnel was based on a reduction of the bed capacity of the Camp Atterbury Hospital; therefore, it follows that a ratio reduction of civilian personnel needed for care of patients was necessary. The reduction in bed capacity of a hospital, or increase in bed capacity, is not al all unusual, but rather, in times of emergency, quite normal. Consistent with my policy, I was the first to notify them by my News-leter, which is published weekly. Consequently, if in the future I am informed of any changes which will affect the civilian personnel of Camp Atterbury, or the Army, I likewise will notify them at the earliest possible time. Maj. Gen. Harry J. Collins, Commanding |
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| Recreation Area No. 1 is located at the east end of North Street, across the White River bridge and Area No. 2 is at the North side of the River at the dam. Both areas will be completed in about two weeks for personnel of Atterbury and their dependents. | ||
| 05/29/1953 |
POW
CHAPEL DEDICATION SET JUNE 6 The universality of religion will be vividly exemplified at 11am Saturday, June 6th at Camp Atterbury, when a simple outdoor chapel built by Italian and German prisoners of war will be re-dedicated by Americans to the war dead of all nations. The ceremony will be the climax in the colorful history of this decade old house of prayer, commonly known here as the "Chapel in the Meadow", which has caused a great deal of interest since its restoration and renovation by camp personnel last month. It's heart-warming story had its beginning in he autumn days of 1943 when Italian soldiers captured on the bloody sands of North Africa and the war-torn hills of Italy were brought to the Camp Atterbury PW camp. During the long days in this wire enclosure, they began to miss their homefolks. As they grew more melancholy, they sought consolation by turning to their religion and their God. In the prison camp barracks area stood a gray-white garrison chapel which was used daily by all of the prisoners. The chapel served its congregation well, but it lost some of its serenity amid the noise and turmoil of the working area. The religion of the Italians made them long for a quiet outdoor house of worship like the silent country shrines of their homeland. So the prisoners began to collect chunks of stone, they salvaged bricks, boards and other construction materials lying about the camp area and piled them under an old oak tree near their recreation field. When this pile grew high, the Italians mixed cement and erected a small edifice with one open end. After many days of labor with crude instruments, the prisoners had a chapel - a hallowed "Chapel in the Meadow," built with the hands and hearts of boys away from home. The house of worship took on a look of simple beauty as the talented painters in the prison camp drew and painted religious murals on the inside walls. There were two plump cherubs over the alter, a painting of Christ, the Mother of Sorrow, and several saints. On the ceiling was a color sketch of a white dove basking in streams of heavenly light symbolizing the spirit of love and peace. The chubby baby angels were carrying in their arms flowers and good tidings to the people back home. Other drawings depicted the sorrow of homesickness, humility before God, and the Savior saying to the imprisoned men, "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give your rest." It was difficult to illustrate the cement walls with water colors, but the artists did a masterful job. A wooden alter with marble-painted finish was constructed within. To complete this religious refuge, the men carved small crosses through both sides walls, and fashioned a wooden cross for the front roof peak. As the months wore on the Chapel in the Meadow became a focal point in the lonely lives of men awaiting repatriation. It soon became a daily ritual for the Italian chaplain to greet the prisoners at the barracks area chapel and lead them in an eucharistic procession to the Chapel. There they recited prayers and sang hymns. This period of worship was a customary pre-game ceremony. After the ritual thy ran onto the adjacent soccer field and played their familiar Italian games. At the conclusion of their recreation period. they returned to the Chapel in the Meadow where the chaplain offered a benediction. There, with athletic equipment in hand, they returned in a solemn procession to the compound chapel. Soon Mussolini's armies surrendered and the prison days were over for the Italians. There were many tears of happiness and prayers of thankfulness at the Chapel in the Meadow, when the news reached the camp. The gates opened wide and the prisoners were released to work for the American Army until the world war ended. But as the gates opened for the Italians, they closed firmly behind Germans as the European offensive pushed northward. The Chapel soon had new visitors. The Jerrys were tough at first. They were well disciplined by thier Nazi leaders, who tried hard to destroy all religious thinking - all except that for the fuehrer. A few Germans had visited the Meadow Chapel when they first arrived, but others were too well trained in Nazism or were just shy. as defeat looker closer to the German soldiers, little by little they renewed their faith. Many offered a prayer before a soccer game. Others slipped off to the Chapel at sunrise before their comrades awakened or in the evening for a quiet talk with the Lord. Then the armistice came and the Germans returned to their home. The prison fences, work houses and barracks were sold to civilian contractors. Everything quickly disappeared and all that remained was the little lost Chapel nestled under the lone Oak tree in the meadow. The war's end brought inactivation to Camp Atterbury; wind, snow and rain filled the opening of the Chapel with rubbish and caused its roof to sag. The Korean conflict brought training activities to the old Italian and German soccer field. The forgotten building then served as a trainee's shelter in a sudden cloud burst, a place to keep wood dry for field fires, and a target for knife-carved and pencil-scribbled names and phrases. One Sunday afternoon, seven years after the last German prisoner had walked out of the prison camp gates, two ladies hiking through the meadow saw the crosses on the small building and rediscovered the weather-beaten house of prayer. It had waited patiently for someone to see it as it really was - a silent, empty chapel built to serve some lonely soul. These ladies were Mrs. Irene Collins, wife of Maj. Gen. Harry J. Collins, and her mother, Dr. Ann Gehmacher, who was visiting from Austria. Now, after weeks of restoration activities by two civilian employees at the camp who had known and worked with many of the prisoners of war, the "Chapel in the Meadow" will open to all. Robert A. Batten, who exhibited for the Hoosier Salon in Brown County back in the twenties, has magnificently retouched t eh sacred paintings with oils. Most of the old water color had scaled off the abandoned walls and left little or no outline to guide him. James M. Smith, the post carpenter, rebuilt the rood and the alter with its side railings. These men had visited the meadow chapel while the prisoners were there, and have succeeded in recapturing as nearly as possible the original beauty. Training installations have been moved away from the grounds and appropriate landscaping has replaced them. |
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| Fourth Guest House Opens - Guest House Annex #2, building 1210 at Gatling and NorthStreets opens. Across from Main PX on Gatling. | ||
| Post Shoe Repair Shop - Building 902 at 31st and Milroy | ||
| Laundry Cash Store is at 31st and Noble Streets | ||
| 06/05/1953 |
Chapel
in the Meadow To Be Dedicated At 11 A.m. Saturday; Everyone Invited The Chapel in the Meadow, located about one mile west of the Stockade on 31st Street, will be rededicated at 11 a.m. Saturday. Built by Italian prisoners of war, the chapel has been reconstructed and beautified by Camp Atterbury personnel. Everyone has been invited to attend the ceremony which will feature an address by Lt. Col. James F. Rafferty, 31st Infantry "Dixie" Division chaplain. The Division band will present Schlessinger-Bachs's "Chorale," Palestrini's "Sanctus et Odormus Te," and "The Nation's Prayer," as well and the prelude and postlude. Invocation will be asked by Capt. James W. Morill, 31st Division Artillery chaplain, benediction will be pronounced by Lt. Col. Harold C. Reinking, post chaplain, and scripture will be read b Lt. Jerome S. Lipsitz, Division Jewish Chaplain. Chime music before and after the program will be played by Pfc. Richard O. Hambrock, Division chaplain's assistant. Bus and sedan service will carry visitors from Post Headquarters to the chapel. In addition busses will circle the post to pick up soldiers and visitors. A parking lot has been established near the chapel. |
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| 06/12/1953 |
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| 07/10/1953 | Post Nursery to open in new quarters in Building 1103 on Gatling Street just north of Division. Renovation of the barracks-type building is nearly complete. Operations at the present nursery in the Army Hospital will continue through July 17. Hourly rates will be 35 cents for the first child and 20 cents for additional children of the same family. Daily rates are $2.10 for the first child and $1.25 thereafter. It will be open from 0715 to 1715 Monday thru Friday and 1900 to 0100 Saturday. | |
| 08/21/1953 |
DISHONORABLE
DISCHARGE - The End of Opportunity - A Personal Message From the
Commanding General |
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| THE FIGHTING HAS STOPPED - But the end of the fighting is only the first step. Many grave and complicates problems remain to be settled before peace is established. | ||
| 106th Eng. BN has dual mission on Post. Work includes Bridges, RIC Circles and Camouflage. Many of the bridges and roads that you ride on at Camp Atterbury were build by the 106th. It is commanded by Lt. Col. Claude C. DeCory | ||
| 09/04/1953 | Cultural Center's Robust Self-Expression Breeds Corps of Contended Intellectuals. Located at 39th and Gatling. | |
| 09/11/1953 | Bronze Star and Purple Heart presented to Cpl. Peachey of Service Company, 200th Infantry Regiment. On 9 March 1953, Peachey was a member of an alert squad tht went to the aid of an ambushed friendly patrol which had suffered many casualties. Moving through an intense enemy artillery and mortar barrage, he assisted in the evacuation of the wounded over several thousand yards of shell-ridden terrain. | |
| 10/02/1953 | RUMOR KNOCKERS - The following official statement from the office of the Commanding General, Camp Atterbury, is published as a Cardinal feature to prevent the circulation of unfounded rumors o the post. RUMOR - One of the most popular topics of conversation among the regiments this week is the rumored move of the 31st Division. The latest of the current "unofficial reports" is that the Division will have arrived and set up operations in a new location by 1 April 1954. KNOCKER - No official orders have been received at this time regarding the movement of the Division to any new station. Therefore, there is no basis for this rumor. | |
| Accidents Force Pass Restrictions - 15 soldiers died violently within a period of 45 days recently. Many more ended upo in hospitals. Were these soldiers lost in war or in training? Not at all !! At the time they were not even on a military reservation. They were Atterbury men who paid with their lives on the highways during the period of 22 August - 5 October of this year. | ||
| Dixie Division Official 31st Designation - Although the 31st Infantry Division has been known for years as the "Dixie Division", it wasn't until this week that the 31st, along with 15 other divisions received permission to ue its nickname as a part of the division designation. | ||
| 10/30/1953 | Rumors Still Persist But No Official Word Received On 31st Division Move. | |
| 11/201/953 | Dixie Division completes basic training mission - The last basic trainnes sent to the 31st Infantry Division to receive 16 weeks in preparation for duty as combat infantrymen graduated with Tank Co., 167th Inf. Regt. last Saturday morning. | |
| 11/25/1953 | Hospital initiates bedside radio network - Deep in the maze of low buildings and long corridors that make up the U. S. Army Hospital at Camp Atterbury, Southern Indiana's newest radio station has opened. Receiving the programs of he Armed Forces Radio Service broadcasts is a compact bedside gadget, called a "Telex" - a circular, plastic, pillow radio. About the size of a flattened apple.. | |
| 12/04/1953 |
Log Cabin built by 198th tankers. Built in a wooded area behind the infiltration course. |
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| World famous Trapp Family Singers to appear at Atterbury at Theater No. 2. Admittance Free at 26th and Gatling. | ||
| 12/23/1953 | 31st Dixie Division To Move to Colorado, February 3-15. Camp Atterbury To Be Closed In Army Economy Move. The 31st Dixie will move to Camp Carson, Colorado. Camp Attrbury will close by March 31st. Non-divisional units will be transferred early in March. Only caretaker personnel will remain at the Camp after closing date. | |
| 01/08/1954 | Service Units Closing Date Announced - 10 Jan. Library No. 2 - 15 Jan. Hospital Library, Main Library, Bowling Alley - 31 Jan. Culture Center, Field House, Meat Cutting Plant - 12 Feb. Commissary, Pastry Shop, Bakery, QM Laundry and Dry Cleaning Plant and Shoe Repair. | |
| Governor Craig to witness final review at airstrip. In a farewell review to Camp Atterbury and the Hoosier state, the 31st Infantry Division will parade its full strength division tomorrow morning at 10am on the Division Air Strip before Governor George Craig f Indiana and mayors form surrounding communities. Rolling past will be the 31st Recon Co., the 31st Division Artillery and th 198th Tank Bn. | ||
| Twelve Atterbury Units Reassigned. Twelve units now stationed at Camp Atterbury and not attached to the 31st Division are scheduled to move to five posts within the United States as a result of the government economy program that is closing the local post. To Fort Riley: 388th Evacuation Hospital, 77th Ordnance Explosive Squad and 343rd Transportation (Light Truck) Company. Fort Wayne, Indiana: 46th Ordnance Explosive Disposal Squad. To Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri: Hq. and Hq. Det., 344th Ordnance Bn (Maintenance Supply), 244th Ordnance Depot Company, 50th Ordnance Explosive Squad and the 598th Quartermaster Company. | ||
| Kids sad as Tots Paradise prepares to close. Post Nursery locks doors January 15th. | ||
| 01/15/1954 | Two troop trains will leave today; second party due to depart Jan. 27. Colonel J. F. Barber heads advance party. Beginning Feb. 1st, 200 vehicles will leave Camp Atterbury for Camp Carson, Colorado daily. The last convoy will be Feb. 10th. 4,000 troops are expected to be in the convoys. | |
| 01/22/1954 |
Second Part goes Wednesday. First "Dixie" train arrives at Carson. Colorado officials welcome the 31st. |
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| 01/29/1954 | Eight trains leave next week. | |
| Three year old spills out of fast moving automobile - Quick action of a 31st Division practice convoy was instrumental in saving the life of a Columbus child. Three year old Mark Romino was taken to the Bartholomew County Hopital by a military ambulance. | ||
| 02/05/1954 | With Help From many hands, Heads, The Cardinal Is Put To Bed Forever. This is the last issue of the Cardinal. With the closing of Camp Atterbury, it has become necessary to cease publication of your local Army newspaper. | |
| Page last revised 03/21/2009 | ||
