Army Forts and Camps

Camp Roberts - named in honour of a First World War tank driver who lost his life in France, Camp Roberts was one of the most important military training bases during the Second World War. In 17 week cycles, more than 23-thousand soldiers recruits could receive basic training at the same time. Camp Roberts focused on Infantry and Field Artillery Replacement Training.

This sprawling 43-thousand acre facility is located off Highway 101, about 60 miles north of San Luis Obispo, California.

For more details, please see the California State Military Museum website where the above postcard and many more can be seen.

Chanute Field - named for early aircraft pioneer, Octave Chanute, during the second world war Chunute Field was an aviation school for thousands of air force recruits. It is located in Rantoul, Illinois, about 100 miles south of Chicago. As many as 25-thousand airmen trained here at a time, though the base had just housing enough for 15-thousand. The rest were quartered in tents. The air base closed in 1993 and was converted to a civilian air facility.

More information can be found at Chanute Air Museum website.

Fort Monmouth - founded in 1917 and named for American Revolution soldiers who died in the Battle of Monmouth Court House. It is the main school for the U.S. Signal Corp. It is located in just north of Asbury Park, New Jersey.

More information can be found at this U.S. Army website.

Fort Sheridan - named for the Union Major-General Philip Sheridan, this was built on the Illinois bluffs overlooking Lake Michigan about 30 miles north of downtown Chicago. It was one of four Recruit Reception Centers in the U.S. during the Second World War. Later, many prisoners of war were incarcerated there.

For more details, please see the informative town of Fort Sheridan website.

Fort Sill - founded in 1869 by Maj. Gen. Sheridan and named for his friend, Brig. Gen. Joshua Sill, who was killed in the Civil War. Since 1911 Fort Sill has been the 'home of the artillery', the world renowned U.S. Army Field Artillery School. It comprises 150 square miles of rolling country just outside the community of Lawton, Oklahoma - about 80 miles southwest of Oklahoma City.

More information can be found at the U.S. Army's Fort Sill website.

Scott Field - was named for Corporal Frank Scott, who in 1912 became the first U.S. airman to die in an aircraft accident. Founded in 1917, it is located 25 miles east of St. Louis, Missouri near Belleville, Illinois. During the Second World War war, more than 77-thousand servicemen trained here, for aircraft communcations role. The army also build an induction center nearby, which was later annexed to the Air Force Base.

More information can be found at the Scott Field Heritage Air Park website.

The SCR-284 Radio

The SCR-284 was considered a portable radio, but at 250 pounds, it was rather cumbersome out of a vehicle. It required two people to operate, one to crank the generator for transmitting, the other to handle the controls. For receiving, the radio used battery power.

The Petersen Family

Peter and Emilie Petersen were married in Racine in 1910. They had four sons.

Ed was born in 1913. As a young man Ed worked at the J.I. Case plant. Looking for more steady work, he moved to Passaic, New Jersey in the early 1940's to work at Wright Aeronautical, the aircraft company founded by the Wright Brothers. He and his wife Rose had four children. A union leader, Ed was badly beaten during a labour dispute in the late 1940s and never recovered. He died in 1951 at the age of 35.

Rudy was born in Racine in 1915. He and his wife Ann also moved to Passaic, N.J. to work at Wright. He suffered from a hearing impairment throughout his life. Drafted in the war, his disability was only recognized after several weeks of basic training and he was discharged. Rudy lived in Passaic for the rest of his life, raising one son. He died in 2007 shortly after his 92nd birthday.

Paul Petersen was born in Racine in 1921. He joined the Navy in August of 1940, but was discharged in June of 1941 after he was hospitalized for rheumatic fever and a heart condition. After the attack on Pearl Harbour, Paul attempted to rejoin the Navy, the Army, Air Force and Marines but, in spite of a brief period in the Army, was always considered medically unfit for active service. Now 86, he and his wife Millie live in Berkeley, California. They have two children.

The image below is a 1928 family portrait. From left to right - Vic, Peter, Paul, Emilie, Rudy. Ed is standing behind Paul.

Military Terms Glossary

A.P.O Addresses - Army Post Office - a military postal system that integrate the U.S. postal service with military personnel serving overseas. Being assigned an APO address was an indication a soldier would be sent to a foreign base.

ECC-FAS - Electronic Control Code - Field Artillery Section

O.T.C. exam - Officers' Training Corp - the U.S. military usually selects officers through its college based Registered Officer Training Corp (ROTC) program.

T/5 - Technician Fifth Grade. The equivalent of corporal. Created in 1942 to replace existing specialist ranks. T/4 represented specialist Sargeant; T/3 a Staff-Sergeant. They were given a special insignia. Although a T/5 did not have authority to give commands, under combat conditions they could be placed second in command by a Sergeant.

U.S.A.T - United States Army Transport

V-Mail - a mail system the U.S. military adopted from the British during the war, V (for Victory) involved microfilming hundreds of letters on a standardized letter sheets. This allowed the military to shrink letter volumes and weight from service personnel by a factor of about 37 to 1. For more information go to the Smithsonian National Postal Museum.

WAAC - Women's Auxiliary Army Corp - established in May 1942 more than 150,000 women served in various non-combat rolls.

WVAD - (we have been unable to figure out this acronym. Your assistance is welcome)