Aberdeen Proving Ground - Yearbook (Aberdeen, MD)

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MARY lVov. 11, 1918: Armisfice Day, Personnel af Ordnance Schools numbered 458 ofhcers and S86 enhsfed men. Schools ohsconfinued shorfly affer Worlo' War l ov. 23, 1918: Elecfrie Welohng School closed Nov 2Z 1918: Ordnance lnsfrumenf Peparr School closed 1 91 9: Plans considered for consohdahen of all Ordnance fralnfng acfivifies af Aberdeen Prov- ing Ground Maryland Ordnance Operafibns, Marnfenance and Repair School esfabhlshed af Parifan Arsenal New Jersey. Sepf., 1919: Ordnance School of Technology reesfabhshed af Waferfown Arsenal Massachuseffs. Ordnance School ofAppl1caf1en reesfabllshed af Aberdeen Proving Ground Maryland 1921: Ordnance School of Apphcafion fransferred fo Waferfown Arsenal and consohdafed wifh Ordnance School of Technology fhere. Consohdaffen lnown as fhe Ordnance School Arrangemenfs made wifh Massachuseffs lnsfifufe of Technology Cambridge, Massachuseffs, fo give cerfain former School of Apphcafion Courses. Sepf. 1, 1921: Ordnance Operafrons, Malnfenance and Repair School changed fo Ordnance Spe- clahsfs' School ' 1931: Ordnance Specfahsls' School changed fo Ordnance Held Service School 1932: loleadquarfers of Ordnance School moved fo Aberdeen Proving Ground Maryland from Waferfown Arsenal wilh cerfarn courses, howeven remaining af Massachuseffs lnsfil fufe of Technology under supervision of fhe Cofnmanohng Ofhber of Waferfown Arsenal Dec. 11, 1936: Aofufanf General approved plans for consohdaffen of Ordnance School and Ord- nance Held Service School af Aberdeen Proving Ground Maryland 1 June 1, 1940: Ordnance School and Ordnance Held Service School consohdafed af Aberdeen rroymg Ground Maryland lfnown as The Ordnance School Jan. 1, 1941: Ordnance Training Cenfer acfivafed consishng of fhe Ordnance School Ordnance Peplacemenf Training Cenfen and Ordnance Unif Training Cenfer. July 16, 1942: Ordnance Training Cenfer made fnscffve and fhe Ordnance School made a sepae rafe echelon under fhe Mlhfary Training Division of fhe Ordnance Deparfmenl. -'-l

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CH H0 ULUGI Dec. Xb, NOX: Study or Ordnance Xnsrruchon begun. Feb. '28, X9O'2z Caprarn Dunn suxomrrs reporrs and recommendahons. Ordnance SchooX oi Pxp- phcahon esraxohshed soon rhereahrer ar Sandy Hook Vroxfrnq Ground, New Jersey. H2051 Programs or prachcaX shop work esjrabhshed ar prKncrpaX manugackurrnq, arsenaXs. N061 Ordnance SchooX 0? TechnoXoqy esrabhshed air Wakerrown Pxrsenah Massachuserfrs. X9Xb: hAachKne Gun SchooX opened ak SprKnqheXd Pxrmory, Massachusekrs. Summer, XCIX7: Ordnance SchooX or Pxpphcahon ar Sandy Hook Provknq Ground, New Jersey. ' and Ordnance SchooX or TechnoXoqy, ar Warerrown Pxrsenak Massachuseirs, dKscon'rKnued. Sepk. XCIVI: Ordnance Xnsrruchon 'rn manu'rac'rur'rnq pXan'rs approved by Secrerary off War. Rock Xdand PxrsenaX SchooX for Oihcers and Yznhskred men opened. Oc'r., WW: Kenosha, NNKs.,'Branch opened ar Nash Morors Company, for oihcers. Ock. '23, WW: ?eor'ra, hhnors, Branch or Ordnance Xnskruchon SchooXs dedrqnared as Headquar- rers for O-rdnance,Mo'ror Xnsrruchon SchooXs, for oihcers and enhsfred men, and dasses open ar khe Hoh'hAanuracrur'rnq Company. Ocr. 30, XQVI: FAN. D. Branch or Ordnance Xnsrrucfron SchooXs opened ar rhe Four NNheeX Drrye Company, Chnronvrhe, NNKS., vfrkh 'rnsfrruchon for ofhcers. 'Y Dec. XC2.X'l: Enhsred s'ruden'rs en'rer F. NN. D. Branch ak Chnronyrhe. Dec. V2, WW: Enhsred sjrudenrs enrer Kenosha Branch. VNS: Ordnance Xnsrrumenk Reparr SchooX opened ar Frankiord Pxrsenak Vennsyhlanka. Pxpr'rX '23, XQXB: Machrne Gun SchooX moved from Spr'rnqheXd Pxrmory, Massachuserrs, 'ro Camp Hancock, Oeorq'ra. ' June, VNS: Specfrahsrs SchooX for mo'ror 'rnsrruchon opened ai Camp Jackson, Soukh Carohna. duXy, XQXB: Moror, Pxrhhery and Machkne Gun SchooXs consohdared ar Rar'r'ran Pxrsenak New der sey, and cahed Ordnance hAa'rn'renance and Reparr Schook Sepr., VNS: EXecrr'rc NNeXd'rnq SchooX ar XfxncoXn Hecfrrkc Company, CXeyeXand, Oh'ro, opened A

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'A' ir The grOwTh OT The Ordnance School aT Aberdeen Prov- ing Ground, Maryland, during recenT mOnThs has been a process which was wholly unpredicTabIe a Tew years ago. So swiTTly has The school expanded ThaT iTs Organ- izaTiOn baTTles sTrangers, buT in reaIiTy The size and scope is a simple Thing. The developmenT OT The school has been logical and On a planned basis, moving surely and cOnTidenTly againsT many obsTacles TO perTorm The Task OT Training men TO lqeep The vasT quanTiTy OT presenT-day Ordnance equiprnenT OT The UniTed STaTes Army in oper- aTing condiTion. The Ordnance School, as iT is designaTed Today, came inTo OTTiciaI exisTence On July I, I94-O, when iT was de- cided TO merge The OTTicers' School aT Aberdeen Prov- ing Ground and The Ordnance Field Service School OT RariTan Arsenal, MeTuchen, New Jersey, on a single PosT. AcTually The process Toolc over a monTh, despiTe The TacT ThaT The mOvemenT OT men and equipmenT Trom RariTan Arsenal was compleTed by July I5. The school was in OperaTiOn long beTOre The housing TaciIiTies Tor iT were compleTed. Many hardships were endured by The TirsT sTaTT OT The school, buT They weaTh- ered Through: The while sTarTing a new course Tor non- commissioned oTTicers wiTh almosT 200 in aTTendance: This in addiTiOn To specialisT courses in MainTenance. DepOT and Supply, and AmmuniTion. The oTTicer courses conTinued in Their Tormer TaciliTies aT The Proving Ground. On AugusT I The TirsT OT The new buildings were ready TO be occupied, alThough all doors and windows had noT yeT been puT in place. The pioneering OT The school required much iniTiaTive Tor adequaTe insTrucTional equipmenT was lacking. There were no TexTs or Training aids such as charTs and film slides. And This was aT The Time when The Tield needed The equipmenT under manuTacTure by The Tew Tirms en- gaged in building Ordnance maTeriel, and The Tield uniTs had The highesT prioriTy. Some OT The insTrucTion had To be given On equipmenT which required insTrucTors wiTh wide experience. This was especially True in The Fire COnTrOl SecTiOn, and The Tew Trained men in The counTry capable OT insTrucTing This subiecT were cIassiTied as lcey employes in indusTry. There were no TexTs available Tor insTrucTors TO use as guides, buT The sTaTT worlced On, modiTying courses, rem- edying errors, and pulling weeds in procedure and course rnaTeriaI. lnsTrucTOrs OTTen wroTe Their own TexTs and. aTTer much waiTing, The TirsT OT The new equipmenT began To arnve. On January I, I94I, Ordnance School Special Order NO. I IisTed apprOximaTely 30 oTTicers and Their assign- menTs TO duTies, wiTh LieuTenanT Colonel George W. SIIIIII III THE Oufland as COmmandanT. On The same day The Ord- nance Training C.Ommand came inTo exisTence. The Ordnance School was one OT The Three sub-headquarTers OT This Training cenTer. The oTher Two were The Ordnance UniT Training CenTer and The Ordnance ReplacemenT Training CenTer. A number OT valuable oTTicers and enIisTed men were relieved Trom assignmenT TO The Ord- nance' School On +ha+ daTe and were assigned Tor duTy in These oTher new headquarTers. The Tollowing Tew mOnThs were criTical Ones Tor The school. EvenTs overseas were causing apprehension ThrOughouT The UniTed STaTes, SeIecTive Service had been inauguraTed, and The Ordnance School was sure To ex- pand, Tor modern warTare employs much mechanized equipmenT, which in Turn requires many repairmen. WiTh so many imporTanT phases OT Ordnance TO be TaughT, There was some guesTion as To which branch or branches OT The school should develop TirsT. The COmmandanT, his sTaTT, and Their advisors moved wisely. They buiIT The headquarTers organizaTiOn soundly, so ThaT no maTTer which branch mighT grow The TasTesT The headquarTers would be large and sTrong enough To balance The sTruc- Ture. The process OT pruning ouT dead wood was also em- ployed. Any misTiTs Or unquaIiTied personnel were TacTTulIy eliminaTed, and Their places were Taken by careTuIIy chosen men. The sTaTT used all available sources OT oTTicer maTeriel, OTTicers OT The Regular Army headed The OrganizaTiOn, giving Their Tull experience To The school. Many oTTicers were commissioned Trom The ranks, men who were experT Technicians in Their lines. Many OT These laTer became secTion heads. Reserve oTTicers wiTh varied Technical and adminisTraTive Training and experi- ence ObTained in indusTry were anOTher supply. These men Toolc adminisTraTive pOsTs, became insTrucTors and company commanders-The maiOriTy OT Them learning Their iob as They perTOrmed iT-buT all OT Them learning rapidly and working well. February, I94I, saw The esTabIishmen+ OT The FirsT Pro- visional Ordnance Training Company in which all enlisfed sTudenTs were housed. Two general messes Tor The Teed- ing OT enlisTed sTaTT and enlisTed sTudenTs were acTivaTed. In March, The enlisTed adminisTraTive Overhead and Train- ing personnel reached a sTrengTh OT beTween Three and Tour hundred. OTTicer sTudenTs numbered abouT one hun- dred and enIisTed sTudenTs Two hundred. Five specialisT courses Tor oTTicers were sTarTed. They were: AuTOmoTive and AmmuniTiOn, ArTillery and DepOT and Supply, DepoT and Supply and Small Arms, and an ArTilIery course Tor Marine Corps personnel. The en- IisTed division was busy Training cadre Tor new uniTs TO be acTivaTed in The Ordnance UniT Training CenTer and