US Army Training Center - Yearbook (Fort Bragg, NC)

Page 73 text:

SIE AL UFFIIIEH The administrative telephone system of Fort Bragg, with equipment for 2,600 lines, is one of' the largest installed in any post of the country. Army owned. it is operated and maintained by the Carolina Telephone and Telegraph Company under contract to the Government. This agency. or1e of' the activities controlled by the Signal Ufhce, com- pletes thousands of calls that are placed to and from the Post. 'fihe tele-graphic service for the Post is handled by the Signal Office, through the Communications Center, into and out of which l,50U messages are sent daily. ln addition to its telegraphic machines, the Center has a machine con- nected with the National Typewriter Exchange and a radio station. All three means of' messagessending function 2-1- hours a day seven days a week. Witli modern high powered equipment the radio station is capable of transmitting messages even when the lines required by other methods of electrical communications fail. An emergency power plant is maintained and ready for use in case of emergency. The Signal Ofhce is the Postls official photographer Vtfork- ing in close conjunction with the Public Relations Ofhce it takes pictures of notable events which occur on the reserva- tion. These pictures are then released by the Public Rela- tions Office to the 'Tort Bragg Postn and state and national newspapers for publication. lt also performs work of a similar nature for the many activities of the Post. This includes: identification pictures, visual training aids, and pictorial evidence of' current needs. A complete file of negatives is kept for reference at the well equipped Photo- graphic Laboratory. Another important function of the Signal Office is the distribution of training films to the units stationed here. its well-stocked Film Library is as large as any in the Fourth Service Command. with thc exception of the Central Li- brary at Atlanta. 05 projectors are used daily by the per- sonnel of the Branch to show the films. When the Signal Office was made one of the l ost's tech- nical services in January lU-1-Jr, it was headed by Lieuten- ant Andrew H. Warlicli Jr., who succeeded Lt. Col. Calvin H. Burkhead, who had been the Signal Officer since Sept. 19-l-2. Nfajor Hifding Y. Foreen, present Post Signal Officer, succeeded Lieutenant Warlick in July 19-1-1. Bottom, left: Switchboard operators at work . . . Right, top to bottom, left to right: Chief Warrant Officer Paul L. Davis, Post Signal Officer, Major Hilding V. Foreen, Lieutenant Andrew H. War- lict, and Lieutenant Vivian l. Shackleton . . . Photo lab workers inspecting neg- ative . . . Scene in tele- graph ottice . . . Scene in film library. it

Page 72 text:

wi' Q Utility Lf. E. M. Loughery, Capt. C. T. De Brell, Post Chemical Warfare 1 Officers. CHEMICAL W HF HE The Post Chemical Warfare Officer is entrusted with the training of the Army Service Forces units and all non- divisional units on the Post in the defense against chemical attacks. It is his task to provide each soldier with a gas mask and to instruct him in the proper use and care of the gas mask. All phases of the training are made as realistic as pos- sible in order that the soldier may have a thorough under- standing of gases and their effects. Fully aware that he possesses the best gas mask in the world, the soldier is trained not to fear gas but to possess a healthy respect for it, and to conduct himself in such a manner that he will not become affected by il. He is taught about gases which the enemy might use. how to identify them, and how to care for himself and his equipment in case of an attack. When this period has been completed, he has learned the employment of smoke in comhat, the use of white phos- phorus grenades, and, where applicable, the use of the flame thrower. As an actual test of his training, he is taken through the gas chamber and submitted to a concen- tration of toxic at-id. During the past year, all organiza- tions leaving Fort Bragg have been taken through the gas chamber under the supervision of the Post Chemical War- fare Officer, Captain Charles T. Delfvrell. More thorough training is provided in schools for both officers and enlisted men, so that, in the absence of an of- ficer of the Chemical Vlfarfare Service, they will he able to instruct properly their units and to carry on such ad- ditional training as might be deemed necessary. Prior to July, 1911-4, the Post Chemical Warfare Ofti- cer was responsible for the requisitioning, receiving, stor- ing, and issuing of all chemical equipment and ammunition, and for providing the soldier, as well as his organization with all protective and training equipment. This work was at that time assigned to the Consolidated Property Of- hcer, in order to conserve manpower. Top to bottom: Troops training 'for a gas attack .... Deconiaminaiing a vehicle .... Deconfaminaiing a gassecl area .... inside the gas chamber.

Page 74 text:

Top, left, from left to right: Lt. Joseph F. Rollings, Assistant Transportation Officer: Major Earle N. Zeigler, Post Transportation Officer: Lt. Dorothy E Wolfe Mileage Administrator, and Capt. Robert L. Hinson, Motor Pool Officer .... Top, right: Office staff of Transportation Branch at work .... Bottom, left: Dispatchlng vehicles at the Post Motor Pool .... Bottom, right: Selectees leaving Reception Center on troop train 'For Replacement Center. THA SPUHT!-XTIIJ UFFIEEH Before the expansion of the Army, transportation at the Post was handled by an ollicer appointed by the Quarter- master, assisted by a clerk who executed the necessary paper work involved. The rapid growth of the Army brought with it an enormous increase in volume of traftic, and the need for a separate agency to handle the work became acute. The reorganization in the War Department, in 19-1-2, included the creation of the Transportation Corps. The principal function of the Transportation Corps per- sonnel here is to arrange and provide for the transporta- tion of military personnel and military supplies and equip- nzent moving to and from the Post. There are approximately 28 miles of Government-owned trackage on the reservation, and a classification yard with a capacity of 265 cars. Switches and side tracks can ac- commodate an additional 750 cars at one time. The Post Railroad, using four locomotives, is operated, under con- tract to the Government, by the Cape Fear Railways, lnc. A staff oi' l5U persons, including both military and civilian personnel and headed by the Post Transportation Ufficer, Major Earle N. Zeigler, assisted by three other officers, is required to handle the work performed by the Branch. Between ,lanuary l, 1942, and September 30, 194-1 411,063 freight cars and l7,298 passenger cars have been handled by the Post Transportation Uftice. A major share of the work has dealt with personnel moving to and from the Reception Center, the lnduction Station, and the Field Artillery Replacement training center. On one occasion. l0,000 troops were handled in approximately 10 hours. Without a single train departing late. During one week, in another instance, the office moved, for one organization alone, -l-8 mixed trains consisting of approximately l.5UO cars, all this in addition to routine work performed. The Post Transportation Officer is also charged with supervision over all buses and taxi-cabs operating in and out of, as well as on the Post, and hc supervises the opera- tion of the Post Motor Pool and the Office of Mileage Administration.