US Army Training Center - Yearbook (Fort Leonard Wood, MO)

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, Y The Story of FORT LEO ARD WOOD FORT LEONARD WOOD, covers 71,000 acres of the Mark Twain National Forest in the Missouri Ozarks, southwest of St. Louis. Activated in 1940, the Fort was named in honor of Major General Leonard Wood who won the Medal of Honor for action in the campaign against the Apache Indian Chieftain, Geronimo. Only a handful of officials were on hand December 1940 to witness the ground breaking ceremonies. On that clay, an unknown soldier of a huge construction Army turned the first shovelfull of dirt for the con- struction of the nation's largest engineer training center, a post that has trained thousands of fighting men. The mud was terrific-so bad as to give the budding camp nationwide publicity. But the excavators and the wielders of hammer, trowel and saw surged on in their work. Almost all workers lived off the post. In spite of all the difficulties the work proceeded at a furious pace and was virtually completed the middle of May. With the completion of the 540,000,000 fort and the 22 mile railroad leading to it, trainees began coming in full speed. it-wif. R ,, sa . .W ' x , K 3 . i Vqhwgwfm my I QM , H, ds, .V Q 1-Q MMM, ',,X,' 4 M, , ew- f A ' A- wa. . . V 'E' uma

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Colo r painting courtesy of the N anoual Guard Bureau Jisswunri

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From the early part of 1941 until the post closed in 1946, Fort Leonard Wood trained some 300,000 fight- ing men. Such famous divisions as the 6th, 8th, 75th. 97th, and the 70th trained here during World War II. During the years the fort lay dormant, only a handful of groundkeepers were on the premises. The business of activating an Army post started all over again for Fort Leonard Wood in 1950, shortly after the American troops began fighting in Korea. This time, Fort Leonard Wood supported the 6th Armored Division engaged in replacement training rath- er than a procession of divisions being trained for combat. On 16 March 1956 the 6th Armored Division was inactivated and replaced with the United States Army Training Center, Engineer. The Secretary of the Army signed the order 21 March 1956 making Fort Leonard Wood a permanent installation. The essence of Fort Leonard 'Wood is best described by the word training, The fort gives recruit basic training, common and engineer specialist training and combat engineer training. Among the specialized types of training soldiers can get at the fort are construction, machinery and earth moving equipment operation and maintenance, struc- tural steel and sheet metal working, plumbing, carpen- try, electrical installation and many other specialties. 'Eie5kl'Ill X , WWW ' r 'W M ' i riffs v ' , 9'I: 'wwf Mliwl,-1 H , WWW elif f' . 1 f .. 'nw V-I , -1 H- :,:,m, W ,w,,s., wg- ,W ,, -.-V :-is M' V ,w 2, , 414,-u,, rf. ,, --wi, y , .ru n- , Mtv , wr 1 i ' I - www---.1 tw K -. 4 , f 'z' -g- . 1- it . .Q , ,.f 7, 1 , 1 .,Mv. ,, 3,9 1 ,, yi, .I .4 'WNW