US Army Training Center - Yearbook (Fort Polk, LA)

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QQLP-P3-X-C45 HEADQUARTERS FORT POLK Office of the Commanding General Fort Polk, Louisiana Soldier, this is your book. You are its subject and its author. It depicts you as, in two short yet strangely long months, you made the big change from civilian to soldier. May it remind you always of your first service to your country, a service in which you begrudged neither hours nor effort, a service which was a complete giving of yourself. Having given much you have gained much. Yet more, much more, re- mains to be done. If you will but carry on in the future as you have during your first eight weeks of service, you cannot lose, for you will find that your manhood has developed to its finest andlfullest potential. And, should the war drums sound and our nation have need to place you in the van- guard of her fighting men she will indeed be well served by such as you. aww.. PHILIP C. WEHLE Maior General, U. S. Army Commanding

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PHILIP C. WEHLE Major General, U. S. Army Commanding General Major General Philip C. Wehle was born on 5 September, 1906, at Westport, Connecticut. He graduated from the United States Military Acad- emy, West Point, New York, on 12 June, 1930, and was commissioned a second lieutenant of Field Artillery in the Regular Army. He began his military service as a battery offi- cer in the 82d Field Artillery at Fort Bliss, Texas and served in this capacity until 1933, when he attended the Field Artillery School, Fort Sill, Oklahoma, in 1934. He was then assigned to the 11th Field Artillery, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. Returning to the United States in November, 1936, General Wehle began a four-year tour of duty as an instructor at the Military Academy, which ended in 1940 when he was assigned to the newly activated 99th Field Artillery Battalion CPackJ at Fort Hoyle, Maryland. Early in 1942 he was assigned to the 603d Field Artillery in the Asiatic-Paciiic Theater. Later that year he became Personnel Oiiicer CG-ll of the First Joint Army-Navy Task Force Head- quarters in the Pacific. He served there until his return to the United States in May, 1943, and became battalion commander of the 616th Field Artillery CPackJ at Camp Carson and Camp Hale, Colorado. In 1944, General Wehle served in the Euro- pean Theater of Operations as Assistant Corps Artillery Officer of the XVIII Airborne Corps through the Ardennes, Rhineland, and Central Europe Campaigns. He returned to the United States in 1946 and was assigned to Headquarters of the Army Ground Forces in Washington, D. C., and Fort Monroe, Va., where he first served in the Plans Section, Policy Group and later as Sec- retary of the General Staff. In May, 1950, he returned to the European Theater and served with Headquarters, United States Army, Europe. From August, 1952 to June, 1953, he attended the Army War College at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, and then served as an instructor at that installation from June, 1953 until September, 1954. Arriving in the Far East on 1 October, 1954, General Wehle was assigned to the Korean Mili- tary Advisory Group and later became Senior KMAG Advisor to the Second ROK Army. He remained here until his appointment as 7th Divi- sion Artillery Commander on 7 July, 1955. Gen- eral Wehle was then appointed I Corps Artillery Commander in September, 1955. In 1956 he returned to the United States and assumed com- mand of the 2d Division Artillery, Fort Lewis, Washington. From 30 August, 1957 to June, 1959, General Wehle was Assistant Commandant, U. S. Army Artillery and Missile School, Fort Sill, Oklahoma. In August, 1959 he was assigned to Europe and became Chief of the U. S. Military Assistance Advisory Group to France. Since 10 September, 1962, General Wehle has been serving as Commanding General, United States Army Training Center, Infantry, Fort Polk, Louisiana.

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JOHN M. FINN Brigadier General, U. S. 'Army Deputy Commanding General Brigadier General John M. Finn was born 31 August, 1913 at McCoy, Oregon. He graduated from the United States Military Academy, West Point, New York, on 14 June, 1938, and was commissioned a second lieutenant of Infantry in the Regular Army. He was first assigned to the 23d Infantry, 2d Division at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. In August, 1940 he was reassigned to the newly formed 7th Infantry Division at Fort Ord, California. Starting as a Company Commander in the 32d Infantry Regiment, General Finn was to advance through normal Command and Staii' assigmnents to com- mand the Regiment through two major Pacific engagements. He left the Regiment on occupation duty in Korea in May, 1946. His only break in nearly six years duty with the 32d Infantry Regi- ment was a three months special duty tour as a student in the Infantry Battalion Commanders and Staff Officers Course at the Infantry School, Fort Benning, Georgia, in 1952. While serving with the 7th Infantry Division, General Finn participated in the Aleutian Cam- paign CAttuJ, the Eastern Mandates Campaign fKwajaleinJ, the South Philippine Campaign CLeyteJ, and the Ryukyu Islands Campaign COki- nawaj. After World War II the 7th Infantry Di- vision was transferred to Korea from Okinawa and General Finn continued to serve as Regi- mental Commander, 32d Infantry. General Finn returned to the United States in 1946 and was assigned as Infantry Liaison Oiiicer to the Ordnance Development and Proof Services at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland. In 1948 he was assigned to the Office Assistant Chief of Staff, G-3, Department of the Army, in the Mo- bilization Branch, Operations and Training Divi- sion, The Pentegon, Washington, D. C. In November, 1951, General Flinn was as- signed to Supreme Headquarters, Allied Powers, Europe CSHAPEJ with duty as a student in the First Class of the North Atlantic Treaty Organi- zation Defense College, Paris, France. After com- pleting the course in May 1952 he was assigned to J-3, Allied Land Forces Central Europe, Fon- tainbleau, France, as Operations and Training Oiiicer. He remained in this capacity until the summer of 1953 when he returned to the United States to attend the Army War College at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania. Following his graduation in 1954, he was assigned to Headquarters, 6th U. S. Army, Presidio of San Francisco, California. Here he served in the G-1 Section as Chief of Military Personnel and as Executive Oflicer to the G-1. In 1955 General Finn was assigned to the Mili- tary Assistance Advisory Group, Vietnam, as Ad- visor to the Secretary of Defense, Vietnam. After twenty-six months in Saigon, the capital of this newly free nation, he returned to the United States in 1957 and was assigned as Chief of Staff, 9th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colorado. General Finn arrived at Fort Polk in June 1962 where he first served as Commanding Gen- eral of the Post and the Training Command prior to assuming his present duties as Deputy Com- manding General.