Georgia's Home Front: World War II

Prisoners of War

Photograph of men in front of a U.S. Air Force plane, Bainbridge, Georgia, 1944

Photograph of mechanics, Bainbridge Army Airfield, Bainbridge, Georgia, 1944

<h2>Georgia’s Army Airfields</h2>
In 1939, 300 million dollars (the equivalent of four billion dollars today) was spent by the federal government to expand the Air Corps and improve airport infrastructure. With the required training of as many as 4,500 pilots per year, new training bases were sought in the Southeast. Georgia became a desired location thanks to its flat terrain in the eastern part of the state, and its mild winters. Twenty-two installations were ultimately established in Georgia, mostly at municipal airports with existing runways.
Robins Air Force Base in Warner Robins employed more than 23,000 people in the Air Technical Service Command who repaired Army aircraft and trained nearly 60,000 repair mechanics. Atlanta Army Airfield was the busiest controlled airport in the United States in 1943. More major Army airfields were located in Savannah, Statesboro, Thomasville, and Waycross, while contract flying schools were established in Albany, Augusta, Americus, and Douglas.
In Bainbridge, municipal leaders from the city of Bainbridge and Decatur County purchased 2,070 acres of land which they leased to the Army for one dollar a year. On March 16, 1942, the Army authorized 9.9 million dollars to construct a basic flight training base on the property.

Photograph of men resting beneath a plane, Bainbridge Army Airfield, Bainbridge, Georgia, 1944

Military Activities

Soldiers and Families

Women's Involvement

Civilian War Efforts

Coming Home

Photograph of man riding in a rodeo at the Bainbridge Army Airfield, Bainbridge, Georgia, 1944

Southwest Georgia Regional Library

Digital Library of Georgia

Throughout Georgia, the United States Armed Forces kept up numerous military training facilities, air bases, and induction centers that supported American military interests. More than 660,000 acres of land in Georgia were occupied by the Army; Army mobilization training camps were located at Fort Benning, Fort Oglethorpe, Camp Gordon, Camp Stewart, and Camp Toccoa. Fort Benning, home of the Army Infantry School, was the largest infantry training school in the world.
While living in these camps, most of a serviceman's existence was centered around daily routines. Soldiers often found activities on the base to be monotonous, and sought entertainment in the form of reading, gambling, watching movies, keeping up with correspondence, or seeking other forms of entertainment that were brought to the base.
Entertainment often arrived in the form of camp shows and recreation programs. The military provided its own on-base recreation and leisure programming administered by the Special Services Division; it also sought assistance from the United Services Organization (USO) for entertainment outside the base, and the Red Cross for providing recreation in theaters of war. The USO formed more than 3,000 clubs stateside, while the Red Cross sponsored nearly 2,000 clubs for servicemen overseas.

Greetings from Camp Wheeler, GA.--writing home, shining up, playing checkers, the canteen

Georgia's Home Front: World War II

Camps

Camps