Monday, January 25, 2010

Camp Reynolds

My dad (Papa) often talks about Camp Reynolds at Transfer, PA. During World War II, the Army came into the area and forced people from their homes and farms in order to establish a camp used for preparing troops to ship out overseas. Many of the neighbors had to sell out and move to other areas. Papa's family moved to the area called Delaware Grove, where they bought a farm which his parents owned until the mid-1970s. (The house on this farm was very old and was reportedly used by the Underground Railroad to hide slaves many years before.)

On Route 18 in Transfer, Papa's family, his Grandfather Love and Uncle Paul Love all had houses side by side. After the Army came in and forced them out, they moved Grandfather Love's house across the road and put the main gate to the camp in its place. Papa's house was taken by the Commander of the base as his residence. It was a very nice house - Papa's father was a good carpenter and had built it well.

Camp Reynolds was built in 1942 and closed in 1945. Papa thinks that it covered about 1,000 acres. Over one million men passed through its gates during that time. The soldiers were trained there and sent to the "European Theater of Operations" to fight in the war.

While the camp was under construction, Papa, who was 15 years old, worked at a sandwich shop about a half mile from his house towards Greenville. The "sandwich shop" was on a neighbor's front porch. The construction workers came there to buy sandwiches, drinks, etc. for their lunches. The neighbor also had one gas pump, so folks could buy gas there, too.

On one trip back to this area after his family had moved, Papa and his friends took a road that goes through a covered bridge. They came to the bridge as American soldiers were marching down the road. The troops parted and Papa drove right down the middle between two rows of soldiers!

The most interesting part of Papa's Camp Reynolds story is when he tells of one visit he and his buddies made to the base in his 1936 Ford convertible. They entered through a back gate - no one tried to stop them, although he doesn't think that they were supposed to be there. They came around a corner and stopped. Right in front of them was a large group of German POWs being marched to the mess hall! They just sat there in the car and watched the enemy soldiers pass by.

No comments:

Post a Comment