Camp Patrick Henry

Camp Patrick Henry is a decommissioned United States Army base upon more than half of which sits Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport in Newport News, Virginia.

World War II

The base served primarily as a troop training center and staging ground during World War II. The camp was founded in late 1942 and was a 1700-acre complex, built in largely virgin forest. Hundreds of tar-papered covered wooden barracks were built, symmetrically laid out around huge consolidated mess halls, each the hub of what was known as a 'regimental area.' [The Road to Victory: A History of Hampton Roads Port of Embarkation During World War II. Edited by Major William Reginald Wheeler, Port Historian, 1946.]

At its peak, Camp Patrick Henry had a capacity of hosting approximately 85,000 individuals at one time. [ [http://historichamptonroads.com/hm_patrick_henry.htm Camp Patrick Henry Historic Marker] ] Nearly three quarters of a million men and women passed through the camp during 1943-44, most of them bound for deployment in the Western Europe before boarding transport ships at the Hampton Roads Port of Embarkation. These included American troops of every branch of the military service, troops of other Allied armies, and civilians bound for special missions overseas. By January 31, 1946, the total number of personnel to pass through the camp was 1,412,107. [The Road to Victory: A History of Hampton Roads Port of Embarkation During World War II. Edited by Major William Reginald Wheeler, Port Historian, 1946.] In the later stages of the war, the camp served as a demobilization point for many soldiers returning home.

Although most of the military personnel processed through the Camp during the war were replacements, many noteworthy units were also staged.Complete units processed in 1943 included the 45th "Thunderbird", the 85th "Custer", and the 88th "Blue Devils" Infantry Divisions. During 1944 the camp handled the 31st "Dixie", the 91st "Powder River" and the 92nd "Buffalo" Infantry Divisions, as well as the 2nd Cavalry Division.

Prisoners of War

Camp Patrick Henry also served as a prisoner of war camp, housing over 5,000 German and prisoners of war between 1944 and 1945. [citation needed] The prisoners were assigned to alleviate the critical shortage of manpower in the area within the limits of the Geneva Convention. The first German prisoners of war to permanently assigned to the Port of Hampton Roads were members of the Afrika Korps who had been captured in the early part of 1943 in North Africa. [The Road to Victory: A History of Hampton Roads Port of Embarkation During World War II. Edited by Major William Reginald Wheeler, Port Historian, 1946.] A Prisoner-of-War Canteen was established within the compound where the prisoners, within existing regulations, could make limited purchases.

Cold War

After the war, the camp was deactivated and about 925 acres were ceded to the Peninsula Airport Commission, which had plans to build a regional airport on the site. Patrick Henry Field, which later became Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport opened in 1949 and now sits on top of more than half of the former base. The U.S. Army continued to operate a Nike Missile site, designated N-85, on the complex until the late 1960s, when the base was shut down permanently.

Today

The property on which sat the portion of the camp that was not incorporated into the airport currently belongs to the [http://www.newport-news.va.us/ City of Newport News] . [ [http://gis.nngov.com/gis/(S(zhwkma45v5g4x3u40onb1n45))/default.aspx Newport News GIS Map Viewer] ] This section has sat unused since the 1970s and has been completely overgrown by trees, now resembling an ordinary forest. Little remains apart from a vast grid of ruined concrete roads, a few building foundations, two enormous metal water tanks, various scattered wreckage, and the Nike radar site with its four tall platform towers. The radar site, immediately adjacent the airport perimeter, is intact but deteriorating and badly overgrown.

Due to expansion at the nearby airport and increasing urban development in northern Newport News, it seems likely that what remains of the former base will be lost to community development in the next few decades.

References