"Back at the Gap" BACK AT THE GAP Major General Frank H. Smoker, Jr. (USAF, Retired) Demobilization at the Gap 20th in a series On April 6, 1943, the Army Emergency Relief opened its office to provide speedy and efficient help for needy soldiers. Indiantown Gap's first detachment of the Women's Army Corps (WAC) was activated August 15, 1943. On March 18, 1944, the most disastrous fire in the Reservation's history occurred when the modern laundry plant was destroyed. Under Secretary of War Robert Patterson visited the Post on April 1 and inspected the 95th Division, then in training here. On May 5, 1944, the Transportation Corps Training Center was redesignated the Army Service Forces Training Center. On June 20, 1944, the Third Service Command Staging and Assignment Center was organized on the Post and reestablished in an active status under the command of the Commanding General, 3rd Service Command, effective 18 October 18 1944. On August 29, 1944, the 28th Division, so much a part of Indiantown Gap history, had the honor of being the first American division in history to parade through Paris. It was the official liberation of Paris, first allied capital to be reclaimed from the Axis. A famous photograph showed the 28th in full battle gear, twenty-four men abreast, curb to curb, with the Arch of Triumph looming behind. It was chosen as the theme for a United States postage stamp issued a month later to honor the wartime army. On May 8, 1945, V-E Day proclamations were issued by Major General Philip Hayes of the Third Service Command and Brigadier General Malcolm F. Lindsey of the Reservation. General Lindsey addressed all Post officers at a gathering at the Sports Arena. On May 11, it was announced that Indiantown Gap would become a War Department Personnel and Separation Center. On May 12, 1945, Major General Philip Hayes of Third Service Command, and Brigadier General Malcolm F. Lindsey and Governor Edward Martin reviewed the camp's assembled troops in a special ceremony. May 13 was observed as a Day of Prayer at the Camp in accordance with the desire of President Harry S. Truman. Special services were held in all chapels. On May 31, 1945, it was announced that the Separation Center would begin operation on June 10 screening of soldiers eligible for discharge under the War Department's newly inaugurated "point system”. During the War, there was a great need for young girl typists and stenographers by the U.S. Government; and recruiters would visit seniors in high schools to give test . Mrs. Ann C. (Herron) Hanley of Alexandria, Virginia, formerly of Tamaqua, PA, has kindly permitted me to include her recollections. After taking this test, when she went to work 19 June 1945 at the Indiantown Gap Military Reservation, at that time a Separation Center for our servicemen. She wrote, “V E Day had already occurred (8 May) the month before our graduation and by then a lot of our servicemen had sufficient points to come home and be discharged. And as the war was winding down, they were arriving rapidly all anxious to get home and we worked feverishly to see that they did.” “Although my Grandmother was not happy about this little teenaged girl leaving to live among ‘all those soldiers’, I did arrive by bus with one suitcase and an alarm clock on 19 June 1945. We lived on the Post in army barracks the only difference being that we had separate rooms like the officer's barracks. But we did have communal latrines. I was assigned a room in barracks T 13 1 and charged $15 a month. It was a fairly comfortable room. The House Mother's room was directly to the right as you entered the barracks. We had to receive our dates in the "living room" at the other end of the barracks. “This was quite an experience for me. There were German POWs working in the snack bars, cafeterias, grounds & furnace rooms. We had PX and Mess Hall privileges, etc. “My first job was typing roster stencils for the separation schedules of the GIs to be discharged. They were run off on a ditto machine and we would get purple ink all over our hands and cloths. I started working as a CAF 1 $1,260 per annum. But even with all the overtime, by the time federal tax, civil service retirement, quarters & bonds were deducted and I sent some money home to my mother that didn't leave very much for food, clothing or entertainment. But by December I was promoted to serve as secretary to the Chief of the Incoming Records Section advancing to a CAF 2. And by the time I left I was a CAF 3. “I really enjoyed attending the Saturday night dances at the Service Club. We attended Chapel on Sundays and went to the movies periodically on Post. The movie I remember most was "State Fair" mainly because the song "It Might As Well Be Spring" kept going through my mind. “In celebration of V J Day, the President declared a two day holiday (15 and 16 August 1945) for federal employees. However, everyone happily continued to work those two day and future overtime in order to keep up with the many servicemen who were arriving for discharge. At the peak, thousands were being processed daily. It was quite a pleasure to see happy GIs parading down the street with their discharge and know that you had a part in it. “But by February 1946, most of the servicemen had been processed and the Separation Center was due to close. There was still a need for postwar "government girls" in the Washington, DC area so I asked for a transfer and was notified to report for work on 13 March 1946 in the Pentagon with quarters in another barracks in Arlington Farms in VA. But that's another story!” The formal activation of the Separation Center and the Reception Station took place on July 1, 1945. Colonel George P. Seneff was named Commanding Officer of the Separation Center and Major Willis K. Whichard was Commanding Officer of the Reception Station. The center was divided into three units: two of which were to handle enlisted personnel and the third for exclusive handling of officers. By mid-September, for the first time, the discharge rate of the Separation Center exceeded 1,000 soldiers per day. The Separation Center processed an average of 3,000 releases a day for the final week of October, when 22,526 separatees were processed! Thousands and thousands of soldiers passed through Indiantown Gap. Staff Sergeant Norvill Griest of Philadelphia had the distinction of being the 200,000th soldier discharged at Indiantown Gap when he was processed for separation on November 20, 1945. Based upon my research, I have estimated that about 250,000 passed through on their way to Europe and from June 10, 1945 to March 23, 1946 over 449,569 troops spent their last days as a soldier at the Indiantown Gap Military Reservation. The news of the unconditional surrender of Japan on August 14, 1945, was received with rejoicing by camp soldiers. V-J Day proclamations were issued by Major General Philip Hayes of the Third Service Command and Brigadier General Malcolm F. Lindsey of the Reservation. General Lindsey addressed all Post Officers at a gathering at the Sports Arena. The inactivation of the Training Center was announced on December 1, 1945. This announcement brought to a close the vital role that the Training Center had played in the conduct of the war from July 1941 until the present. In October 1946, IGMR was inactivated as a federal base, and the Reservation became a Pennsylvania National Guard training site once again. The Training Center inactivation was announced on December 1, 1946. © 2004 Frank H. Smoker, Jr. All rights reserved. Reproduced by permission of the author. Go "Back at the Gap" Index