US Army sub camp during World War II
Camp Hyder was a US Army installation in Arizona, functioning as a subcamp of the Desert Training Center in Riverside County, California. The main headquarters for the Desert Training Center was Camp Young, this is where General Patton's 3rd Armored Division was stationed. Camp Hyder is miles south of Hyder, Arizona. The camp was just north of the Gila River. Camp Hyder is miles east of Yuma, Arizona, near Camp Horn. Camp Hyder was built at the site of an old 1890s military base. Trained at Camp Hyder, in 1943, for six months was the 77th Infantry Division from April 1943 to September 1943. Then the 104th Infantry Division moved in for training. Unlike the other camps, no large tank activity was done. The camp was built by The 369th Engineer Regiment. Camp Hyder had its own rail station at which most troops arrived. The train station at Sentinel, Arizona south of the camp was also used. Over 13,000 troops were trained at Camp Horn and Camp Hyder.
Camp Hyder was built in August 1942. The Desert Training Center was built to prepare troops to do battle in North Africa to fight the Nazis during World War II. At the camp's railway station were two large stone columns marking the entrance to the camp. Near the camp in Agua Caliente, Arizona the army built the Agua Caliente natural hot spring for the troops to use, this in on the land of the Agua Caliente Ranch. When completed the camp had shower buildings, latrines, outdoor theater, wooden tent frames, two 10,000-gallon water storage tanks and a water treatment plant. The camp had many firing ranges for .30- and .50-caliber machine guns, as well as artillery. The camp also taught the use of anti-tank mines. The army used live-fire exercises and warning signs are still on the site. The camp was closed in May 1944.
Dateland Air Force Auxiliary Field.
To the SouthWest of Camp Hyder was the Dateland Air Force Auxiliary Field, named after the Dateland, Arizona road stop. The air landing strip was used to support the camp's training activities. The runway was from use for small planes, like the L-4 Piper Aircraft so the vast training grounds could be watched from the air. The runway was long enough for the large planes to use in training exercises also. The United States Army Air Forces opened on 1 January 1943. It was also used for Air Forces training by the 3037th Army Air Force Base Unit. The landing strip was under the direction of the Yuma Army Airfield, Arizona.
Markers.
Marker at the site reads:
Marker at the Dateland Air Force Auxiliary Field site reads:
References.
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