Editing Warner Robins, Georgia (section)

==History==
Warner Robins was founded in 1942, when the small farming community of Wellston was renamed for General [[Augustine Warner Robins]] (1882–1940) of the United States Army Air Corps, which later became the United States Air Force.<ref>{{cite book |url=http://www.kenkrakow.com/gpn/w.pdf|title=Georgia Place-Names: Their History and Origins |publisher=Winship Press |author=Krakow, Kenneth K. |year=1975 |location=Macon, GA |pages=246 |isbn=0-915430-00-2}}</ref> It was incorporated as a town in 1943 and as a city in 1956.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=REtEXQNWq6MC&pg=PA251 |title=Historical Gazetteer of the United States |publisher=Routledge |date=May 13, 2013 |access-date=30 November 2013 |author=Hellmann, Paul T. |pages=251|isbn=978-1135948597 }}</ref>

The 1940 census shows that the community of Wellston was sparsely populated and inhabited primarily by farmers and their families. Its most notable landmark was a stop on the railroad line. Wellston also had a small sawmill and a grocery store. Peach orchards covered parts of the surrounding land.

This changed during [[World War II]]. The [[United States Department of War|War Department]] made plans to build an air depot in the Southeast. With the assistance of influential U.S. Representative [[Carl Vinson]], Wellston community leader Charles Bostic "Boss" Watson worked with officials in Macon to make a bid to locate this air depot in Houston County. In June 1941, the U.S. government accepted this offer, which included {{convert|3108|acre|km2}} of land.<ref>{{cite book|title=The New Georgia Guide|date=1996|publisher=The University of Georgia Press|location=Athens, GA|isbn=0-8203-1799-3|page=[https://archive.org/details/newgeorgiaguide0000unse/page/433 433]|url=https://archive.org/details/newgeorgiaguide0000unse/page/433}}</ref>

This air force base was initially called Wellston Army Air Depot when it opened in 1942. The first commander was Colonel Charles E. Thomas. He wanted to name this depot in honor of his mentor Augustine Warner Robins, who was called by his middle name, Warner. Regulations prevented him from doing this, which required the base to be named after the nearest town. Not deterred by this, Colonel Thomas persuaded Boss Watson and the other community leaders to rename the town of Wellston. So on September 1, 1942, the town was given the new name of Warner Robins.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Dixon|first1=Claire|title=Warner Robins: The Second 25 Years|date=1993|publisher=WH Wolfe Associates|location=Alpharetta, GA|pages=1–2}}</ref> Soon thereafter, on October 14, 1942, the base was renamed to become Warner Robins Army Air Depot. The city has a unique name, shared with no other town in the United States.

[[Robins Air Force Base]] is not within the city limits of the town, but is across [[U.S. Route 129 in Georgia|U.S. Highway 129]] ([[Georgia State Highway 247]]), which serves as a boundary between the base and the city.

In 2018, [[First Solar]] announced a project for a 200-megawatt, {{convert|2000|acre|km2|sp=us|adj=on}} solar-panel facility in [[Twiggs County]] east of Warner Robins. The facility would be the largest solar facility in the Southeast US.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.powermag.com/largest-solar-plant-in-southeast-will-be-built-in-georgia/|title=Largest Solar Plant in Southeast Will Be Built in Georgia|date=February 22, 2018|website=powermag.com|access-date=May 1, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180324104635/http://www.powermag.com/largest-solar-plant-in-southeast-will-be-built-in-georgia/|archive-date=March 24, 2018|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

===Tornadoes===
Tornadoes have continually plagued the city since its inception with the 1950s, with at least four catastrophic tornadoes striking the area. The first one occurred on [[April–May 1953 tornado outbreak sequence|April 30, 1953]], when an F4 tornado with winds of over 200&nbsp;mph hit the city and portions of Robins Air Force Base, killing 18 people and injuring 300 more.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://wgxa.tv/news/local/midstate-residents-remember-ef4-tornado-in-warner-robins-65-years-ago|title=Midstate residents remember EF4 tornado in Warner Robins 65 years ago|last=Mackie|first=Matt|work=WGXA|access-date=2018-07-13|language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="WarnerRobins">{{cite report|author=National Weather Service|date=February 2020|url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=10001457|title=Georgia Event Report: F4 Tornado|publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information|access-date=4 June 2020}}</ref> That same day, a second tornado, rated F2, damaged the northwest side of town.<ref name="Centerville">{{cite report|author=National Weather Service|date=February 2020|url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=10001460|title=Georgia Event Report: F2 Tornado|publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information|access-date=4 June 2020}}</ref> Ten months later, on [[Tornadoes of 1954#March 13|March 13, 1954]], a long-tracked F1 tornado struck the town, killing one and injuring five.<ref>{{cite web |title=Georgia F1 |url=http://www.tornadohistoryproject.com/tornado/19540313.13.4 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101020134429/http://www.tornadohistoryproject.com/tornado/19540313.13.4 |url-status=usurped |archive-date=October 20, 2010 |website=Tornado History Projects |publisher=Storm Prediction Center |access-date=11 July 2020}}</ref> Three years later, on [[Early-April 1957 tornado outbreak sequence#April 5 event|April 5, 1957]], an F2 tornado family hit the northwest side of the city, causing considerable damage.<ref>{{cite web |title=Georgia F2 |url=http://www.tornadohistoryproject.com/tornado/19570405.13.2 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110513191854/http://www.tornadohistoryproject.com/tornado/19570405.13.2 |url-status=usurped |archive-date=May 13, 2011 |website=Tornado History Projects |publisher=Storm Prediction Center |access-date=11 July 2020}}</ref> At least nine tornadoes have hit the town and the surrounding area.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tornado History Project: Houston County, Georgia |url=http://www.tornadohistoryproject.com/tornado/Georgia/Houston |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130513012328/http://www.tornadohistoryproject.com/tornado/Georgia/Houston |url-status=usurped |archive-date=May 13, 2013 |website=Tornado History Projects |publisher=Storm Prediction Center |access-date=11 July 2020}}</ref>