Editing Fort Carson (section)

===Camp Carson===
Camp Carson was established in 1942, following Japan's attack on [[Pearl Harbor]]. The city of Colorado Springs, Colorado purchased land south of the city and donated it to the War Department. Construction began immediately and the first building, the camp headquarters, was completed on January 31, 1942. Camp Carson was named in honor of the legendary Army scout, General [[Kit Carson|Christopher "Kit" Carson]], who explored much of the West in the 1800s.

At the construction's peak, nearly 11,500 workers were employed on various construction projects at the new camp. Facilities were provided for 35,173 enlisted men, 1,818 officers, and 592 nurses. Almost all of the buildings were of mobilization-type construction, with wood-sided exteriors. The hospital complex was constructed of concrete block, considered semi-permanent, and had space for 1,726 beds, expandable to 2,000 beds.

[[File:TrainingatCampCarson.gif|thumb|left|250px|Training on a [[37 mm Gun M3|37mm anti-tank gun]] at Camp Carson.]]
The [[89th Infantry Division (United States)|89th Infantry Division]] was the first major unit to be activated at Camp Carson. During World War II, over 100,000 soldiers trained at Camp Carson. Along with three other infantry divisions – the [[71st Infantry Division (United States)|71st Infantry Division]], [[104th Infantry Division (United States)|104th Infantry Division]] and [[10th Mountain Division (United States)|10th Mountain Division]] – more than 125 units were activated at Camp Carson and more than 100 others were transferred to the mountain post from other installations.

Nurses, cooks, mule packers, tank battalions, a Greek infantry battalion, and an Italian ordnance company trained at Camp Carson during the war years. Camp Carson was also home to nearly 9,000 Axis prisoners of war – mostly Italians and Germans. The internment camp at Camp Carson opened on the first day of 1943. These POWs alleviated the manpower shortage in Colorado by doing general farm work, canning tomatoes, cutting corn, and aiding in logging operations on Colorado's Western Slope.

Between 1942 and 1956, pack mules were a common sight at Camp Carson. The first shipment arrived by train from Nebraska in July 1942. The mules were used by Field Artillery (Pack) battalions to carry equipment, weapons, and supplies over mountainous terrain. The most famous of these animals was Hambone, the pride of the [[4th Field Artillery Regiment (United States)|4th Field Artillery Battalion]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110522075401/http://www.history.army.mil/html/forcestruc/lineages/branches/fa/0004fa02bn.htm Branches] history.army.mil </ref> For 13 years, he carried the first sergeants up Ute Pass to [[Camp Hale]]. Camp Hale, located near [[Leadville, Colorado]], was where the Army conducted cold weather and mountain warfare training. Hambone died in March 1971 and was buried with full military honors.

By April 1946, the post-war military strength at the camp was around 600<ref>{{Cite web|title = History|url = http://www.carson.army.mil/DES/pmo/history.html|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150108181449/http://www.carson.army.mil/DES/pmo/history.html|url-status = dead|archive-date = January 8, 2015|website = www.carson.army.mil|access-date = 2016-02-18}}</ref> and on 16 December 1949, [[Strategic Air Command]] opened a survival school at Camp Carson for training in mountainous terrain (moved to [[Reno Stead Airport|Stead Air Force Base]], Nevada, in 1952.)<ref>Air Education and Training Command history, p. 146</ref>