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Camp Howze Museum

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  • Prisoner of War Capacity
    Letter discussing the possible construction of POW camp at Howze.
  • Camp Howze Veterans Bring Back Memories
    News story from the GDR discussing the reunion of Camp Howze veterans to experience the dedication of the Camp Howze memorial at the Gainesville Municipal Airport.
  • Frank and Pat Waldeck with Camp Howze Memorial
    Camp Howze veteran Frank Waldeck and his wife, Pat, pose with the memorial of Camp Howze at the Gainesville Municipal Airport.
  • 103rd Infantry Division Association Reunion in Gainesville
    103rd Infantry Division veterans reunite and stand in front of the "A Call to Duty" statue in Gainesville, Texas in 2016.
  • Military Dishes
    Image of military dishes
  • Ice Storm Soldier
    Image of soldier at Camp Howze during ice storm
  • Ice Storm
    Image of soldier in 1945 ice storm.
  • Cleveland Captain's World War II Draft Card
    Former Camp Howze soldier, Cleveland Captain's WWII draft card.
  • Howze Solider
    Picture of a Camp Howze soldier during an ice storm in 1945
  • Rosie the Riveter
    An image of female workers from the North American Aviation at Dallas who came to tour the camp.
  • Wolves in the Chowline
    A picture showing a men and women at a party at the camp.
  • Wallace "Tim" Duke Oral History Transcript
    Transcript of an oral history interview with Wallace "Tim" Duke, who was drafted into the Army during WWII and did his basic training at Camp Howze in Gainesville, Texas.
  • Archie Grant Oral History Transcript
    Transcript of an oral history interview with Archie Grant, a WWII Army veteran who did basic training at Camp Howze.
  • Story of Where Annie Went - Or Why Do You Have Pin-Ups?
    A humorous article describing a pin-up girl photo that was taken from a Cpl. Driscoll by the officer.
  • My WWII as I Recall
    Screenshots from a selection of pages of Carl Reed's book, "My WWII as I Recall."
  • Report After Action: The Story of the 103rd Infantry Division
    Screenshots from the book, "Report After Action: The Story of the 103rd Infantry Division," by Ralph Mueller and Jerry Turk.
  • "Denison School Annex"
    Newspaper article that discusses the purchase of a surplus building from Camp Howze by a school in Denison. It also touches on the first building bought by Denison public schools and its use.
  • Jan Seale
    Photo of 2012 Texas Poet Laureaute Jan Seale, who lived in Gainesville as a kid and would tag along to Camp Howze with her father who served as pastor of the First Baptist Church of Gainesville in the 1940s. In her 2021 poem, "Camp Howze, Texas 1944," Seale recounts an early memory of being at the camp while her father held a religious ceremony for soldiers.
  • Carrollton First Baptist Church
    Newspaper article discussing the surplus that was bought from Camp Howze in Gainesville and its use at Carrollton's First Baptist Church. Discusses the opening of the Church.
  • "Camp Howze Christmas" Cover Close Up
    Close up of the cover of the the program that was provided to the audience that attended the production, "Camp Howze Christmas." The program lists the music included in Act One and Act Two. It also features a lengthy description of Camp Howze and the effects the camp had on the Gainesville community.
  • POW Camp Construction
    In this "1 Year Ago in the Howitzer" article, there is mention of the announcement of a prisoner of war camp being built at Camp Howze.
  • Cont. (2) list of Cooke County land Vendors
    A continued ordered list of families and relevant properties within Cooke county.
  • Calvary Baptist Church
    Calvary Baptist Church in Gainesville used wood from the barracks to build a room in the building.
  • Prisoner of War Camp Sports
    This article in the Camp Howze Howitzer mentions how the 1885th 'Commando' beat the prisoner of war camp ball team.
  • Sports for POWs
    This article tells of the 1885th 'Commando' playing softball against the POW camp at Camp Howze.
  • 103rd Infantry Division
    Insignia of the 103rd
  • 86th Infantry Division
    Insignia of the 86th.
  • "Camp Howze Days" Article
    As "Camp Howze Canteen" was part of the 3-day memorial celebration, "Camp Howze Days," they also included a series of dances in honor of Camp Howze. This article includes a detailed schedule of events planned for "Camp Howze Days." The article also includes descriptions of the people who worked hard to direct, preform, and showcase the dances along with the theatre productions for "Camp Howze Days"
  • Should I Sacrifice to Live 'Half-American?'
    A copy of the letter written by James G. Thompson to the Pittsburgh Courier suggesting a 'Double VV' campaign for victory against oppression both overseas and at home.
  • Double V Campaign
    A digital image of the original Double VV Campaign launched and promoted by the Pittsburgh Courier, suggested by James G. Thompson, in a letter he wrote to the editor of the newspaper.
  • Corporal Earvin L. Wagner
    This is a photo posted for public use on a genealogy website for Gregg County, TX. The following information regarding the photo was shared on the website: Son of Mrs. Anner Walker. Husband of Mozel Clark Wagner. Entered Air Corps 1942. Trained at Camp Howze, Texas. Served at Dalhart Army Air Field.
  • Sergeant Willie Thomas Willis
    This is a photo that was posted for public use on a geneology website for Gregg County, TX . The website provided the following information regarding the photo: The name of soldier was Sgt. Willie Thomas Willis. Son of Mr. & Mrs. Tom Willis. Attended Prairie View College, Hempstead, Texas. Entered Air Corps 1942. Trained at Camp Howze, Texas. Holds Good Conduct Medal. Served at Maxton, NC.
  • "The Negro Soldier" Promotional Poster
    A promotional poster for the film "The Negro Soldier" produced by the War Department and directed by Col. Frank Capra.
  • Service Command Map of the U.S. Army Service Forces
    A map depicting the nine Army Service Forces service commands that divided the contiguous United States into service territories for the U.S. Army
  • "Organization of the Army Service Forces"
    An organizational chart depicting the command structure of the U.S Army Service Forces of WWII
  • "History Alive Weekend 2016" YouTube Video
    This YouTube video captures the fun-filled "History Alive Weekend" of 2016, hosted by Camp Howze MVPA. This week long event began Friday afternoon with a USO show, and ended Sunday with a reenactment inspired by a WWII battle. This event was filled with reenactors dressed up as U.S., German, and many other soldiers from WWII, in this moment history truly came alive for the spectators at this occasion.
  • "History Alive Weekend 2016" Brochure
    This brochure details the various educational and interactive programs Camp Howze MVPA offered various schools participating in the "History Alive Weekend" of 2016. In addition to the educational and interactive programs, the brochure provides an in-depth description, target age group, and estimated length for said programs offered.
  • "Learning Stations" Slideshow Presentation
    Camp Howze MVPA offers a diverse educational program for children of all ages. Learning stations are included amongst one of their many educational tools to inform the public. As declared in the presentation, Camp Howze MVPA has a variety of learning stations that are complete with original WWII components and interactive displays. This system is utilized to grab the audiences' attention while also informing them on the daily life of a WWII soldier.
  • Automotive Shop
    Workers from Automotive Shop stand tall for picture.
  • Time to eat.
    Interior of busy chow hall at Camp Howze.
  • Interior of enlisted barracks.
    Temporary barracks with empty beds and one large heater at one end of room.
  • Remembering Camp Howze
    USO volunteer Marie Cannon shares warm memories.
  • How to bathe a baby.
    Nursing staff teaching how to bathe a baby in a tub.
  • Rationed recipes
    Recipes during wartime, no sugar.
  • Roads at camp
    Unfinished roads at Camp Howze.
  • Howdy Kermit
    Kermit in cowboy hat and grinning.
  • Fair Park USO
    Fair Park was one of the first USOs built in Gainesville. The fair park USO was built for 86,000 or 1,429,320 calculated for 2022 inflation. Major Richard Donovan, Mrs. John M. Hanna, and Cecil Murphy each provided three minute speeches at the USOs dedication along with fifteen unnamed speakers.
  • "Food for the Troops" Slideshow Presentation
    This individual slide details an educational program provided by Camp Howze MVPA, known as "Food for the Troops." This presentation educates children of all ages about the various food that was available to U.S. soldiers during WWII.
  • Camp Medics help local businesses
    Not only did Gainesville businesses benefit financially from Camp Howze's proximity, but they were able to learn new information about business practices. Such is the case for the restaurants and other businesses in Gainesville when camp medics visited to teach them about safe food handling practices.
  • "Johnny Rodriguez Trio"
    A Latin-American music group called the Johnny Rodriguez Trio played on stage at Camp Howze as part of a USO show titled "Brazilian Nights."