Fort Novosel (Dale County, Alabama)
Dale County · Alabama · World War II
History & Significance
The facility opened on 58,000 acres of sub-marginal farmland on May 1, 1942, with quarters for 3,280 officers and 39,461 enlisted personnel. The 81st Infantry Division was the first unit to train at Camp Rucker; the division departed for action in the Pacific Theater in March 1943.
Three additional infantry divisions—the 35th, 98th, and 66th—received training here during World War II, alongside dozens of smaller units including tank, infantry replacement, and Women's Army Corps formations. During the latter part of the war, several hundred German and a few Italian prisoners of war were housed in stockades near the railroad on the southern edge of the post.
The installation remained inactive from March 1946 until August 1950, reopening during the Korean War when the Minnesota National Guard's 47th Infantry Division was sent there in fall 1950 to provide cadre for basic training and replacement soldiers bound for Korea. In August 1954, the Army Aviation School began relocating from Fort Sill, Oklahoma, with the first class commencing in October; the Army Aviation Center was officially established on February 1, 1955, and the post was given permanent status with a name change from Camp to Fort Rucker that October. Flight training was consolidated at the base in 1973.
Key Facts
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Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Rucker
- https://home.army.mil/rucker/history
- https://encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/fort-rucker/
- https://www.army.mil/article/113843/fort_rucker_traces_army_roots_to_early_1940s
- https://alabamanewscenter.com/2017/10/13/day-alabama-history-army-renamed-camp-rucker-fort-rucker/
- https://alabamanewscenter.com/2018/12/22/day-alabama-history-dale-county-founded/
- https://encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/dale-county/
- https://www.army.mil/article/287149/home_of_army_aviation_redesignated_fort_rucker