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Named for Major General Eben Swift (1854-1935), Camp Swift, established primarily for infantry division training, was a major military training facility for 300,000 men and women during World War II. The camp was active from May 1942 until July 1946, and covered nearly 56,000 acres. Shaped like a triangle, the reservation was like a self-contained city and included 2,750 buildings. The camp had the capacity to house and train 45,000 people. The 95th, the 97th, and the 102nd Infantry divisions and the 10th Mountain Division trained here during the war. The 2nd Infantry Division was processed through the camp after the war. More than 32,000 casualties were suffered by these five divisions. The camp also provided training for more than 100 separate non-divisional combat and other support units, and the only nurses combat training program in Texas. About 4,800 German prisoners of war were also held at Swift. At the end of world War II the camp shifted from war-time training to processing more than 12,400 officers and enlisted personnel from the service to civilian life. On June 30, 1946, the camp became inactive, and utilization was transferred from the U.S. Army to the State of Texas in December 1948. (1996) |
