Existing comment:
Camp Sevier:
"The general attitude of... Greenville [citizens]... has been to aid in the construction of Camp Sevier. On many occasions, these men of Greenville have left their offices and work and given their time to advance construction..."
-- Major Alex Dingle, Construction at Camp Sevier (?), December 1917
In comparison to Camp Jackson, the post constructed on the outskirts of Greenville was smaller. Most of its barracks were tends with wooden floors each housing eight men. Although smaller than the Midlands post Sevier still required months to work by both hired workers and soldiers to build roads, railheads, latrines, and horse stables. The structures included an infirmary, theater, mess halls, and a church. At its peak of construction in August 1917, the post employed nearly 4,000 workers.
By the war's end, Sevier had trained 100,000 troops. Best known as the 30th Division, a National Guard unit created of men mostly from the Carolinas and Tennessee. It later fought with distinction on the Western Front and helped break through the Hindenburg line, bringing an end to the war.
Training at Sevier:
For the first time in warfare, troops had to learn how to protect themselves from gas attacks. Sevier, like every post, conducted training for this, sometimes with bad effect. Such was the case for Carl Clodfelter of the 30th Division. Years later, he recalled one day of training [at] Camp Sevier: "They took us out through the woods and fired shots. They said it was gas, but I didn't think it was because you could hear traffic on the highway. [Nevertheless] we had to put on gas masks to protect us... you clamped your nose so you had to breath through your mouth through chemicals in your mask... It was hot, and they carried us down into the woods and it was rough. [Eventually I] got sick fainted, and fell backwards standing at attention."
As in many camps, supplies and equipment were short. Sometimes troops had to train on models. Such as the case with artillery units. The 113th Field Artillery drilled with log guns until real artillery pieces could be acquired. When they went to France, they had to retrain on the French 75mm howitzer. |